The Biden administration’s “Bidenomics,” which they have touted as improving the lives of middle and working-class Americans, has been taking a major hit lately. Recent surveys show most U.S. households are still facing economic hardship, according to The Hill.
Over 60 percent of Americans report living paycheck-to-paycheck, including 45 percent of those earning over $100,000 a year, an August Lending Club survey found, The Hill reported.
On Thursday, President Joe Biden made a rare campaign trail appearance, making an impromptu stop at a Cook Out restaurant in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he enjoyed a milkshake and burger, according to the Daily Mail.
Unfortunately for the president, even this lighthearted activity was not immune from the effects of Bidenomics.
The pit stop came after Biden spoke about connecting rural communities to broadband internet, comparing it to FDR’s rural electrification efforts. He stressed that he aimed to be “a president for all America.”
The president ordered a “triple thick” chocolate and vanilla milkshake and a bacon cheeseburger with fries.
But the photo op had one inconvenient detail, which was picked up by North Carolina Senator Phil Berger.
Berger posted a photo of Biden at the same fast-food vendor three years earlier, focusing on the prices on the menus displayed on the back wall.
Clearly, Biden’s staff had missed this display of Bidenomics at work right behind the president.
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The earlier photo was taken on Oct. 18, 2020, when Biden was in Durham campaigning for the 2020 presidential election.
In the 2020 photograph, the menu pictured in the background showed the price of a Cookout tray, which was $5.99 at the time.
In contrast, the photograph taken Thursday showed an almost identical menu at the same restaurant now charging $7.69 for the Cookout tray, according to Newsweek.
“Thanks to #Bidenomics, a Cook Out tray costs 28% more than it did three years ago when Biden had his previous photo op,” Berger tweeted.
Thanks to #Bidenomics, a Cook Out tray costs 28% more than it did three years ago when Biden had his previous photo op. #ncpol https://t.co/3zUsO0z5cV pic.twitter.com/Ifn7wrp4Q8
— Senator Berger Press Shop (@SenBergerPress) January 18, 2024
Other X social media users also chimed in.
“A $100 grocery shop in 2019 now costs $125.81. #Bidenomics,” one user wrote.
A $100 grocery shop in 2019 now costs $125.81. #Bidenomics pic.twitter.com/En1fEWx5AI
— David Reidy (@dr_firstgrowth) January 19, 2024
“This is epic,” another user tweeted. “Biden did a photo op at the same restaurant he ate at 3 years ago. Today’s menu clearly shows a 28% increase from 3 yrs ago. This hyperinflation was directly caused by Biden’s disastrous policies. Thank you Sen. Berger for noticing and posting this.”
This is epic. Biden did a photo op at the same restaurant he ate at 3 years ago. Today’s menu clearly shows a 28% increase from 3 yrs ago. This hyperinflation was directly caused by Biden’s disastrous policies. Thank you Sen. Berger for noticing and posting this.
— viper steve (@vipersteve21) January 19, 2024
“Celebrating that milkshake costing about 20% more than his last Cook Out visit!!!” another tweet read.
Celebrating that milkshake costing about 20% more than his last Cook Out visit!!!
— Mike (@mjonesncsu) January 18, 2024
According to Newsweek, a January report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that overall consumer prices rose 3.4 percent in December, compared to a year ago, up from November’s figure of 3.1 percent. Food inflation ticked up 0.2 percent last month, with dining out seeing faster price hikes than grocery store trips.
The sight of the president enjoying a milkshake and burger that many Americans have had to do without because of rising prices may not be having the effect the administration intended.
If Marie Antoinette had been alive, she may have had a few words of advice for the self-proclaimed “president for all America.”
