Biden Calls on Fed to Fight Inflation In News Conference

At a Wednesday news conference marking his first year in office, President Joe Biden called on the Federal Reserve to do more to fight inflation by pulling back on its monetary boosting of the U.S. economy.

Inflation at nearly a 40-year high has dogged the Biden administration, causing his public support to tumble even as economic growth and hiring has surged.

“Given the strength of our economy, and the pace of recent price increases, it’s important to recalibrate the support that is now necessary,” the president said in his opening remarks.

He acknowledged Americans’ frustrations on COVID-19 and the economy, says he may need to settle on smaller spending agenda.

Biden said he believes Vladimir Putin doesn’t want full blown war in Ukraine and would pay a “dear price” if he moves forward with a military incursion.

Speaking at a news conference to mark his one-year anniversary in office, he also said he believes that Russia is preparing to take action on Ukraine, though he doesn’t think Putin has made a final decision. He suggested that he would limit Russia’s access to the international banking system if it did further invade Ukraine.

“I’m not so sure that he is certain what is he going to do,” Biden said. He added, “My guess is he will move in.”

In advance of the session, set for his 365th day in office, Biden gave no indication that he felt a reset was in order. But his appearance was playing out on the same day that prolonged Democratic efforts to overhaul the nation’s voter laws appeared set to go down in flames on Capitol Hill and as Biden’s massive social spending package remains stalled.

The event in the East Room offers Biden an opportunity to spotlight his accomplishments before a national audience, and he was sure to highlight the bipartisan infrastructure law enacted on his watch.

Still, it is a perilous time for Biden: The nation is gripped by another disruptive surge of virus cases and inflation is at a level not seen in a generation. Biden’s approval rating has fallen sharply over his first year in office and Democrats are bracing for a potential midterm rout if he can’t turn things around.

Biden has held just six solo news conferences during his first year in office. The ongoing threat from the coronavirus will be evident in the very setup of Wednesday’s gathering: A limited number of reporters will be allowed to attend, and all will have to be tested for the virus and wear masks.

The White House said Biden would use his appearance to highlight progress made but also to “level” with the public about the challenges ahead.

“The work is not done, the job is not done, and we are certainly not conveying it is,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday. “So, our objective, and I think what you’ll hear the president talk about tomorrow, is how to build on the foundation we laid in the first year.”

As for voting rights, she said, Biden’s view “is that it’s never a good idea not to shoot for the moon with what your proposals are and what you’re fighting for. And the alternative is to fight for nothing and to fight for nothing hard.”

The enduring impact of COVID-19 has become a weight on Biden’s presidency, despite his best efforts to rally the country in common purpose to defeat the virus. As a candidate, he promised to restore normalcy to a pandemic-riven nation, but overcrowded hospitals, shortages at grocery stores and fierce divisions over vaccine mandates and face mask requirements abound.

On the Senate floor, meanwhile, Democrats are on track to lose a vote to change the chamber’s rules in order to pass voting reform legislation due to the opposition of Democratic Sens. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia. That will underscore the constraints on Biden’s influence barely a week after he delivered an impassioned speech in Atlanta comparing opponents of the measures to segregationists and exhorting senators to action.

And just a month ago, Manchin blocked Biden’s roughly $2 trillion legislation aiming to address climate change, reduce child poverty and expand the social safety net, paid for by new taxes on the wealthy. That bill, which contains much of what Biden hopes will form an enduring domestic legacy, is now on the back burner as Democrats await guidance from Biden on how to proceed.

The bill was once viewed as a catch-all home for various progressive priorities, but now Democrats are sensing the need to deliver another accomplishment to voters in the midterm year and are beginning to come to terms with a slimmed-down package that can overcome Manchin’s reticence.