Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Representative Tim Ryan (D-OH-13) has shown support for regulations that would prevent inflation while simultaneously favoring larger spending bills.
This year Ryan voted against preventing regulations that would cause inflation and a gas tax hike.
However, in late 2021 he favored a larger spending bill (“Build Back Better”) over a slimmed-down plan favored by moderate Democratic senators. Ryan said that Democrats should not minimize the extent of inflation but rather emphasize “Build Back Better” as a way to address it.
“I am proud to vote today to advance both the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the Build Back Better Act. These two historic bills are a tremendous opportunity to not only rebuild our nation’s roads and bridges but to truly meet the needs of American working families. Together, these bills will rebuild our crumbling infrastructure, create more jobs, cut taxes, and lower the cost of medicine, childcare, and health care,” Ryan said.
Early this year, when it became obvious the legislation would not pass and he had heard an increasing amount of anxiety pertaining to the economy, Ryan blamed President Joe Biden for trying to pass a “wish list” – the same measure that Ryan also voted for in the House in 2021. Ryan urged Biden to “hit the reset button” a year after he became president and prioritize economic initiatives that will put money back into American’s pockets rather than wish-list items that won’t fly in the U.S. Senate.
In mid-October, Ryan changed his prior claim that Biden is at fault for the rising inflation costs by saying instead that “everyone is to blame.”
“We could sit here and argue about why” inflation is happening, Ryan said, adding that it is a “global phenomenon right now.”
Ryan also showed his support for the Democratic Inflation Reduction Act raising taxes by $16.7 billion on Americans earning less than $200,000 according to a study from the nonpartisan joint committee. This bill also removed 27,000 job opportunities according to a study from the Tax Foundation.
Ryan claimed that the Act would not raise taxes on middle class Americans.
“I hear every day from Ohioans who are getting hammered by inflation, and it’s why I’ve been fighting tooth and nail in Congress to immediately get relief out the door. The Inflation Reduction Act is a historic opportunity to bring down prices, reform our healthcare system, reduce our deficit and make historic investments in domestic energy production and manufacturing that will set our nation on the path to dominate the clean energy industry – all while not raising a penny in taxes on middle class Americans,” Ryan said.
Recently, Ryan participated in a televised joint town hall with Republican nominee J.D. Vance hosted by FOX News Channel. At this event an attendee questioned him if he could look her in the face and tell her that the government expenditures through the Inflation Reduction Act, that Ryan publicly supports, are in any way lessening her burden at the gas pump or grocery store.
“I could not say that right now in the present moment,” Ryan said.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) produced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), is the most widely used measure of inflation. The primary CPI (CPI-U) measures the percentage change in the price of a basket of goods and services consumed by households. According to The Joint Economic Committee, The CPI-U inflation as of September in Ohio is currently 6.8% an increase of .6% since August and a 5.6% increase from the year prior.
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star and The Star News Network. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected].
