Affordability as a political issue would in no way surprise my family. During Sunday dinners with my two-jobs, blue-collar mother and my retired grandparents, a former truck driver and former cafeteria worker, prices were always a topic of conversation. Even when inflation was low. Why? All three were running on a treadmill to keep up. My mother had less leverage to get the wage increases that she needed than others had in our economy, and Social Security payments go up only after a year of declining purchasing power and increased Medicare premiums.

Call it “sticky wages” and “fixed income.” I would also call it kitchen table truths. Inflation above 2% is unacceptable. The difference between 3% inflation and 2% inflation is the difference between prices doubling in only 24 years versus 36 years. Add that inflation from the Biden era, which peaked at 9.1%, is baked into the current price level.