But economists inside the administration, particularly at the CEA, are uncomfortable with the push. “It’s been the war of the ‘track changes’ inside the administration over how much the White House can lean in on the extent to which competition and greed are driving inflation,” said one person briefed on the internal dynamics, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to fear of professional reprisals.
The phrase “track change” can refer to the practice of editing a shared computer document to suggest additions or deletions.
Prices rose 7.5 percent in January compared to one year earlier, the biggest spike in 40 years. White House officials early last year said these price increases would likely just be temporary. But they were wrong, and the increases have persisted amid labor shortages, supply chain issues and robust consumer demand. These higher prices have eaten into wage increases and become one of the most dominant economic issues facing voters, putting the White House on the defensive as its attempts to curb inflation come up short.
CEA chair Cecilia Rouse and NEC deputy director Bharat Ramamurti said they were unaware of any incident in which an administration official’s testimony was altered to take out references to corporate consolidation’s role in inflation. Rouse and Ramamurti also said the president’s economic advisers have worked closely together on the administration’s broader competition agenda for months, downplaying any friction as part of the natural policymaking process.
“The policy debate within the economic team is totally normal. It’s malpractice for there not to be debate because that would suggest we are working in an echo chamber and the president is not getting the benefit of critical thinking of diverse opinions,” Rouse said. Ramamurti added, “We have discussions about what the evidence shows.”