Updated July 3rd, 2022 at 14:17 IST

Jeff Bezos slams US President Biden over statement demanding gas companies slash prices

Amazon founder and billionaire Jeff Bezos slammed US President Joe Biden over his latest remarks asking gas companies to cut their prices amid rising inflation.

Reported by: Anurag Roushan
Image: AP | Image:self
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Amazon founder and billionaire Jeff Bezos has slammed US President Joe Biden over his latest remarks asking gas companies to cut their prices amid rising inflation in the country. Taking to Twitter on Saturday, Biden stated, "My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril." He also asked the companies to immediately bring down the prices they are charging at the pumps in order to reflect the cost they pay for the product. 

Bezos has minced no words in criticising Biden's policies, particularly those that deal with inflation. This time, the US President had issued a strong warning to gas firms in an effort to counteract rising costs. Reacting to Biden's instruction to companies, Bezos stated, "Ouch. Inflation is far too important a problem for the White House to keep making statements like this. It’s either straight ahead misdirection or a deep misunderstanding of basic market dynamics (sic)." 

Bezos has been critical of Biden's policies on inflation  

Earlier, the billionaire had taken a dig at the White House over President Biden's tweet about corporate taxes, which Bezos termed as "misdirection and disinformation."  In the month of May too, the Amazon founder questioned the President's view on inflation. Bezos had claimed that the Biden administration made a concerted effort to add further stimulus to an already inflationary economy. "Inflation is a regressive tax that most hurts the least affluent. Misdirection doesn’t help the country," Bezos had written in a Twitter post. 

President Biden blames Russia for rising gas prices in US

It should be mentioned here that President Biden has also reiterated his call for a "gas tax holiday" and a cap on the price of Russian oil in an effort to lessen the suffering of US citizens at the pumps. Speaking at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Madrid on June 30, he also seemed to be blaming the so-called "Putin price hike" for surging inflation and high gas prices in the United States. However, US authorities have admitted that the country was reeling under price rise even before Russia launched a full-fledged war in Ukraine in late February.  

(Image: AP)

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Published July 3rd, 2022 at 14:17 IST