Sen. Barrasso: ‘People are hurting,’ Biden’s policies ‘have made it worse’

Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso warned on Sunday that inflation will continue to increase and taxes will rise as a result of President Biden’s massive spending plan, noting that "people's paychecks are not keeping up." 

"People are hurting and it’s the Biden policies that have made it worse," he told "Sunday Morning Futures" during an exclusive interview. 

The Republican senator claimed that Biden’s spending plan "will break the back of the American people." 

The Biden administration's signature Build Back Better spending bill, which passed the House but is stalled in the Senate, costs $1.7 trillion and the Congressional Budget Office predicted it would add $367 billion to the national debt.

The White House has defended the legislation, saying it is "fiscally responsible" and will "create jobs, reduce costs, make our country more competitive, and give working people and the middle class a fighting chance."

Speaking on NBC's "The Tonight Show" on Friday, President Biden said, "There’s been a whole range of things that are in there [the Build Back Better spending bill] that are going to really reduce, essentially the cost of living for people in a reasonable, rational way." 

"And, by the way, every single bit of that bill is paid for. No one making less than $400,000 a year will pay an additional cent in taxes as well as it will not increase the deficit one penny," he continued.

A group of GOP senators are taking issue with the bill, saying that it's a wish list for left-wing interest groups.

On Sunday, Barrasso pointed to the new inflation numbers released on Friday, stressing that the "economy is on its back." 

On Friday it was revealed that consumer prices surged at the fastest pace in nearly four decades in November as Americans paid more for practically everything from groceries to cars to gasoline, solidifying hot inflation as a key trait of the economic recovery.

The consumer price index rose 6.8% in November from a year ago, according to a new Labor Department report, marking the fastest increase since June 1982, when inflation hit 7.1%. The CPI – which measures a bevy of goods ranging from gasoline and health care to groceries and rents – jumped 0.8% in the one-month period since October.

MANCHIN SOUNDS ALARM ON INFLATION AS CLOCK TICKS FOR DEMOCRATS ON HUGE SPENDING BILL

Price increases were widespread: Energy prices jumped 3.5% in November and are up 33.3% year over year. Gasoline is a stunning 58.1% higher than it was a year ago. Food prices have also climbed 6.1% higher over the year, while used car and truck prices – a major component of the inflation increase – are up 31%.

Barrasso also pointed to the "disaster" in Afghanistan, arguing that America’s "back is against the wall in international areas." 

He stressed that Biden’s spending plan "will break the back of the American people with taxes, with spending, with all of the mandates." 

"People will end up paying more for just about everything. It will make inflation worse, taxes will go up," Barrasso continued. 

Host Maria Bartiromo noted that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wants the Senate to pass President Biden's social spending plan before the end of the year. 

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Barrasso responded by stressing that the "massive tax and spending bill" will "make inflation worse, increase taxes on all Americans and hurt our economy even further." 

He also argued that "Democrats are going to, all on their own, raise the debt ceiling in the United States." 

"What is happening is they don’t want to have a discussion about the importance of getting spending under control," he added. "They want to do massive spending."

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He later warned that "Democrats are going to be held accountable for all of this spending come next year’s election."

FOX Business’ Megan Henney and Fox News’ Kelly Laco contributed to this report.