Political speech, timestamped and in context

Kevin Hassett: “Inflation went up about 20% under Joe Biden.”

Featuring: Kevin Hassett, Director of the National Economic Council

CNN Host Asks Kevin Hassett: Is JD Vance 'Wrong' When He Says Prices Are Currently High?

Published October 4, 2026

I want to play something that Vice President Vance said just recently about high prices. Take a listen. But is he wrong that prices are high? Oh, prices are high in the sense that Inflation went up about 20% under Joe Biden. and the inflation rate has gone way, way down. If we look at the three month moving average of the PC data that came this week, that core inflation is running now at 2% which is the Fed's target. (00:13–00:16)

STATEMENT

Asserts that inflation increased by 20% during Joe Biden's presidency.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

See the main statements from Kevin Hassett in this video

“We gave no tax on overtime, no tax on tips.”
Asserts that there is no tax on overtime and tips, benefiting middle-class workers.00:49-00:53
“Core inflation is running now at 2% which is the Fed's target.”
Asserts that current core inflation is at the Federal Reserve's target of 2%.00:22-00:26
“Top line inflation is at 1% because food prices and gasoline prices are dropping faster than everything else.”
Asserts that overall inflation is at 1% due to decreases in food and gasoline prices.00:26-00:32
“We just got great census data, big reductions in poverty.”
Asserts that recent census data shows significant reductions in poverty.00:43-00:47