U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the Volvo Group Powertrain Operations plant in Hagerstown, Maryland, U.S., October 7, 2022.
Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters
President Joe Biden on Saturday called embattled British Prime Minister Liz Truss’ abandoned tax cut plan a “mistake,” and said he’s anxious that other nations’ fiscal policies may hurt the U.S. amid “worldwide inflation.”
Biden said it was “predictable” that the brand new prime minister on Friday was forced to walk back plans to aggressively cut taxes without identifying cost savings, after Truss’ proposal caused turmoil in global financial markets. It marked an unusual criticism by a U.S. president of the domestic policy decisions of one in every of its closest allies.
“I wasn’t the one one which thought it was a mistake,” Biden said. “I disagree with the policy, but that is as much as Great Britain.”
Biden’s comments got here after weeks of White House officials declining to criticize Truss’ plans, though they emphasized they were monitoring the economic fallout closely. He was talking to reporters at an Oregon ice cream shop where he made an unannounced stop to advertise the candidacy of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tina Kotek, as Democrats across the country face a tricky political environment amid GOP criticism of their handling of the economy.
Biden said he was not concerned in regards to the strength of the dollar — it set a latest record against the British Pound in recent weeks — which advantages U.S. imports but makes the country’s exports dearer to the remaining of the world.
The president said the U.S. economy “is robust as hell.”
“I’m concerned in regards to the remainder of the world,” he added. “The issue is the dearth of economic growth and sound policy in other countries.”
Said Biden: “It’s worldwide inflation, that is consequential.”