Top Democrat says passing Biden's mega-spending package would 'bring down inflation'

House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) claims that the expanded federal child tax credit and passage of President Biden's stalled, multitrillion-dollar Build Back Better Act would help fight inflation.

Inflation has hit its highest level since 1982, according to the latest data.

Biden's $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan included automatic, advance CTC payments, which are now expired. The legislation also expanded the CTC to qualify families without income for up to $3,600 per child. 

We have "lifted over 50% of children out of poverty, all while fighting inflation, which people are concerned about today," DeLauro told Just the News on a conference call during which she called for permanently expanding the CTC and retaining the automatic monthly payments.

"People who are knowledgeable in this field believe that a number of the programs which are attached to the the Build Back Better initiative, and including the child tax credit, can help to bring down inflation," DeLauro said. "And you think about people's ability to be able to, you know, to make their way to pay for the cost; but if you're not, if there isn't going to be any more money into the economy, and the prices just continued to rise, then that exacerbates a problem."

The Joint Economic Committee's Democratic members recently released a report arguing that Biden's mega-bill would "reduce inflationary pressure and cut costs for families."

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer predicted on Tuesday that the Democrat-led Congress would pass a new version of the Build Back Better Act.

The version that has stalled in the Democrat-led 50-50 Senate includes new federal benefit programs for qualified individuals such as universal pre-K and support for child care. It also contains billions of dollars in tax credits for electric vehicle purchases and elimination of the state and local tax (SALT) deduction cap. The bill would also extend the expanded child tax credit at a cost of almost $1.5 trillion over 10 years.