A former spokesman for former President Joe Biden known for defending his administration’s unpopular economy is joining forces with other political operatives to form a new group to draw negative attention to Trump’s economy, The Associated Press reported Tuesday.
Andrew Bates, a former Biden spokesperson who previously blamed lackluster economic outcomes on factors other than Biden’s policies, will work as a communications adviser for the Cost Coalition, a group that will use advertisements, social media, news interviews and events to push negative messaging on Trump’s economy, the AP first reported. Bates will be working alongside Terry Holt, a former spokesperson for former President George W. Bush and former House Speaker John Boehner, according to the AP.
Bates repeatedly defended Biden’s economy, writing in a March 2020 post on X that Biden’s economic policies put the American middle class “front and center” despite historic inflation and rising costs of household staples. He also claimed that Biden made America “the most competitive economy in the world and brought jobs back from overseas.”
Under Biden’s watch, inflation peaked at 9.1% in June 2022. Various staple goods increased in price during Biden’s term, creating many grocery affordability headaches for American households.
Additionally, energy prices increased significantly during the Biden years as the administration cracked down on domestic oil and gas extraction while subsidizing intermittent green energy with taxpayer cash. When prices at the pump were reaching an all-time high national average of over $5 per gallon in June 2022, Bates posted on X that energy prices are a global problem and that Biden’s economic leadership “has made our recovery the envy of the world.”
During Biden’s four years in office, the U.S. economy was plagued with soaring inflation that burdened American households with high costs. Despite this, the Biden-Harris administration repeatedly claimed that the former president’s economic policies benefited Americans.
Still, Bates has maintained that Biden handled the economy well, claiming in an April 30 post on X that Biden handed the Trump administration “the best-performing economy in the world.”
Bates previously claimed that Biden fought against “corporate greed to lower prices for the middle class,” adding that Trump fought for “big corporations’ ability to overcharge the middle class.”
The Cost Coalition describes itself as a “bipartisan initiative exposing how the Trump presidency is undermining the American Dream. We believe in an economy where everyone has a fair shot and American values are upheld at home and abroad. As everyday costs soar under this Administration, we’re committed to spotlighting the policies driving up prices—and advancing common sense solutions to make life more affordable for working families.”
While inflation declined more than expected in March, some recent surveys have indicated that many Americans are souring on Trump’s handling of the economy thus far in his second presidency. Some experts have warned that Trump’s sweeping tariffs could potentially increase the costs of groceries, clothing and other goods in the U.S.
Several individuals who were involved with former Vice President Kamala Harris’ failed 2024 presidential campaign are helping lead the Cost Coalition, including Austin Weatherford, the leader of “Republicans for Harris,” Rev. Jennifer Butler, Harris’ national faith and engagement director, Libby Jamison, the Harris campaign’s national director of veteran and military family engagement, Leslie Gross, a veteran of the Obama-Biden administration, and George Holman, who served in the Biden-Harris administration, the AP reported.
After some Democrats expressed concerns over Biden’s mental acuity following his disastrous June 2024 presidential debate performance, many of his aides defended him, with Bates telling The New York Times in July 2024 that the former president showed no signs of having Parkinson’s disease and had never taken drugs for that condition.
The Cost Coalition did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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