Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH) said there was a lack of “good choices” when it came to supporting legislation like the so-called Inflation Reduction Act after he was confronted by CNN’s Jake Tapper about a fellow Democrat admitting he and others knew the party’s spending moves would actually add to rising costs for working Americans.

Ryan is in one of the most closely watched Senate races going into the midterms. The Democrat is facing off against J.D. Vance, most well-known for his book Hillbilly Elegy and the evolving of his relationship with Donald Trump from critic to fan.

Tapper noted on Friday evening in an interview with Ryan that inflation and the economy are top priorities for Ohio voters. The CNN host theorized belonging to the majority party while Americans are concerned over the economy is likely “hurting” the Democrat’s campaign efforts. He then played a clip of Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC) admitting this week that Democrats knew their legislative efforts would add to rising costs for Americans.

“Let me make it very clear, all of us are concerned about these rising costs. And all of us knew this would be the case when we put in place this recovery program. Anytime you put more money into the economy, prices rise,” Clyburn said.

“You voted for the bill. Did you vote for it knowing that it would push prices up?” Tapper pointedly asked Ryan after the clip.

Ryan claimed he did not know at the time, then added that he he believes a tax cut is needed for Americans.

“Yeah, no, not at all,” said Ryan. “And I think right now, we need a tax cut. I mean, we were experiencing the pandemic, we did a number of rescues, you know, packages when President Trump was in, and then again, with President [Joe] Biden. We had to rescue the economy, and we had to make some significant investments.”

Ryan later cited a lack of good options when discussing supporting the bill after Tapper asked him if Clyburn was wrong with his recent statement.

“Well, you got to remember, I mean, we were coming out of the pandemic, you know, there were a lot of — there weren’t many good choices there,” he said. “You know, we needed to put some money into the economy, we had to rescue businesses, families, people were on unemployment, the economy locked up, and then the globe locked them up. So, we had to get that done.”

Watch above via CNN.

The post Jake Tapper Asks Tim Ryan If He Knew Inflation Act Would Add to Rising Costs, Dem Admits ‘There Weren’t Many Good Choices’ first appeared on Mediaite.

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