Americans in several states across the country shared how surging inflation has affected their lives.
“It’s outrageous,” Alfred, from Oklahoma City, told Fox News. “It’s getting crazy.”
“How expensive just going to the food market is,” he continued. “It’s almost doubled from the last couple of years, especially with the large size family that I have.”
But Cassidy, also from Oklahoma said: “I’m doing okay.”
SOARING INFLATION DRIVES MORE AMERICANS TO LIVE PAYCHECK TO PAYCHECK DESPITE 5.1% INCREASE IN WAGES
Alfred, from Oklahoma City, said inflation is “outrageous” and is making it difficult to feed his large family.
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“2020 was a real dip. In 2021, it was kind of coming back, so it feels like it’s sort of returning to normal,” Cassidy continued. “Not exactly, but closer than what it was.”
Overall inflation hit 9.1% in June — a 40-year high — before easing slightly, according to the Department of Labor. Economists expect a Thursday report to show that September’s core inflation, which excludes food and energy, hit another 40-year high at 6.5%, a Bloomberg survey found.
“I was doing really good, and now we’re not,” Cara from Bellingham, Washington told Fox News. “We make decent money, but it doesn’t make a difference.”
Tim, in Nashville, echoed her sentiments.
“Everything I like to buy cost more money, he said. “I don’t like it. Gas, food, vacation.”
THE FED’S WAR ON INFLATION COULD COST 1M JOBS
His wife Bonnie added: “I just retired, and I’m a little nervous about what’s going to happen with my pension.”
Consumers could pay up to 28% more to heat their homes this winter compared to last year due to surging fuel costs, the Energy Information Administration projected Wednesday. Additionally, the cost of food for home preparation was up 13.5% in August compared to the year prior.
Cassidy, from Oklahoma City, said the economy “feels like it’s returning to normal” after taking a dive in 2020.
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“It’s been exponential,” Justin, from Bellingham, told Fox News. “I work a minimum wage job, and just buying food, it takes over like a third of my income.”
Similarly, Elizabeth, a fellow Bellingham resident, said: “It’s to the point where I don’t even hardly shop anymore.”
“It’s ridiculous to go in the store and you can’t buy meat, eggs,” she continued. “I came out with two small bags and paid over $100.”
3 WAYS BIDEN MAKES INFLATION WORSE
Some economists have argued that the American Rescue Plan, a nearly $2 trillion legislative package President Biden spearheaded, significantly contributed to the sharp increase in inflation. But voters shared mixed opinions with Fox News over who’s to blame for rising costs.
President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act in August, but price increases are expected to hit 40-year highs for September.
(Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
“I blame the left, not Joe Biden himself,” Erica, from New Jersey, said. “Because there’s not just one chief in the kitchen.”
But Susanna disagreed.
“I blame the president, but that’s my opinion,” she said in Washington state.
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Elizabeth told Fox News: “I don’t think that the administration gets what the average person has to deal with. We live paycheck to paycheck.”
Ashley, meanwhile, cast broader blame.
“I don’t think either of the last administrations really set us up in a good place,” she said in New Jersey. “So honestly, I blame them both.”
Lisa Bennatan and Teny Sahakian reported from Tennessee; Hannah Ray Lambert from Washington state; Megan Myers from New Jersey; and Jon Michael Raasch from Washington, D.C.
