Biden’s Inflationary Woes Are Destroying His Infrastructure Plans

I would say that Joe Biden is taking one step forward and two steps back, but he is just shooting himself in both feet.

New reports indicate that inflation is taking its toll on Biden’s proposed infrastructure projects—many of which have little to nothing to do with real infrastructure and more to do with social welfare spending.

However, $550 billion of the $1 trillion infrastructure budget does relate to actual infrastructural spending on roads, broadband networks, bridges, and railways.

It’s no secret that America’s infrastructure is failing. Many of our bridges are long past due for improvements, and the road systems need to be seriously overhauled in areas experiencing a record influx of new residents from blue states.

Despite this, I doubt that the cuts will come to the social welfare aspects of Biden’s infrastructure plans—I am betting that most if not all the cuts are going to be made in terms of actual, physical infrastructure projects.

Here’s what we currently know:

Inflation taking bite out of new US infrastructure projects. Price hikes are diminishing the value of a $1 trillion federal infrastructure plan. https://t.co/zqr9Nfw1dS pic.twitter.com/6KbLWGs4qh

— North Bay Business (@NBBJ) June 20, 2022

Inflation is forcing state and local officials to CANCEL or scale back infrastructure projects under Biden's $1trillion bill https://t.co/vmJ4tDyocV

— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) June 20, 2022

Politico explains:

Materials’ prices were already on the rise even before inflation hit levels unseen in decades in May — for instance, the price of steel doubled in the year before Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in November 2021. It came down briefly after that but is back near its highest point ever.

Since the bill’s passage, the price of diesel fuel, which is needed to ferry stone from quarries, which will eventually be turned into concrete and asphalt, has gone up by about $2 a gallon, an increase of more than 50 percent. And workers — if you can find them and keep them — are commanding higher pay.

 

…excuse that #BidenHarris administration is making for not temporarily suspending the gas tax makes no sense.

The gas tax funds infrastructure projects. Infrastructure projects are being postponed & suspended because of inflation.

Suspend the d*mn gas tax & stop the politics

— W.L. Lewis (@ArtMusicLife) June 20, 2022

This article doesn't mention the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program funding in the infrastructure law, but no doubt inflation will take a big bite out of the $2.5 billion appropriated for the Natrium and Xe-100 #nuclear reactor projects. https://t.co/OSFFhlW8ST

— Edwin Lyman (@NucSafetyUCS) June 20, 2022

According to The Associated Press:

“If this inflation keeps the way it is, we will have to roll projects from one year into the next, into the next, into the next,” said Mark Gillett, chief engineer of the Wyoming Department of Transportation.

Gillett had hoped the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act would finance a boom in highway and bridge construction.

“But it’s just not going to go as far as we had hoped,” he said.