The White House on Monday accused Jeff Bezos of opposing “an economic agenda for the middle class” after the Amazon founder attacked US President Joe Biden for linking inflation to corporate taxes.
“It doesn’t take huge leaps to find out why one of the wealthiest people on earth is opposed to an economic agenda for the middle class that lowers some of the biggest costs families face, fights long-term inflation, and contributes to holistic deficit reduction, that the President is achieving by asking rich taxpayers and corporations to pay their fair share,” said Andrew Bates, deputy press secretary.
“It’s also not surprising that this tweet comes after the president met with union officials, including Amazon workers,” he added.
In response to the White House statement, Bezos tweeted, “You understandably want to blur the issue. They know that inflation hurts those most in need most. But the unions don’t cause inflation, and neither do the rich.”
“Remember the government has done its best to add another $3.5 trillion to federal spending. They failed, but if they had succeeded, inflation would be even higher than it is today, and inflation is at a 40-year high today,” Bezos said.
The second richest man in the world has slammed Biden in several posts on Twitter after the US President recently suggested raising taxes on wealthy companies as a way to combat rising inflation.
On May 14, when Biden tweeted: “You want to lower inflation? Let’s make sure the richest companies pay their fair share.” Bezos was quick to respond, saying, “The newly created disinformation body should review this tweet, or maybe they need to form a new non-sequitur body instead. It’s okay to discuss raising corporate taxes. Taming inflation is crucial to discuss. Mixing them together is just misrepresentation.”
Biden had previously claimed that while the US deficit grew every year under his predecessor, his administration was on track to cut the deficit by $1.5 trillion – the biggest one-year decline ever.
In response to Biden’s testimony, Bezos pointed out that the administration was trying hard to boost an already overheated, inflationary economy. “Only Manchin saved her from herself. Inflation is a regressive tax that hurts the least well-off the most. Misdirection doesn’t help the country,” he added.
