Brutal inflation numbers refute Biden administration’s spin:

Paul Krugman, May 7: “[Treasury Secretary] Janet Yellen and I believe that the Fed can contain any inflationary risks.”

Paul Krugman, June 21: “For those paying closer attention to the flow of new information, inflation panic is, you know, so last week.”

Paul Krugman, July 23: “Overheating is still possible, and the Fed should keep its eye on that possibility. But the big numbers aren’t as scary as they seem.”

Paul Krugman, August 12: “Anxiety about the inflationary impact of public investment just doesn’t make sense if you work through the numbers.”

Paul Krugman, September 10: “Companies aren’t acting as if they expect lots of future inflation, where they can hike wages without losing competitive advantage. They’re acting, instead, as if they see current inflation as a blip.”

Paul Krugman, November 11: “So yes, that was an ugly inflation report, and we hope that future reports will look better. But people making knee-jerk comparisons with the 1970s and screaming about stagflation are looking at the wrong history. When you look at the right history, it tells you not to panic.”

One reason inflation is such a serious problem right now, notes NRO’s Jim Geraghty, is we have an administration, a Fed, and a lot of ideologically or politically aligned economic elites who are wedded to the belief that inflation is not a serious problem.