Peoria Standard

U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood (R-Peoria) is pointing an accusatory finger at the Biden administration over rising inflation rates.

“Wholesale prices rose 8.6% from last October, tied for the highest increase ever,” LaHood recently posted on Twitter. “Inflation is hitting the wallets of residents across Illinois, and the Biden Administration’s trillion-dollar tax and spending plan will push prices even higher.”

According to the U.S. Labor Department, the rising inflation rates are the country’s highest in almost 11 years, with the producer price index also up by 0.6 percent over the month, attesting to Dow Jones estimates that indicate inflation pressures are only continuing to build.  

Further analysis shows that one-third of the increase in goods prices came from soaring cost of gasoline, with prices in that sector rising by nearly 7%. On the service side, the cost of autos and auto parts also increased by 8.9%.

LaHood was among the Republican lawmakers recently voting against President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus plan, dismissing it as a partisan bill that fell short of addressing the areas it most needed to.

"President Biden and Democrats in Congress specifically designed the 'American Rescue Plan' package to circumvent any Republican input or changes," he said in a statement. "It's deeply disappointing that President Biden abandoned his commitment to finding common ground with Republicans in his first major legislative initiative."

During a February meeting with the President, Republicans floated a $618 billion plan that would not provide funding for state and local governments and offered $30 billion less than the Democrats' plan for providing vaccinations. The package also backed direct payments to individuals of $1,000, but for a small group of people.

The actual stimulus plan will provide direct payments of $1,400 to individuals earning up to $75,000 a year and to couples earning up to $150,000; extend a weekly federal unemployment benefit currently set to expire in mid-March until the end of August and increase weekly payments from $300 to $400 and increase the child tax credit.

LaHood also recently introduced the Digital Trade for Development Act, which seeks to modernize the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) to support digital trade policies that promote further economic growth.

"Digital trade is an engine for economic success in the US and around the world," LaHood said in a Twitter post. "By modernizing the GSP, we can support open digital trade policies that expand economic growth in developing countries and advance American interests around the globe."