Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY) defended Vice President Kamala Harris’ proposal to control prices through the use of federal government power.
The Kentucky Democrat compared the proposal to Theodore Roosevelt-era efforts to break up monopolies.
“On the Harris economic plan that you mentioned, there was also this federal ban on price gouging on food and penalties for companies that exploit crises,” host Margaret Brennan said. “President Obama’s top economist, Jason Furman, was critical, saying, ‘The good case scenario is price gouging is a message, not a reality, and the bad case scenario is that this is a real proposal. You’ll end up with bigger shortages, less supply and ultimately risk higher prices and worse outcomes for consumers.’ Do you know how this would work?”
“I do, because I’ve been an attorney general just like the vice president,” Beshear said. “I pursued price-gouging statutes and their violations when it comes to the price of gas in Kentucky, and we won. And ultimately returned millions of dollars to our people. This isn’t about trying to price fix. It’s just making sure that the economy is operating the way it should. That this is really supply and demand, which we all respect. It’s no different than what Teddy Roosevelt did in breaking up monopolies. It’s just making sure we have the right regulations and tools in place to make sure everybody is playing the game fairly and by the rules.”
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