GOP Rep. Johnson says Biden not doing nearly enough on inflation despite signing shipping bill
GOP Rep. Dusty Johnson says President Biden was helpful in passing Ocean Shipping Reform Act but needs to support energy industry
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Rep. Dusty Johnson is lauding President Biden for signing a bill aimed at fighting inflation and preventing discrimination against American goods but says the president needs to do a lot more to bring down prices.
Johnson, R-S.D., along with Rep. John Garamendi, D-Calif., led the charge to pass the Ocean Shipping Reform Act to prevent foreign ocean carriers from refusing to ship U.S. goods to overseas markets. The congressman said he's glad Biden supported the bill as it neared passage.
"I have been grateful to have we have been able to help the administration's cooperation here more recently," Johnson said, specifically noting that Biden mentioned the Ocean Shipping Reform Act in the State of the Union.
Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., backed the Ocean Shipping Reform Act, which is set to be signed into law this week. (REUTERS/Ken Cedeno / Reuters Photos)
Johnson also said Biden signing the bill "is going to help" bring down inflation.
But, he said, the bill passed three times before Biden mentioned it in the State of the Union. There are several other areas where Biden's actions aren't productive on the inflation issue, the congressman added.
"If we really want to make a dent in inflation, we need a president who is going to work with Congress on three things," Johnson said. "Number one, stopping the trillion dollar spending packages. Number two, getting Americans back to work. We continue to have three million fewer full-time workers in this country than we did three years ago. And then finally, a president who does not discriminate against American energy."
President Biden is expected to sign the Ocean Shipping Reform Act into law Thursday. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo / Reuters Photos)
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Johnson added: "I talked to a variety of clean energy, as well as traditional energy executives this morning who said that the tone of this administration has dissuaded investment into the energy sector."
Biden signed the Ocean Shipping Reform Act into law Thursday.
In a statement this week, Biden recognized Congress for passing the bill and said it will help Americans deal with increased costs for many goods.
Foreign ocean carriers during pandemic supply chain crunches often would refuse to export U.S. goods, instead opting to take empty containers abroad so as to more quickly return to the U.S. with imports. (AP Photo/Josh Edelson) (AP Newsroom)
"Lowering prices for Americans is my top priority, and I applaud the Congress for passing the Ocean Shipping Reform Act on a bipartisan basis," Biden said.
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"In my State of the Union address, I called on Congress to address ocean carriers’ high prices and unfair practices because rising ocean shipping costs are a major contributing factor to increased costs for American families," he added. "During the pandemic, ocean carriers increased their prices by as much as 1,000%. And, too often, these ocean carriers are refusing to take American exports back to Asia, leaving with empty containers instead."
In fact, in a December interview with Fox News Digital, Johnson said ocean carriers' refusal to transport American goods is leading to the "destruction of millions of dollars in value" as food spoils.
Americans are struggling with the highest inflation in 40 years, as the consumer price index increased 8.6% between May 2021 and May 2022.
FOX Business' Megan Henney contributed to this report.