Senate Democrats want to fight inflation, but there are limits to what they can do

Senate Democrats² want to fight inflation, but there are limits to what they can do

Transcript³

Rising inflation is having an impact everywhere, from the gas station to the grocery store, and now on Capitol Hill.

Senate Democrats are scrambling⁴ to provide some relief to people struggling with the highest rates of inflation in roughly 40 years, aware that the skyrocketing prices on consumer goods like gas could hurt their political fortunes. But there is a limit to what they can do.

Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly is a top tier target for Republicans in the upcoming midterms. He's part of a group of swing state lawmakers pushing a gas tax holiday to help with inflation.

"The idea here is to suspend the federal gas tax, which is 18 cents a gallon for the rest of the year. It would affect consumers across the country. It's a pretty obvious thing to do," Kelly said last week.

Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., blames energy companies for the uptick in prices. He's also sponsoring the bill and says he's recently talked to the White House about steps they can take.

"We are seeing oil and gas companies experience record profits. People are paying record prices. This is artificial cost increases," Warnock told reporters on Capitol Hill recently.

Another Democrat¹ in a top tier race — Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev. — says inflation is "hitting us all hard in Nevada."

"It's not just Democrats. Republicans have to come to the table," she said.

"Republicans have to come with solutions as well," she added. "I think we as Congress we should be working together to address and lower costs for families and individuals."

Some members of Congress want to address soaring gas prices by temporarily pausing federal gas tax

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says his caucus⁵ is considering several proposals to address higher costs and has vowed⁶ the chamber⁷ would vote on a package, or potentially a series of bills in March. White House press secretary Jen Psaki has repeatedly declined to specifically endorse⁸ a gas tax holiday, but has said all options are on the table as the president consults with Congress.

But Warnock and Cortez Masto, along with fellow Democrat Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, are pushing for a vote on the tax holiday. They say it's Congress' job to respond to voters.

Gas tax holiday could pad oil company profits instead of lowering prices

Energy costs could soon rise even more, as Russia's aggression⁹ toward Ukraine pushes up the price of oil. President Biden has warned that sanctions imposed on Russia may lead to energy supply disruptions, which in turn could feed inflation.

But suspending the gas tax may not end up helping¹⁰, as there's no guarantee that oil companies would pass on any savings¹¹ to consumers, said Jason Furman, an economist¹² who served as President Barack Obama's top economic adviser¹³.

He told NPR a gas tax holiday would be "at least in part, a gift to the oil companies."

The tax pays for needed infrastructure¹⁴ projects like highways and bridges, and Furman noted¹⁵ it would be reinstated eventually. Even if the holiday did temporarily lower what drivers pay at the pump, the price per gallon would still go back up.

There aren't many policy levers for lawmakers to pull to rein¹⁶ in inflation, so "you reach for the one you have, even if it just doesn't work very well and has very bad side effects," Furman said.

But the reality is that the Federal Reserve, not Congress, is the institution with the capability¹⁷ to counter inflation pressures.

"It is hard for a member of Congress to explain that there's not a lot that they can do about it, and that it's a combination of time and the Federal Reserve that are going to bring inflation down," he said.

Democrats split on gas tax, push other plans to cut costs

Senate Democrats themselves are divided on the gas tax. Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden calls it regressive and is pushing another idea — closing tax loopholes for oil companies to write off their expenses.

But he says the effort to address inflation is about a basic question for those in Congress: "Whose side are you on? Are you on the side of working people, seniors and others who get hit disproportionately by inflation, or are you just for business as usual?"

Democrats are considering other things, like getting rid of anticompetitive practices at meat companies and requiring pharmaceutical¹⁸ companies to negotiate prices of some prescription¹⁹ drugs.

For Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., inflation worries are a key reason he opposes the broader domestic spending bill, dubbed²⁰ the "Build Back Better" agenda, pushed by Biden and virtually all of his Democratic colleagues. He's also not a fan of cutting the gas tax. As inflation has worsened in recent months Manchin has called for more fiscal²¹ restraint and has also pushed deficit²² reduction as part of any spending legislation.

"The only way you can reduce inflation is to basically get your financial house in order," Manchin told reporters on Capitol Hill last week.

But Manchin says there's wide public support for targeting drug prices, calling it a "no brainer." Echoing his mantra about the need for both parties to work together Manchin says now that the chamber is moving beyond a singular focus on passing a partisan²³ spending bill.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., who is also on the ballot²⁴ in November, agreed the effort to zero in on drug prices could be one issue that gets enough GOP support to get around a possible Republican filibuster²⁵.

"It would be great to have Republicans join us to give Medicare the power to negotiate price reductions in drug prices," he said.

One Republican running for reelection this cycle, Indiana Sen. Todd Young, says concerns about wages are what he hears about the most at home. He's open to some of the ideas floated by Democrats, but thinks the latest ones are about scoring political points.

"Many I think are political gimmicks²⁶ designed to curry²⁷ favor at a time when most Americans frankly²⁸ don't think Democrats are sufficiently²⁹ focused on cost of living issues," Young said.

Biden is expected to outline his own proposals to combat inflation in Tuesday's State of the Union address. He's also limited in what he can do. Biden has already launched efforts to unsnarl supply chain issues caused by backlogs³⁰ in specific ports and he could take steps to alleviate³¹ worker shortages and get goods to markets.

Even if Democrats can get something through the Senate it could take weeks or more likely months for consumers to feel any relief. Members of both political parties recognize how voters view inflation next fall could decide who controls Congress.

1 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

2 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

6 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

7 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

8 endorse   

vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意

参考例句：

• No one is foolish enough to endorse it.没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
• I fully endorse your opinions on this subject.我完全拥护你对此课题的主张。

9 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

10 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

11 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

12 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

13 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

14 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

15 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

16 rein   

n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治

参考例句：

• The horse answered to the slightest pull on the rein.只要缰绳轻轻一拉,马就作出反应。
• He never drew rein for a moment till he reached the river.他一刻不停地一直跑到河边。

17 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

18 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

19 prescription   

n.处方，开药；指示，规定

参考例句：

• The physician made a prescription against sea- sickness for him.医生给他开了个治晕船的药方。
• The drug is available on prescription only.这种药只能凭处方购买。

20 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

22 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

23 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

24 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

25 filibuster   

n.妨碍议事，阻挠；v.阻挠

参考例句：

• A senator dragged the subject in as a filibuster.一个参议员硬把这个题目拉扯进来，作为一种阻碍议事的手法。
• The democrats organized a filibuster in the senate.民主党党员在参议院上组织了阻挠议事。

26 gimmicks   

n.花招，诡计，骗人的玩意儿( gimmick的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Financial institutions are also often expected yield of gimmicks. 金融机构也往往以预期收益率为噱头。 来自互联网
• However these are just marketing gimmicks that propagate the myth. 然而这些只是噱头的营销传播的神话。 来自互联网

27 curry   

n.咖哩粉，咖哩饭菜；v.用咖哩粉调味，用马栉梳，制革

参考例句：

• Rice makes an excellent complement to a curry dish.有咖喱的菜配米饭最棒。
• Add a teaspoonful of curry powder.加一茶匙咖喱粉。

28 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

29 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

30 backlogs   

积压未办之事( backlog的名词复数 )； 没交付的订货； 备用； 备用物

参考例句：

• "You'll need kindling and medium wood and logs and backlogs. “点火柴、引火柴、原木、垫底的，你都用得着。” 来自名作英译部分
• Our manufacturers have heavy backlogs on their hands. 我们的生产厂商手头有许多积压而没有交付的订单。

31 alleviate   

v.减轻，缓和，缓解(痛苦等)

参考例句：

• The doctor gave her an injection to alleviate the pain.医生给她注射以减轻疼痛。
• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。