Conservatives attack White House's 'Putin price hike' narrative as inflation surges


Republicans slammed the Biden administration for blaming inflation on Russian President Vladimir Putin after a report released Tuesday showed that consumer prices have jumped 8.5 percent since March 2021.
"We expect March … [Consumer Price Index] headline inflation to be extraordinarily elevated due to Putin's price hike," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Monday ahead of the release of Tuesday's inflation report.
Conservatives weren't having any of it.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Podcast host Ben Shapiro tweeted that "[m]ost of the inflation happened before Putin's invasion of Ukraine," claiming that the White House is "lying, as usual" about the cause of inflation.
Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley blasted the Biden administration's narrative. "You're going to hear a lot about 'Putin's Price Hike' today. Food and gas prices were already soaring. Wages can't keep up with inflation. This is Biden's economy," she wrote.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) blamed inflation on "federal policies of borrowing & printing money at unfathomable levels & bad energy policy."
In a video posted to Twitter, Brad Polumbo of the right-libertarian Foundation for Economic Education said, "New inflation data are in, and ooh boy they destroyed the White House's narrative."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
"To be clear," Polumbo continued, "Putin's invasion of Ukraine definitely has disrupted global energy markets and led to higher gas prices, but gas prices were rising for almost nine months before the invasion began, and prices overall have been surging since May of 2021."
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
Third judge rejects DOJ's Epstein records request
Speed Read Judge Richard Berman was the third and final federal judge to reject DOJ petitions to unseal Epstein-related grand jury material
-
Texas OKs gerrymander sought by Trump
Speed Read The House approved a new congressional map aimed at flipping Democratic-held seats to Republican control
-
Israel starts Gaza assault, approves West Bank plan
Speed Read Israel forces pushed into the outskirts of Gaza City and Netanyahu's government gave approval for a settlement to cut the occupied Palestinian territory in two
-
Court says labor board's structure unconstitutional
Speed Read The ruling has broad implications for labor rights enforcement in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi
-
Feds seek harsh charges in DC arrests, except for rifles
Speed Read The DOJ said 465 arrests had been made in D.C. since Trump federalized law enforcement there two weeks ago
-
Inflation derailed Biden. Is Trump next?
Today's Big Question 'Financial anxiety' rises among voters
-
Trump taps Missouri AG to help lead FBI
Speed Read Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has been appointed FBI co-deputy director, alongside Dan Bongino
-
Trump warms to Kyiv security deal in summit
Speed Read Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called Trump's support for guaranteeing his country's security 'a major step forward'