WASHINGTON D.C. — From trips to the grocery store, to paying bills every day, prices are going up around the county from record-high inflation.
Washington correspondent Samantha Manning was live in Washington, D.C. as members of Congress looked into the price hikes and how to fix them.
Even as inflation has gone down since its peak, the price of essentials, such as groceries, are still going up.
Democrats raised concerns about greed while Republicans argued that spending policies were making things worse.
Saundra Byrd, a senior on a fixed income, said she’s feeling the hit firsthand.
“Across the board. Dairy, meat, grains. You know everything is very, very high. So it’s very difficult to budget,” said Byrd.
Democrats argued there are many factors, including supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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They also say corporations carry some of the blame. That’s why the Democrat-led committee held a hearing to look into what they call excessive price hikes.
“American companies today are reporting higher profit margins than ever while increasing prices more than necessary to cover costs,” said Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat.
Meanwhile, Republicans argue that prices are high because of Democrat-backed policies.
“Another effort to shift blame from the policies of this administration and the reckless spending of this Congress and scapegoat businesses with the blame,” said Michael Cloud, a Republican.
Byrd said she does not care about the politics behind the price hikes — she just wants lawmakers to fix it.
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“It’s a bipartisan initiative and if they’re going to work together as they were elected to do, then I think they should figure it out,” said Byrd.
There were no corporations that testified during the public discussions but the private sector has argued that prices have gone up because their costs have also gone up.
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