Former Obama economist admits one of Biden’s biggest legislative victories turned out to be a dud

Jason Furman, the former top economist for the Obama administration, told Politico that he believes that former President Joe Biden’s attempts to bolster U.S. infrastructure were largely unsuccessful.

Furman told Politico in an interview published Thursday that Biden’s infrastructure programs had “basically been a failure.” He also suggested in the interview that the Biden-Harris administration’s infrastructure projects were often marred by high costs.

“On infrastructure, the program has basically been a failure,” Furman told Politico. “A huge amount of money flooded into it. In some ways it made it even harder to build with the number of requirements put on programs.”

Biden introduced several legislative packages during his sole term in an attempt to bolster the U.S. economy and infrastructure, including signing the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) in November 2021, which authorized funding for various transportation and infrastructure projects. Notably, the Biden-Harris administration’s push to boost domestic infrastructure through the BIL was often met with major slowdowns.

“All of this drove up costs so much that the money that got spent was basically swallowed up by the higher costs, and then a lot of the money hasn’t even been spent,” Furman told the outlet.

American families and businesses were plagued with a host of economic struggles during Biden’s sole term, including soaring inflation and stagnant wages. The economy was one of the most important issues for voters ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Some exit polls showed that most voters considered inflation to be a “hardship.” Still, the Biden-Harris administration repeatedly claimed that Biden’s economy benefited Americans during his time in office.

Since returning to the Oval Office on Jan. 20, President Donald Trump has introduced several executive actions to improve the U.S. economy, including signing a presidential memorandum aimed at delivering “emergency price relief” for Americans and defeating the nation’s “cost-of-living crisis.” While on the campaign trail, Trump pledged to address Americans’ concerns over the cost of living and introduce economic policies aimed at benefiting average Americans.

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