Tag: Inflation Reduction Act

Youngkin Felt Rejected Ford Battery Plant Deal Was ‘Deceptive’ Effort to Dodge Intent of Inflation Reduction Act

Eric Burk

RICHMOND, Virginia – Governor Glenn Youngkin said Thursday that he felt that Ford’s partnership with Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. (CATL) to build a battery factory potentially sited in Virginia seemed like an effort to dodge the intent behind the Inflation Reduction Act, and accused The Richmond Times-Dispatch of ignoring facts in reporting on his decision to block the economic development opportunity from going forward in the Commonwealth.

Read the full story

Chinese Communist Party-Linked Solar Panel Company Could Reap ‘Inflation Reduction Act’ Handouts with U.S. Factory

Admin

JA Solar, a Chinese green energy giant whose chairman is tied to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), has leased a plot of land in Phoenix, Arizona, to construct a $60 million solar panel factory that is poised to benefit from huge green energy tax incentives included in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

Jin Baofang, chairman and CEO of the Bejing-based company, said that he had been a CCP member for 40 years during a 2020 interview with the Chinese state-run newspaper “The Paper.” The JA Solar factory, which could take advantage of the green energy tax credits included in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), will create 600 jobs and use automated assembly lines to manufacture 2 gigawatts’ worth of solar panels annually once it becomes fully operational, according to a Tuesday Arizona Commerce Authority press release.

Read the full story

Commentary: With New Pricing Law, the Feds Can Make Drug Firms Offers They Really Can’t Refuse

RealClearWire

President Biden has promised that the $740 billion Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law this August, will “lower the cost of prescription drugs and health care for families” thanks to provisions that allow the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate the price of some medications directly with pharmaceutical companies. 

Critics are decidedly less enthusiastic. They say the IRA’s new drug price provisions are more akin to government price-fixing than negotiation – an unprecedented power grab in health care. 

Read the full story

Commentary: On Her Way Out, Pelosi Threatens Year-Long Continuing Resolution of ‘Last Resort’

Admin

“[A]s an appropriator myself, left to their own devices, the Republicans and Democrats in a bipartisan way on the Appropriations Committee can reach a solution. But sadly we have no choice if they can’t that we would have to have a year-long [continuing resolution].”

Outgoing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has issued an ultimatum to House and Senate negotiators of the year-end omnibus bill that either they “reach a solution” or else the House will “have no choice” but to just pass the same omnibus bill they passed last year via a year-long continuing resolution until Sept. 30, 2023, effectively freezing federal spending.

Read the full story

REVIEW: The Book Climate Industrial Complex Doesn’t Want You to Read

Admin

When it comes to environmental policy, the only “solutions” coming from liberal politicians activists involve radically restructuring society and centralizing more power in the government — while, of course, handing out billions in tax dollars to politically-favored special interests.

Whether it’s the Paris climate accords, Green New Deal or the recently-passed Inflation Reduction Act, these political schemes to remake the economy often end up enriching the climate industrial complex and empowering unelected, unaccountable bureaucracies.

Read the full story

Commentary: The U.S. Senate’s ‘Spendthrift Seven’ Are the IRS’ Best Friends

Admin

August 7 was a big day for the Spendthrift Seven. In just 12 hours, these Senate Democrats — all facing re-election Tuesday — gave the middle finger to middle-class taxpayers, hugged illegal aliens, and high-fived the IRS.

Arizona’s Mark Kelly, Colorado’s Michael Bennet, Connecticut’s Richard Blumenthal, Georgia’s Raphael Warnock, Nevada’s Catherine Cortez Masto, New Hampshire’s Maggie Hassan and Washington’s Patty Murray did these things while the Senate considered President Joe Biden’s deceptively titled, 273-page Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Their votes should appall every American.

Read the full story

Kiggans and Luria Trade Blows on Abortion, Economic Policy

Eric Burk

Representative Elaine Luria (D-VA-02) and challenger Virginia Senator Jen Kiggans (R-Virginia Beach) faced off in a Wednesday debate hosted by the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce. While many of the debate questions were more business-focused, the two candidates took repeated swings at their opponents’ weak points. Kiggans attacked Luria for aligning with Democrats and cited the economic impacts of their policy, and Luria warned that if elected, Kiggans would take a hard line on abortion and other reproductive issues.

The moderator asked Luria how she felt about the end of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline and what the district should expect from Luria on energy. She responded by emphasizing the importance of nuclear power and added, “What they can expect from me: offshore wind development. You know, we’re not going to wake up tomorrow and stop using oil and natural gas. Of course we need adequate transmission of oil and natural gas to support our industry in the area.”

Read the full story

Blake Masters Receives Endorsement from Former Senate Candidate Opponent Jim Lamon

Neil Jones

Arizona Republican Senate nominee Blake Masters has received an endorsement from a former opponent, Senate candidate, veteran, and businessman Jim Lamon.

“We need to elect a conservative Republican who will vote for American values, secure our border, lower inflation and combat crime – on November 8th, join me in voting for Blake Masters,” said Lamon. “I am supporting Blake because Joe Biden and Mark Kelly have been a disaster for America and our great state. We must stop their Marxist agenda and put America and Arizona first.”

Read the full story

Commentary: Biden’s IRS Auditor Army Will Disrupt Economic Recovery

RealClearWire

The Biden administration’s decision to recruit nearly 90,000 new IRS auditors could have a chilling effect on small businesses and economic growth, permanently impeding our nation’s ability to recover from its current economic malaise.

As part of the misleadingly titled “Inflation Reduction Act,” President Biden and his allies secured roughly $80 billion in new IRS funding to hire 87,000 auditors. This is bad news for the American economy.

Read the full story

Connecticut U.S. Senate Candidate Leora Levy: Biden’s and Blumenthal’s ‘Inflation Reduction Act’ Is ‘Gaslighting Americans’

Susan Berry, PhD

Joe Biden’s “Inflation Reduction Act,” which seeks to “gaslight Americans into thinking it is something that it is not,” will allow Biden and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) “to tax middle-class American families, to the tune of $10.6 billion in new taxes,” wrote Connecticut Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate Leora Levy in an op-ed Sunday at the Hartford Courant.

Levy, who emerged the victor in the Connecticut GOP primary race to unseat career Democrat Blumenthal, put Biden’s signature legislation into perspective.

Read the full story

Red States to Cash In on Dems’ Green Energy Bill

Admin

The Inflation Reduction Act is pumping money for electric vehicle initiatives into Republican-led states with congressional representatives who unanimously opposed it.

The new law will offer a tax credit for the production of battery cells at a rate of $35 per kilowatt hour the battery can store, representing a credit of about 35% the cost for a company to fabricate a cell, according to Axios. A survey of major electric vehicle and battery production investments in the U.S. as of June 2022 reveals that roughly 2 out of every 3 are being built in a state with two Republican senators, according to data from Axios.

Read the full story

Biden’s New Spending Bill Supersizes the EPA’s Budget

Admin

The Democrats’ massive climate spending package, which President Joe Biden signed into law on Tuesday, will give over $40 billion to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), just as the bill allocates almost $80 billion to expand the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

The bill, dubbed the Inflation Reduction Act, includes $369 billion in total climate spending, and will give the EPA more than $40 billion in the current fiscal year to combat climate change, enforce environmental standards and secure “environmental justice,” according to a Congressional Research Service report. The EPA’s enacted budget for 2022’s fiscal year was about $9.5 billion, according to the agency figures, meaning the bill will more than quadruple the EPA’s current annual spending.

Read the full story

Connecticut Republican U.S. Senate Candidate Leora Levy: Sen. Richard Blumenthal ‘Laughs Off’ Concern over Biden’s Creation of 87,000 New IRS Agents to Target Americans

Susan Berry, PhD

Connecticut GOP U.S. Senate candidate Leora Levy observed Senator Richard Blumenthal’s (D-CT) mockery of Americans expressing concern over Joe Biden’s creation of 87,000 new IRS Agents in his legislation that will increase taxes on middle-income Americans and will do nothing to reduce inflation.

“I think the IRS is going to target the highest income Americans,” Blumenthal minimized concern over the Inflation Reduction Act on CNN’s State of the Union recently. “As the saying goes, that’s where the money is. That’s where they’re going to look to collect. The idea that there’s going to be this army of IRS agents defending descending on the average American is just preposterous.”

Read the full story

U.S. Senate Hopeful Blake Masters: Mark Kelly Should Go Back to Space

Neil Jones

PHOENIX, Arizona – Arizona Senate Republican nominee Blake Masters spoke at the recent “Unite and Win” rally in Phoenix, hosted by Turning Point Action, telling Arizonans it is time to get Mark Kelly (D-AZ) out of office.

“You know what, hey, we can respect that he [Mark Kelly] used to be an astronaut,” Masters said. “I’m sure he was really great at it. Doing all the experiments in space or whatever it is that astronauts do nowadays. Let him do that. Because here on earth, he’s failing. Here on earth, we have some big problems. Here on earth, we have massive inflation. Here on earth, in Arizona, there’s an invasion at our southern border.”

Read the full story

GA-7 Nominee Mark Gonsalves Rejects Expansion of IRS, Calls for More Border Patrol Agents

Addison Basurto

Republican nominee Mark Gonsalves (R-GA-07) called the proposition for IRS expansion made by the Biden administration “the definition of runaway democracy” and criticized his opponent, Lucy McBath, for her support of the incumbent president.

“Tuesday Trivia fact that’s real, believe it or not. Under Joe Biden, the IRS staff will be larger than the combined totals of the FBI, the Pentagon, the Border Patrol, and the State Department. That is the definition of runaway democracy,” Gonsalves said in reference the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

Read the full story

Virginia Democrats Praise ‘Historic’ Inflation Reduction Act, Republicans Say the Bill Will Increase Costs for Americans

Eric Burk

Virginia Democrats trumpeted the Inflation Reduction Act after the House of Representatives passed the legislation on Friday, putting President Joe Biden on the path to a key win on his goals ahead of the 2022 congressional midterms. At the same time, Republicans mocked the bill’s title and criticized its policies.

In a speech on the House Floor, Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA-08) compared the bill to landmark legislation from the U.S.’ past.

“This is our generation’s signature contribution to American history. Our Social Security Act. Our Civil Rights Act, even the Bill of Rights,” Beyer said.

Read the full story

Arizona Representatives React to House Passing the Inflation Reduction Act

Neil Jones

Arizona Representatives, including Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08), Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04), and Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05), all recently released statements slamming the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) as it passed the U.S. House Friday and will move on to President Joe Biden.

“President Biden and congressional Democrats are so out of touch with everyday Americans that they just pushed through a massive tax and spending bill that will increase taxes, gasoline prices, and utility rates all while making the lives of Americans worse,” Lesko said. “I won’t do that to the American people and that is why I voted no.”

Read the full story

Analysis: 10 Actions to Reduce Energy Prices That Won’t Cost Taxpayers $740 Billion

The Center Square

Rather than impose higher taxes and more restrictions on domestic production of oil and natural gas, as Senate Democrats voted to do by passing the Inflation Reduction Act, those in the industry proposed 10 actions policy makers can take right now to reduce costs. The industry says its solutions won’t cost taxpayers $740 billion, as the Inflation Reduction Act does, or increase the national debt or inflation, as 230 economists have warned the act will do.

Read the full story

Harvard University Denied Tax Cut After Lobbying to Senate Democrats

Admin

Harvard University’s request for an endowment tax cut was denied despite frequent lobbying to Senate Democrats for its inclusion in the Inflation Reduction Act.

The Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 with tax increases on corporations and energy firms but did not include plans to lower the endowment tax, which is tax paid on income from individual donors to colleges, according to the bill.  Senior Executive Director of Federal Relations at Harvard University Suzanne Day sent an email in July urging Democratic Senators to eliminate the tax in the upcoming bill.

Read the full story

Arizona Republican Lawmakers React to the U.S. Senate Passing the ‘Inflation Reduction Act’

Kaitlin Housler

On Sunday, the US Senate passed the Democrat-backed $740 billion “Inflation Reduction Act” by a 51 to 50 vote, with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the deciding vote. Many Arizona Republican lawmakers are among those claiming the bill will further impact inflation in a negative way while offering no real-time solution to struggling Americans.

Read the full story

Senators Bill Hagerty and Marsha Blackburn Lambaste Passage of ‘Inflation Reduction Act,’ Warn Higher Prices, Taxes are Coming

Kaitlin Housler

U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Bill Hagerty (R-TN) criticized President Joe Biden and their Democrat colleagues on the passage of the $740 billion “Inflation Reduction Act” Sunday. As expected, no Republicans supported the measure, and so by a 51 to 50 vote, with Vice President Kamala Harris cast the deciding vote.

The Inflation Reduction Act, described by Forbes as “a slimmed-down version of the Build Back Better bill,” allows the government to control the price of prescription medications, contains funding for fighting climate change, would implement larger taxes for wealthy corporations, expand the IRS by some 87,000 agents, and more more.

Read the full story

Commentary: ‘Inflation Reduction Act’ Will Throw Fuel on the Flames of Stagflation

Admin

The folly of the Biden administration’s recently announced “Inflation Reduction Act” recalls Orwellian slogans such as “Slavery is Freedom.” The plan will throw fuel on the flames of stagflation while accelerating environmental deterioration. The act would raise an estimated $739 billion through tax increases and heightened IRS scrutiny to then invest $306 billion in “deficit reduction” and $369 billion in “energy security and climate change” to “reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030.” If ever there were a proposal that failed out the gate, this is one.

Read the full story