‘Okay, Fine’: CNN Analyst Errol Louis Immediately Backtracks After Getting Caught Misleading On Inflation

CNN political commentator Errol Louis immediately backtracked Monday after host Poppy Harlow called him out for his claim about inflation.

The panel was discussing a series of new polls showing President Joe Biden’s approval rating continuing to sink while former President Donald Trump makes gains. Louis said one of the biggest problems the Biden Administration is facing is inflation, arguing the “cautionary tale” is that of former President George H.W. Bush.

“Technically we were coming out of the recession. It’s just people didn’t feel it in time, and they voted him out of office,” Louis said of Bush. “That’s what [the Biden administration] wants to try and avoid above everything. It would be, you know, a great problem for them, if while they’re doing all the right things and technically inflation is coming down, but if people just don’t believe it, they don’t feel it, then they’re not gonna act on it. That’s, I think, when they say ‘give us time,’ they are racing against time,” Louis said before Harlow interjected.

“It’s technically not coming down on things like food, energy, in some respects —” Harlow said. 

“Well inflation is the rate of change. The rate of change is coming down, and okay, fine, so the prices are too high, and they’re still getting higher, but they’re not getting high as quickly as they were last year,” Louis conceded.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI), a broad measure of everyday goods, rose 3.7% on an annual basis in August compared to 3.2% in July, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows. Core CPI, which excludes energy and food costs, rose 4.3% year-over-year in August compared to 4.7% in July.

A Wall Street Journal poll found nearly 60% of voters believe the economy has declined under Biden, and 63% of those polled said they are not a fan of how Biden has handled inflation.