The November inflation numbers are in, and they’re a disappointment for Democrats. The Labor Department reported last week that consumer prices rose 2.7% in November compared with a year earlier. That’s an improvement from the September rate of 3%.

Many economists had predicted a steeper rise. But even core inflation, “which strips out volatile food and energy prices,” The Wall Street Journal reported, came in below expectations at 2.6%. Deeper data showed progress in both housing and food costs, important markers to many voters. Food prices rose at a much slower pace in November (2.6%) than in September (3.1%). The same was true for housing costs, which were up 3.6% in September but only 3% in November.

The markets responded positively to the news.

Democrats have been banging away at the Trump administration of late on the “affordability” issue, sensing a political advantage. This is ironic from numerous perspectives.

Inflation was an afterthought for years until it again flourished under President Joe Biden. Abetted by a Democratic spending spree as the nation emerged from the pandemic, Biden presided over the worst inflation in four decades, with prices rising consistently from the start of his presidency until inflation reached 9% in June 2022. The Biden White House for months pretended the problem didn’t exist. And even as inflation began to slowly recede in 2023, it remained above 3% for much of his last year in office.

In addition, Democrats offer little in the way of policy prescriptions that will actually make anything more “affordable.” Instead, their go-to solutions typically involve additional government interventions in the marketplace — rent control, price controls, subsidies for energy usage — that disguise higher prices rather than create the economic conditions for growth and increased competition that will down prices and ensure more widespread prosperity.

It is true that, thanks to the Democrat government shutdown during October and into November, the latest data is not as comprehensive as usual. We’ll learn more next month when December numbers are released. But that doesn’t mean the November numbers are irrelevant.

Rising prices contributed to Kamala Harris’ loss to Trump last year. Voter malaise over the economy remains a threat to Trump and the GOP as the midterms approach. The November report is good news for the administration, but Trump and Republicans can best combat the Democratic “affordability” onslaught by emphasizing a tax and regulatory agenda that encourages economic growth and middle-class job creation.

— The Las Vegas Review-Journal

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