Biden Aide Says $1.75 Trillion Bill Will Cut Costs for Americans

(Bloomberg) -- The White House’s top economic adviser said President Joe Biden’s $1.75 trillion economic bill that’s stalled in Congress would counter inflation for Americans by lowering the cost of child care, health care and housing.

“All of these things go right at lowering costs for American families,” Brian Deese, director of the White House National Economic Council, said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

He said the extra spending would not add to inflation because it would be “fully paid for” through tax hikes on corporations and high-income households. Deese said on ABC’s “This Week” he’s confident that the House will pass the bill this week and send it to the U.S. Senate.

He declined to say whether Biden would tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help lower gasoline prices.

“The president has made clear that all options are on the table,” Deese said on CNN. “We’re monitoring the situation very carefully.”

The president has hinted in recent days that he would act to tame gasoline prices, which are running at the highest level in seven years and have contributed significantly to rising consumer prices.

The consumer price index increased 6.2% in the 12 months through October, the fastest annual pace since 1990, according to Labor Department data released last week.

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