Former Democratic Sen. Al Franken criticized his party for not doing enough to reduce inflation, warning on Tuesday that the weakness of the Inflation Reduction Act has caused him to “stress” the chances of the Democrats in the November midterms.
Franken made the comments on a recent episode of “The Al Franken Podcast,” where he discussed the party’s inadequacy in reducing inflation and the growing financial burden on American families. The Minnesota Democrat told the audience that while he feels the Republican response is inadequate, the results of the Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act have been too small to resonate with voters come November.
“The American people are worried about inflation. Gas prices are going back up, rent, food, it’s hard to care about anything else when you don’t know if you’re going to make it month to month or week to week. Like the Republicans are going to give every answer. Yes. Unfortunately called the Inflation Reduction Act – unfortunately, mainly because it’s very low and we don’t see a decrease in inflation,” he said.
HOUSE DEMS WON’T SAY WHEN THE ACT REDUCTION REDUCTION ACT WILL REDUCE COSTS WHILE OUR FAMILIES ARE SUFFERING
Comedian Al Franken performs at Atlanta Symphony Hall on October 09, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia.
(Photo by R. Diamond/Getty Images)
The former president also fired back at members of his own party for trying to lower American tariffs in comparison to other countries. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi insisted on “Face the Nation” over the weekend that Democrats should stop talking about inflation because it’s a global issue, not just a US one.
“Americans don’t care that inflation is a global problem — that inflation is higher than almost every other developed country. The Democrats aren’t going to win a lot of votes by saying, ‘Yeah, you know what inflation is. Hungary, 11%,'” said Franken.
“‘Oh, I didn’t realize that. When my family will have peanut butter sandwiches again for dinner, I will bring to Hungary the rate of inflation,’ “he said.
USING THE ‘VIEWS:’ THEY HAVE THE NON-VOTE WHEN THEY STAY ON THE ECONOMY, SHIFT INFLATION BLAME, THEY CRY WHAT HAPPENS TO PONDE
Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn.,
(Reuters/Aaron P. Bernstein)
Franken said his party’s handling of inflation has him worried about how Democrats will fare on Nov. 8.
“I have to say, I’m a little stressed about the midterms. Things haven’t been going well of late,” he said.
Polls show the Democrats’ negative impact on the economy and rising prices among voters’ biggest concerns. Results from the New York Times and the Associated Press showed a significant advantage to the Republicans, showing that voters trust the Republicans to deal with the economic crisis more than the Democrats.
While the inflation decision is expected to be important, Franken said he hopes the recent Roe v. Wade will be enough to galvanize Democrats.
A gas pump displays the price of fuel at a gas station in McLean, Virginia, June 10, 2022.
((Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
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“Things have been going well. I still believe that the decision of Dobbs will drive people to come. We seem to see, for example, in Georgia at least. I think that is what is happening there. But I have been a little bit down because I did not like what I have been seeing,” he told the audience.
Franken, who he resigned in 2018 amid pressure from his party after several sex-related charges, he recently said in an interview that “it would be tempting” to resume office.
In a separate interview, Franken said he was still “keeping” his options “open.”
