Khanna: ‘I Understood Summers’ Point’ on Prior Spending Causing Inflation, I Thought Working Class ‘Needed Help’

During an interview aired on Friday’s broadcast of the Fox Business Network’s “WSJ at Large,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) stated that he “understood” economist Larry Summers’ point about prior spending bills causing inflation, “I just thought that the working class really needed help and was willing to see an increase in wages and helping the working class with the stimulus checks.” And that President Joe Biden just continued former President Donald Trump’s policies on spending

Khanna stated that the Build Back Better reconciliation bill “is paid for. As you know, Gerry, inflation is a monetary phenomenon. It’s if you have too much money chasing too few goods. This will not add to inflation. We won’t have to have any more treasury bonds that the Fed would buy up. It won’t increase the money supply. The CBO does not account for the tax enforcement. Larry Summers, who predicted much of the inflation, has said that that could actually generate well more than 400 billion. I trust Summers. I trust the economists. They’re frankly much better than the economists at the CBO, and that’s the discrepancy in the numbers.”

Host Gerry Baker then stated, “Congressman, it does seem like you’re willing to pick and choose who you believe according to what you actually want to get done.”

Khanna responded, “No. I understood Summers’ point. I just thought that the working class really needed help and was willing to see an increase in wages and helping the working class with the stimulus checks. And by the way, Donald Trump added $3 trillion of all of this spending. So, it wasn’t just Joe Biden. I mean, there was $3 trillion under Trump, then Biden came on and did 1.9 trillion with stimulus checks that Trump had been doing right before. So, it was just a continuation of Trump’s policy there.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett