Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) on Tuesday reportedly repeated his dubious “greedflation” claim at an event in Lawrence County despite being contradicted in multiple fact checks, and after his Republican opponent, Dave McCormick, released his campaign’s “Casey Inflation Calculator” charting price hikes during his time in office.
Casey told attendees of a lunch held by the Lawrence County Democrats on Tuesday that companies “jack up prices and we’re supposed to just shut up about it,” according to New Castle News.
The incumbent reportedly told the crowd, “They say, ‘If we’re involved in price gouging, you better get used to it.’ We’re not going to get used to it. We’re going to fight them. We’re going to go after those price-gougers and hold them accountable.”
In order to provide relief, the outlet reported Casey told the audience Congress must “hold corporations accountable for price gouging,” and pass new child tax credits.
He first used the term before a national audience last month at the Democratic National Convention (DNC), when Casey claimed companies that claim “their costs are up” are “selling you a lie.” According to Casey, “Prices are up because these corporations are scheming to drive them up.”
CNN immediately fact-checked the claim during the DNC, noting that the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco determined that “corporate price gouging was not necessarily a primary catalyst of the inflation surge of 2021 and 2022.”
Days later, the fact-checking website PolitiFact rated Casey’s “reflation” claim “Mostly False,” reporting that most economists agree increased prices are primarily driven by “rising costs for goods and labor” and not corporate greed.
McCormick also seized on Casey’s claim, calling the incumbent a “weak career politician” responsible for the legislation now “driving higher prices, enabling open borders and the flood of fentanyl, crushing Pennsylvania’s energy sector, and encouraging violent crime.”
His campaign then created the website bobflation.com, which contains a “Casey Cost Calculator” that charts the increase of items from popular Pennsylvania stores, including the Philly Pretzel Factory and Wawa.
A Wednesday poll found McCormick and Casey tied, each supported by 46 percent of Pennsylvania voters. The RealClearPolling average suggests Casey retains a 3-point lead over his Republican opponent.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Bob Casey” by Bob Casey.
