President Biden joked Friday that Republicans might impeach him because inflation is coming down.
Mr. Biden ribbed Republicans during a visit to Auburn Manufacturing Inc., a textile manufacturer in Maine. The Commerce Department this month said prices rose 3% for the 12 months ending in June, meaning inflation is at its lowest point in two years.
“Maybe they’ll decide to impeach me because it’s coming down. I don’t know. I love that one. Anyway, that’s another story,” Mr. Biden said in his speech in Maine.
Republicans have relentlessly criticized Mr. Biden’s economic policies for fueling inflation, but the subsiding of rising prices likely robs them of that talking point in the 2024 campaigns. Impeachment, however, is another matter.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he is considering an impeachment inquiry into alleged influence peddling and bribery involving Mr. Biden and his family’s highly profitable foreign business deals.
The latest inflation report gave hope that Federal Reserve’s rate increases can soften inflation while avoiding a recession. It also put a spring in Mr. Biden’s step as he touted his “Bidenomics” agenda.
The pitch has been a hard sell, however, for Americans who continue to struggle to make ends meet.
Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday said that “most Americans are a $400 unexpected expense away from bankruptcy.”
She was talking about women who will struggle to afford travel for an abortion, though 2024 GOP presidential hopefuls seized on the comment.
“Yeah, that’s called Bidenomics and it’s a problem,” tweeted Sen. Tim Scott, a South Carolina Republican and presidential candidate. “Americans have lost $10,000 in spending power because of the Biden-Harris agenda.”
Mr. Biden acknowledged there is more work to do.
“I’m not here to declare victory on the economy,” he said. “We have more work to do. We have a plan for turning things around.”
Mr. Biden on Friday signed an executive order designed to spur manufacturing. It says products that are invented with federal support should be manufactured using U.S.-made materials.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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