Opinion Today: A key lesson on inflation from this election

We must stop it before it starts.

View in browser|nytimes.com November 12, 2024 By Suein Hwang Business, Economics and Technology Editor, Opinion There's nothing like a crushing electoral loss to put things into focus. If it wasn't obvious before, it is crystal clear now. Inflation matters to voters. That makes Isabella Weber's analysis even more important. Using artificial intelligence and natural language processing, Weber, who is an economist, analyzed more than 130,000 earnings calls of publicly listed U.S. companies to determine the source of the country's damaging wave of inflation. She concludes in her Times Opinion essay today that the sudden news of cost shocks, like the onset of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, freed businesses to raise prices in a way they normally cannot. That result deeply damaged Kamala Harris's candidacy. In "rich countries like the United States, the politically destructive power of inflation had been forgotten. Standard policy tools left us unprepared for inflation, and the Biden administration was slow to fight back. The re-election of Donald Trump should serve a warning to the U.S. and other democratic governments," Weber argues. She also offers a possible solution: "Economic stabilization used to be part of the disaster preparedness toolbox. It is time we add it back in." Weber submitted her essay weeks ago, but the time to read it is now. Read the full essay: Guillem Casasús Guest Essay The Lesson of This Election: We Must Stop Inflation Before It Starts Our nation needs an economic disaster preparedness tool kit to avoid the scourge of inflation. By Isabella Weber Here's what we're focusing on today: Editors' Picks Guest Essay Will the Supreme Court Stand Up to Trump? Can It? The Supreme Court is largely to blame for the challenges it may face over the next four years. By Stephen I. Vladeck More From Opinion Charles M. 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