President Joe Biden has been criticized for falsely claiming twice in less than a week that the inflation rate was 9% when he took office. This inaccurate statement was highlighted by Republicans, including former President and current presidential rival Donald Trump.
In an interview with CNN last Wednesday, Biden stated, “No president’s had the run we’ve had in terms of creating jobs and bringing down inflation. It was 9% when I came to office, 9%.” He reiterated this claim in a Tuesday interview with Yahoo Finance, albeit in a slightly vaguer form, saying, “I think inflation has gone slightly up. It was at 9% when I came in, and it’s now down around 3%.”
However, Biden’s assertion that the inflation rate was 9% when he assumed the presidency is incorrect. The year-over-year inflation rate in January 2021, the month he was inaugurated, was approximately 1.4%. While the inflation rate did peak at about 9.1% during Biden’s term, this occurred in June 2022, more than 16 months into his presidency. As of March 2024, the inflation rate was about 3.5%, up from around 3.2% the previous month.
The Actual Numbers
- January 2021: Inflation rate approximately 1.4%
- June 2022: Inflation peak at about 9.1%
- March 2024: Inflation rate approximately 3.5%
Biden’s claims create a misleading narrative that inflation is significantly lower today than it was when he took office, whereas the reality is that inflation has actually risen since his inauguration. However, it is true that inflation has decreased from its June 2022 peak, which was influenced by global economic disruptions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Context and Misrepresentation
Biden’s incorrect claims are similar to a false statement he made in October 2022 regarding gas prices, where he also wrongly used a June 2022 figure as a starting point for his presidency.
A White House official defended Biden’s comments in an email to CNN, stating, “The President was making the point that the factors that caused inflation were in place when he took office. The pandemic caused inflation around the world by disrupting our economy and breaking our supply chains.”
Upcoming Data
The April 2024 inflation rate is expected to be revealed soon with the release of new Consumer Price Index data. Recently released Producer Price Index data indicated the highest wholesale inflation rate in a year.
Summary
President Biden’s repeated claims that the inflation rate was 9% when he took office are incorrect. The actual inflation rate in January 2021 was about 1.4%. The rate did peak at 9.1% in June 2022 but has since declined to around 3.5% as of March 2024. The White House argues that the President was referring to the underlying factors of inflation, but the specific figures he cited are inaccurate.