Dear John,
Six months ago, the Beltway insiders scoffed when I pointed out the links between inflation and corporate greed.
We've come a long way since then.
Today, the Senate Budget Committee held a hearing on the causes of inflation, and I was invited as the lead witness to explain how giant corporations are able to jack up prices, even as their profits are at a 70-year high.
Republicans want the American people to believe that the solution to inflation is to shrink the size of government by cutting taxes for the super-rich and eliminating programs that help working people. It's nonsense and will only make the problem worse. But if Republicans win back Congress in the fall, that's exactly what they will do.
To keep building momentum, our team is crafting eye-catching videos and viral content that boil down complex economic principles into bite-sized social media explainers. This way, we can communicate directly with the American people without going through the corporate media. But we rely on small donations from everyday people like you to power this important work.
Will you chip in and help us continue to produce and distribute our proven-effective videos to make sure the American people see through the GOP lies about inflation and know the truth?
The underlying problem is not inflation. It's corporate power. The entire American economy is concentrated into the hands of a few greedy corporate giants with the power to raise prices.
Consider this: The Commerce Department just reported that corporate profits are at a 70-year high. But if corporations are so flush with cash, why are they raising prices?
In a healthy, competitive economy, corporations enjoying record profits would absorb these costs for fear of losing customers. But today's corporations don't actually face meaningful competition and therefore are not worried about lower-priced competitors.
In other words, they aren't raising prices because they have to. They're raising prices because they can.
This is a critical moment in American politics. If the American people understand how big corporations are manipulating prices to increase profits, we can build support for real solutions like a windfall profits tax on price-gouging corporations.
But if voters are swayed by GOP lies and blame Democrats and "big government" for inflation, we'll see even more pro-corporate policies and even more consolidated markets. We can't let that happen.
Inequality Media Civic Action was founded on the idea that we could go around the corporate media and communicate directly with the American people — to drive the change we need and build an economy where the gains are widely shared. In this moment, we must continue to pound this message to make sure that the American people see through the Republicans' lies.
Will you make a donation to Inequality Media Civic Action and help make sure the American people know the truth about the hidden link between inflation and corporate greed?
Thanks for helping us set the record straight,
Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action
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