An economic adviser to President Joe Biden sparked tons of criticism for his comments about high gas prices.
During an appearance on CNN on Thursday, Brian Deese, the director of the White House National Economic Council, was asked, “What do you say to those families who say, listen, we can’t afford to pay $4.85 a gallon for months if not years, this is just not sustainable?”
“What you heard from the president today was a clear articulation of the stakes, this is about the future of the liberal world order, and we have to stay firm,” Deese responded.
His comments come as the average price for a gallon of gas is $4.84, according to AAA.
Watch the video below:
CNN: "What do you say to those families that say, 'listen, we can't afford to pay $4.85 a gallon for months, if not years?’"
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) July 1, 2022
BIDEN ADVISOR BRIAN DEESE: "This is about the future of the Liberal World Order and we have to stand firm." pic.twitter.com/LWilWSo72S
Check out some of the reactions below:
— Accuracy In Media (@AccuracyInMedia) July 1, 2022
They don't even try to hide it anymore https://t.co/0tO1jRtXqS
— Jordan Rachel (@TheJordanRachel) July 1, 2022
. @CortezMasto and the Democrats think high gas prices are part of the liberal order. Just pay it, they say. https://t.co/JsKgFRZ6Fi
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) July 1, 2022
Are you serious right now? The liberal world order??? https://t.co/g16ozIHQCT
— petite nicoco (@PetiteNicoco) July 1, 2022
Completely out of touch. https://t.co/yCDHrT636c
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) July 1, 2022
Another great election slogan for the Dems & Biden: 'Hey, America, suck it up for the Liberal World Order.'https://t.co/WRIuuIhbWe
— Tom Bevan (@TomBevanRCP) July 1, 2022
The Biden Admin has forgotten they work for the American people and not the “liberal world order.” https://t.co/OXDqXJIYR1
— Dr. Roger Marshall (@RogerMarshallMD) July 1, 2022
The "Liberal World Order"
— Don Winslow (@donwinslow) July 1, 2022
Jesus. Anyone who says Democrats do not have a messaging problem is a moron. We do. It's real. And self inflicted wounds like this one on national TV four months before mid-terms hurt.
Try using the word DEMOCRACY next time. https://t.co/uNnZXJEhJL
I don’t know who needs to hear this but we are actively under attack by global elites. https://t.co/OcjnSEUleu
— THE Red-Headed libertarian™ (@TRHLofficial) July 1, 2022
They don't care about you or the hardships they're causing. They only care about forcing their utopian fantasies down your throat no matter the cost (or price of gasoline). https://t.co/nm6efg49Bb
— Glenn Jacobs (@GlennJacobsTN) July 1, 2022
The Liberal World Order?! These people are nuts! https://t.co/MpkjeTYsGM
— Byron Donalds (@ByronDonalds) July 1, 2022
Democracy just say Democracy, we are helping defend a Democratic country. Stop talking to Americans as if they read Foreign Policy magazine. ??♂️ https://t.co/rypYX0Db34
— Ruben Gallego (@RubenGallego) July 1, 2022
The oft-stated view of Obama just six years ago was that Ukraine is only a vital interest to Russia but never will be to the US, so we'll never confront Russia over Ukraine.
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) July 1, 2022
Now, the explicit message is: Americans must suffer indefinitely over Ukraine:https://t.co/agKj9LRVzk
They said the quiet part out loud. https://t.co/wEfFlwUmeT
— Libertarian Party of Tennessee (@LPTN1776) July 1, 2022
Sorry, he said what? https://t.co/naCjjzvFuE
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) July 1, 2022
Some probably see the phrase “liberal world order” and think of some wide range of grand conspiracy theories about a cabal of the world’s elites. But it is a phrase that typically refers to countries that have liberal governments and economic policies — in the classical sense of limited government intervention and a focus on civil liberties — as opposed to oppressive regimes.
This comes after Biden told reporters that Americans will have to deal with higher gas prices for “as long as it takes so Russia cannot, in fact, defeat Ukraine and move beyond Ukraine.”
Most honest commentators and politicians knew and admitted that standing up to defend Ukraine against Russia’s invasion would lead to price increases. And paying more to stand up for democratic principles to ensure that a malevolent actor cannot just take over its neighboring country unprovoked without consequences is noble.
However, prices were already elevated due to inflation which got a jolt from Biden’s American Rescue Plan. And gas prices were already high as companies have been reluctant to invest in new drilling and refining operations due to the administration’s push to transition away from fossil fuels to green energy.
It’s almost as if Biden is starting to concede that none of his plans to bring down prices are working, so now he’s just telling Americans they have to suck it up for the sake of democracy.
But if he wants to try to shift Americans’ attitudes about prices, this is not the kind of moving rhetoric that’s going to accomplish that.
