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Typical, idiot Baxter defends Kamala, while knowledgeable Democrats
see the problem!

from https://finance.yahoo.com/news/not-sensible-policy-obamas-chief-183018254.html

'This Is Not Sensible Policy': Obama's Chief Economist Dismisses Kamala
Harris' Price Gouging Crackdown

AJ Fabino
Updated Mon, Aug 26, 2024, 1:52 AM PDT3 min read

186
Vice President Kamala Harris‘ presidential campaign has embraced a
populist economic message, blaming corporate greed for high grocery
prices. However, her proposal to ban price gouging is drawing criticism
from economists, including a key figure from the Obama administration.

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Jason Furman, who served as Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers
under President Obama, dismissed Harris’s plan in plain terms. “This is
not sensible policy,” Furman told The New York Times. “The biggest hope
is that it ends up being a lot of rhetoric and no reality.”

Harris's campaign announced last week that she would call for a federal
ban on corporate price gouging for groceries in an upcoming economic
policy speech. The move appears designed to appeal to swing voters
frustrated by persistent inflation, particularly in everyday essentials
like food.

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However, economists across the political spectrum argue that corporate
behavior played a minor role in recent price increases compared to
factors like supply chain disruptions, shifts in consumer demand, and expansionary fiscal and monetary policies during the pandemic.

“If prices are rising on average over time and profit margins expand,
that might look like price gouging, but it’s actually indicative of a
broad increase in demand,” Joshua Hendrickson, an economist at the
University of Mississippi, explained to the Times.

Furman warned that policies aimed at curbing price increases could
hinder economic adjustment. “If prices do not rise in response to strong demand, new companies may not have as much inclination to jump into the
market to ramp up supply.”

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The debate points to the tension between politically popular proposals
and economic orthodoxy. Kevin O’Leary, the "Shark Tank" investor,
expressed surprise that Harris didn’t move toward more "centrist"
policies. “Her advisors have given her some bad advice,” O’Leary said in a recent Fox News interview, predicting increased scrutiny of how the
programs would be implemented.

Story continues

Some economists, however, see merit in efforts to address corporate
pricing power. Isabella Weber of the University of Massachusetts Amherst
argues that allowing companies to reap outsized profits during supply
shocks could set a worrying precedent for future crises.

"If the worst of times for ordinary people ends up being the best of
times for corporations, some sort of basic social contract is kind of crumpling," she said in the report.

With inflation cooling but still a top concern for many Americans, the
debate over price gouging and corporate profits will likely remain at
the front of economic policy discussions in the months ahead.

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This article 'This Is Not Sensible Policy': Obama's Chief Economist
Dismisses Kamala Harris' Price Gouging Crackdown originally appeared on Benzinga.com

View comments
(186)

Kurt
13h ago
The root of inflation is government. The financial crisis, the student
loan crisis, the infrastructure bill, the affordable care act, DEI,
examples of government created inflation in order to get elected. This
is the gouging that has to be addressed and reigned in. It's not in the constitution. Big oil? Big corporations? What about big government?

Government is to serve the people, not the other way around.

JoeR
21h ago
The overall increase in gasoline since Biden took office has been a big
part of the higher prices for all products transported by gas.

Biden killed the Keystone Pipeline on Day One - taking most US oil
production off the market - and gas prices rose $1.00/gallon in 30
days!! Record high inflation quickly followed.

Harris won’t change those things - she wants Expensive Green Energy!!
She has Biden’s policy advisors. If Harris wins, prices will stay high.

If elected, Trump will reverse Biden’s policies, and product prices will fall.

Jim
7h ago
Hiring Kamala for the job when she's done zero interviews, shown zero
policy statements on her campaign website and received zero votes is
also not "sensible policy". Not surprising, when Democrats got a
chance to vote for her in the 2020 primary she received ZERO delegates.

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