Grand Canyon Times

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the Democrats' climate and health care bill passed the Senate this weekend with a 51-50 vote.

Arguments against the bill suggests the increased $443 billion in government spending will actually worsen the country's inflation problem, according to Fox News and other news outlets.

"The so-called Inflation Reduction Act that we are debating this evening, and I say so-called by the way, because according to the CBO and other economic organizations that have studied this bill, it will, in fact, have a minimal impact on inflation," Sen. Bernie Sanders, who voted for the bill, said on the Senate floor Aug. 7.

According to New York Post contributor David Harsanyi, the bill, proposed by Sens. Joe Manchin and Chuck Schumer, addresses priorities related to climate change and health care. It includes $430 billion in new spending on energy, electric vehicle credits and health insurance. It also raises minimum taxes for big companies and enforces existing tax laws.

Fox News reported Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said the Inflation Reduction Act is not going to bring down inflation and will actually worsen the recession some say we're currently in, adding that the Democrats’ attempts to paint the bill as deficit-reducing is a "gimmick." 

"It says it would reduce the deficit by $100 billion – we're going to spend almost a trillion dollars," she said, according to Fox News.

According to Smart Asset, economists say inflation is largely tied to increased federal government spending.

Paige Terryberry, senior analyst for fiscal policy at the John Locke Foundation, confirms the current bout of inflation stems from the massive injection of cash since the pandemic’s onset.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 was passed with a tie-breaker vote from Vice President Kamala Harris to pass the legislation. All 50 of the Democrats voted in favor of the bill, but none of the Republicans approved. Arizona Sens. Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema voted in favor of the bill.