‘Get Serious’: Manchin Says ‘Severe Economic Pain’ Cannot Be ‘Ignored’

Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin ripped into the Biden Administration on Thursday after a Labor Department report showed a key inflation measure setting a fresh, 40-year record in January.

“For months, I have been ringing the alarm about inflation. Once again, we are witnessing that the threat of inflation is real,” Manchin said in a statement, highlighting the significant impact rising prices have on American workers’ lives.

“Inflation taxes are draining are the hard-earned wages of every American, and it’s causing real and severe economic pain that can no longer be ignored,” Manchin said. “It’s beyond time for the Federal Reserve to tackle this issue head on, and Congress and the Administration must proceed with caution before adding more fuel to an economy already on fire.”

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 0.6% in January, bringing the key inflation indicator’s year-over-year increase to 7.5%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced Thursday.

Manchin reiterated his stance on government overspending and surging national debt, saying, “only in Washington, DC do people seem to think that spending trillions more of taxpayers’ money will cure our problems, let alone inflation.”

Manchin has been a vocal advocate against President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better bill, repeatedly criticizing the legislation’s size and scope amid soaring inflation. When asked in early February about renewed negotiations over the bill, Manchin said, “There is no Build Back Better bill, I don’t know what you’re all talking about. It’s dead.”

Manchin first voiced his total opposition to Biden’s $2 trillion bill on Fox News in mid-December 2021.

“When you have these things coming at you the way they are right now, I’ve always said this, Bret, if I can’t go home to the people of West Virginia, I can’t vote for it,” Manchin said, adding that his “concerns have only increased as the pandemic surges on, inflation rises and geopolitical uncertainty increases around the world.”

“We must get serious about the finances of our country. It’s time we start acting like stewards of our economy and the money the American people entrust their government with,” Manchin concluded Thursday.