A Kroger executive’s admission that the company raised prices on some goods more than necessary to account for inflation has sparked a reaction on social media from supporters of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Democratic candidate Harris proposed a nationwide ban on price gouging by food suppliers and grocery stores earlier this month as part of a broader program to reduce the cost of living.
“We all know that prices went up during the pandemic as supply chains shut down and collapsed,” Harris said Aug. 16 in Raleigh, North Carolina. “But our supply chains have since improved and prices are still too high.”
The economy is seen as the top issue for Americans ahead of the 2024 election, and both Harris and her November election rival, former President Donald Trump, have promised to cut prices if elected in November.
Harris’ plan to ban price gouging was criticized by Republicans; Trump accused her of planning communist-style price controls.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Some economists questioned the extent to which these policies could reduce prices, while others said there was little evidence that corporate greed and price gouging were responsible for high prices.
However, other economists argue that some companies took advantage of the disruptions during the pandemic to raise their prices and thus increase their profits.
Earlier this week, Andy Groff, senior director of pricing at Kroger, testified in court that the grocery giant raised milk and egg prices more than the rate of inflation.
This admission led some on social media to say it showed that Harris was right in her assumption that corporate greed was driving up high prices.
“Kamala Harris was right,” wrote someone on X, formerly Twitter. “We need laws to prevent Kroger and others from taking advantage during a health crisis. COVID was a national emergency.”
Kroger executive admits company piled up prices above inflation – Newsweek Kamala Harris was right. We need laws to prevent Kroger and others from taking advantage during a health crisis. Covid was a national emergency. https://t.co/489NrHfbos
— Mountain Views (@Mountain Views) 28 August 2024
Another wrote that many media outlets “claimed that ‘greedflation’ doesn’t exist and generally panned Kamala Harris’ anti-price gouging plans. The fact-checkers need to check themselves.”
Another wrote that anti-price gouging measures were “a central part of Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign, which was widely derided as many on the right denied the existence of price gouging and tried to blame it solely on inflation.”
Harris “was right. We all knew she was right,” wrote another person. “It’s not ‘communism’ to stand up for people who are being ripped off.”
One person wrote: “Remember MAGA whining about the price of milk and eggs? You can thank Kroger and other grocery stores for the extortionate prices. Once again, the Democrats were right.”
Another wrote: “Price gouging is like picking my pocket. Kamala Harris has promised to do something about it and I can’t wait.”
Harris and Trump’s campaign teams were asked for comment via email.
