National Economic Council Director Brian Deese on Tuesday argued that the U.S. is in a position of strength to combat high inflation, following President Biden’s release of a three-part plan to lower rising prices.
“The economy we have right now is in a transition from this period of historic economic growth to a period that can be more stable, resilient growth. That requires focusing on inflation and doing so from a position of relative strength,” Deese told CNBC.
He said the U.S. is in a better position to combat inflation than other countries because of the strong labor market, marked by a decline in unemployment, and household balance sheets, marked by American families increasing their savings and decreasing their debt.
Earlier on Tuesday, Biden laid out his plan, which included an acknowledgment that the Federal Reserve “has a primary responsibility to control inflation” and noted that his predecessor, without naming former President Trump, “demeaned the Fed.”
“That is not something that we can take for granted, particularly giving past presidents’ actions and the president will make very clear that that is what he intends to do,” Deese said on Tuesday.
The two other parts of the plan involved making things more affordable for families during this transition period and reducing the federal deficit to reduce price pressures, respectively.
Biden’s plan was released ahead of a meeting with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell later Tuesday, which is the first time the two will meet since November.