Court hearing exposes role of supermarket's price gouging in inflationary pricing

>> THEY'VE BEEN SAYING >> THEY'VE BEEN SAYING THE CAUSE OF INFLATION ISN'T THE SPENDING PROGRAM, IT IS CORPORATE GREED AND PRICE GOUGING. THIS IS JUST PREPOSTEROUS RHETORIC.>> THIS INFLATION CRISIS IS THE FRANKENSTEIN MONSTER OF BIDEN AND HARRIS, THAT IS NOT PRICE GOUGING. >> BIDEN BLAMING CORPORATIONS IS LIKE LOOKING INTO A MIRROR ON A BAD HAIR DAY AND SCREAMING AT THE MIRROR, IT IS NOT THE MIRROR'S FAULT, IT IS A REFLECTION OF YOU.>> IF YOU WATCH FOX NEWS OR FOXBUSINESS, OR YOU READ THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, YOU HAVE LIKELY HEARD THIS THE LAST FEW YEARS, DON'T BLAME CORPORATE GREED FOR INFLATION, BLAME THE DEMOCRATS. MEANWHILE THE REALITY IS THE BIDEN/HARRIS ADMINISTRATION HAS BEEN WORKING OVERTIME ON BEHALF OF ALL AMERICANS, REGARDLESS OF POLITICAL PARTY, TO CURB INFLATION, IN PART BY TAKING DIRECT AIM AT CORPORATE PRICE GOUGING. EVEN JUST YESTERDAY, THE ADMINISTRATION WAS IN COURT TRYING TO BLOCK A MERGER BETWEEN TWO MAJOR GROCERY STORE CHAINS, THE ADMINISTRATION ARGUED THIS WOULD MEAN LESS COMPETITION BETWEEN GROCERY STORES WHICH WOULD MEAN LESS COMPETITION FOR CONSUMERS OR CUSTOMERS. ALLOWING A NEW MEGA GROCERY STORE TO SET PRICES AS HIGH AS IT WANTS. DURING THAT HEARING, THE SENIOR DIRECTOR ADMITTED IN A TESTIMONY THAT WHEN IT CAME TO PRODUCTS LIKE MILK AND EGGS, KROGER'S RAISED PRICES MORE THAN THEY NEEDED TO, ALSO KNOWN AS PRICE GOUGING. SO YES, CORPORATIONS REALLY ARE RAISING PRICES ON CONSUMERS MORE THAN THEY HAVE TO AND THE ONLY REASON WE WOULD KNOW ABOUT IT IS BECAUSE THE BIDEN/HARRIS ADMINISTRATION IS WORKING TO HOLD THEM TO ACCOUNT. JOINING US NOW, THE FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF MORE PERFECT UNION AND THE FORMER CAMPAIGN MANAGER FOR BERNIE SANDERS. EXPLAINED TO THE VIEWERS WHY THIS BIDEN/HARRIS ADMINISTRATION MOVE TO BLOCK THIS MERGER IS SO IMPORTANT FOR ALL AMERICANS REGARDLESS OF THEIR POLITICAL PARTY. >> WE KNOW THE COMPETITION IS THE LIFEBLOOD OF THE ECONOMY AND WHEN WE HAVE COMPETITION IT CREATES SMALL BUSINESSES OR ENTREPRENEURIAL, THAT MEANS YOU HAVE BETTER QUALITY PRODUCTS, AND IF YOU DON'T HAVE THAT COMPETITION, WHAT HAPPENS? YOU HAVE A BUNCH OF AUTOCRATIC CORPORATE LEADERS WHO WILL JUST TRY TO BE GREEDY AND TAKE AS MUCH AS THEY CAN GET. THAT IS WHAT YOU HAVE WITH THE KROGER ALBERTSON'S MERGER, THEY WANT TO DRIVE THAT COMPETITION IN SO MANY CITIES, JACK UP THE PRICE FOR ALL BASIC ITEMS AND THE TESTIMONY BEING PROVIDED BY THEIR OWN DIRECTOR PRICING REVEALS THAT, THAT IS THEIR STRATEGY, THEY WANT TO CRUSH THE COMPETITION. AND MOST PEOPLE SAY WELL, WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT IT? THANKFULLY WE DO HAVE AN ADMINISTRATION WHO IS GOING AGGRESSIVELY AT PRICE-FIXING BY CORPORATE MONOPOLIES, PLACES LIKE TICKETMASTER, APPLE, GOOGLE, AMAZON, LARGE CONGLOMERATES SO SMALL BUSINESSES CAN THRIVE. IF WE STAY ON THIS TRACK, HARRIS HAS PLEDGED WITH A CONTINUATION ON THE PRICE GOUGING AND THERE IS SO MUCH MORE TO GO AFTER. >> I'M GLAD THAT YOU BROUGHT IT UP AGAIN, THERE WAS AN EMAIL THAT WE SAW DURING THE HEARING, THE HEAD OF PRICING AT KROGER SAID ON MILK AND EGGS, RETAIL INFLATION HAS BEEN SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN COST INFLATION, TRANSLATION, WE RAISED PRICES MORE THAN WE NEEDED TO, BUT A KROGER SPOKESPERSON TOLD BLOOMBERG, THIS CHERRY PICKED EMAIL COVERS A SPECIFIC PERIOD DOES NOT REFLECT KROGER'S DECADE-LONG BUSINESS MODEL TO LOWER PRICES FOR CUSTOMERS BY REDUCING ITS MARGINS. I MEAN, IT IS NO SECRET, CORPORATIONS TOOK ADVANTAGE OF THE PANDEMIC AND CREATED GREED INFLATION, BUT THIS IS ONE OF THOSE SMOKING GUN MEMORANDUMS THAT WE SOMETIMES DON'T GET TO SEE UNLESS PRESSED BY THINGS LIKE THE BIDEN/HARRIS ADMINISTRATION TO SHOW THEIR HANDS. >> RIGHT, TO TESTIFY IN COURT, AND IT'S NOT JUST KROGER, IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS, THE DOJ HAS BROUGHT A SUIT AGAINST A COMPANY CALLED REAL PAGE THAT SETS ALGORITHMIC PRICING FOR CORPORATE LANDLORDS SO THEY CAN PROFIT MAXIMIZE AND THROUGH THAT CASE, WE FOUND THAT THE LANDLORDS LOVE THE PRODUCTS BECAUSE IT ALLOWS US TO DO PRICE-FIXING. THAT IS WHAT WE FIND THROUGH THE DOJ. AND THROUGH ANOTHER FTC INVESTIGATION, THEY WENT AFTER A BIG OIL COMPANY CALLED PIONEER WHOSE CEO, WE FIND WAS COLLUDING WITH OPEC OVERSEAS TO SET THE PRICE OF OIL HIGH DURING THE PANDEMIC, WE FOUND THIS OUT BECAUSE THE FTC AND THE DOJ ARE ON THE CASE, AND WE ARE LEARNING MORE ABOUT THE PRICE-FIXING THAT IS GOING UP IN JUST THE PAST FEW YEARS, WE LEARNED THAT CHICKEN PRODUCER FROM THE WASHINGTON ATTORNEY GENERAL, BOB FERGUSON WERE CONSPIRING TO RAISE THE PRICES OF CHICKEN. ONE OF THE MAJOR PRODUCERS OF EGGS IN THIS COUNTRY WAS FOUND GUILTY BY A JURY FOR PRICE- FIXING. IT IS RAMPANT IN OUR ECONOMY AND THE ONLY WAY YOU TAKE IT ON IS IF YOU HAVE COMPETITION IN THE ECONOMY. >> AND LET'S JUST USE PEOPLE WHO ARE FREAKING OUT, BY HAVING KAMALA HARRIS SUGGEST THAT SHE'S GOING TO COMBAT AND GET RID OF PRICE GOUGING, LET'S BE CLEAR, SHE IS NOT SAYING SHE IS GOING TO RANDOMLY PICK PRICES FOR YOUR CHICKENS AND EGGS AND WHATEVER, WHICH SHE IS GOING TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE IS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCIES THAT ARE GOING TO BE CHECKING THIS AND MAKING SURE AND GATEKEEPING SO THAT CORPORATIONS AREN'T ALLOWED TO JUST SET THE PRICE AS WHATEVER THEY WANT TO AND AMERICAN CONSUMERS ARE PROTECTED, RIGHT? >> YES, AND I WOULD ADD THAT THE GOVERNMENT HAS ALWAYS USED PRICE NEGOTIATION SO YOU CAN'T JUST GET AWAY WITH THE EXORBITANT PRICE ABUSE, AND WE SEE THAT IN THE ELECTRIC MARKETS AND THE WATER MARKETS, HOW DO YOU THINK THOSE RATES ARE SET? BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT PLAYS A ROLE IN THEM. THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE