Nearly two dozen Republican governors slammed a massive spending bill that Democrats are trying to ram through the U.S. Senate in a statement Thursday, saying that the bill will worsen inflation.
The statement comes as Senate Democrats rush to make last minute changes to a massive $740 billion spending bill that they will try to pass before the August recess by using the reconciliation process because the bill lacks bipartisan support.
“The Democrats’ solution to 40-year high inflation is passing another reckless tax and spending spree to the tune of $740 billion, affecting Americans in every tax bracket,” the statement said. “While denying recession, Democrats want to raise taxes on businesses and manufacturers, which will force higher costs onto consumers, worsen inflation, and aggravate shortages.”
“With sky high prices at the pump, the last thing Americans need is for Democrats to punish energy producers, which will ultimately hurt working families struggling to pay for gas, goods, food, and utilities,” the statement continued. “Our citizens cannot afford Joe Biden’s broken promises on taxes and Democrats’ inflationary spending that will only exacerbate the economic crisis they created.”
Governors Henry McMaster (R-SC) and Brian Kemp (R-GA) led the 22 Republican governors in issuing the joint statement.
The other Republican governors who signed onto the statement included Ron DeSantis (R-FL), Doug Ducey (R-AZ), Asa Hutchinson (R-AR), Brad Little (R-ID), Kim Reynolds (R-IA), Tate Reeves (R-MS), Mike Parson (R-MO), Greg Gianforte (R-MT), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Kristi Noem (R-SD), Bill Lee (R-TN), Greg Abbott (R-TX), Mark Gordon (R-WY), Chris Sununu (R-NH), Kevin Stitt (R-OK), Doug Burgum (R-ND), Kay Ivey (R-AL), Spencer Cox (R-UT), Glenn Youngkin (R-VA), and Eric Holcomb (R-IN).
The statement from the governors comes after the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released data last week showing that the U.S. economy shrank for the second straight quarter, satisfying the traditional requirement of a recession.
The Biden administration has downplayed the poor economic news by claiming that the economy is transitioning out of a fast-paced, post-pandemic recovery to a more stable environment. The White House’s claims come as Americans continue to be battered by inflation, which measured over 9% in June.
