Remember when Joe Biden took office and canceled the Keystone XL pipeline, stopped issuing drilling permits, and drained the Strategic Petroleum Reserve? Gas was up to $7 a gallon in California. Biden first tried to blame the “Putin price hike,” but when that didn’t stick, he went after the gas stations and demanded they stop price gouging. The price of gas did come back down, and Biden took credit, even though a month before people were saying the president has no control over gas prices.
When Biden gives his State of the Union address this March, he’s going to tackle corporate greed and “shrinkflation.” You know how when you pay the same price for a bag of Doritos but don’t get as many? Politico reported, “Biden embraced the concept of ‘shrinkflation’ in a Super Bowl message targeting major snack food corporations — as the president framed it, there are now ‘fewer chips’ in your bag, while companies are ‘still charging you just as much.'” The man has his finger on the pulse.
Now Sen. Elizabeth Warren is on the warpath against Wendy’s, which she’s accusing of price gouging. There’s no business or industry or service that Warren doesn’t want to interfere with, and this is no different.
.@Wendys is planning to try out “surge pricing” — that means you could pay more for your lunch, even if the cost to Wendy’s stays exactly the same.
It’s price gouging plain and simple, and American families have had enough.https://t.co/dbJuhAM6vp
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) February 28, 2024
Always looking out for the little guy, those Democrats. Warren got hit with a Community Note:
Readers added context they thought people might want to know
Wendy’s has issued a clarification and never used the term “surge pricing.” They are rolling out new menu boards which make price changes on the fly possible, and state they only ever planned to use this feature for deals and discounts.
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How much does it cost to eat at Wendy’s in California these days, now that the minimum wage for fast-food workers in $20 an hour?
Wait until Senator Warren learns about lunch specials & happy hours.
— Mark Hosterman (@SimulatedMarkHo) February 28, 2024
Maybe this sounded better in the original smoke signals https://t.co/L5fButeuIX
— Physics Geek (@physicsgeek) February 28, 2024
Ban discounts! https://t.co/6R5ZG1zFvY
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) February 28, 2024
Ma’am this is a Wendy’s. https://t.co/CDTCHjGaIn
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) February 28, 2024
If you don’t understand economics, you probably don’t want to post about it on X.
— Will Harter (@willisfx88) February 28, 2024
Is there anything you don’t want to have complete and utter control over? Absolute psychopath!
— Peter McLovin 🏴☠️ (@PeterMcCormack) February 28, 2024
No, there is not.
We don’t care right now. Focus on real problems.
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) February 28, 2024
Or you look at as paying less for your lunch when the restaurant is not as busy. But that doesn’t fit your narrative.
— David Capo (@davidlcapo) February 28, 2024
Well, you’ve certainly identified the #1 issue facing Americans.
$2 trillion deficit and economic disaster? Nah.
WW III? Nah.
Open border, cities on the brink of chaos? Nah.
Wendy’s menu pricing? 🎯
Glad my tax dollars are being put to good use. Keep up the good work!
— Peter Tarr (@ProfitsTaken) February 28, 2024
Literally not price gouging. And the cost to Wendy’s is absolutely not the same. Staffing for a lunch rush costs more. Get a grip, Senator. Yesterday you were cheering competition and capitalism. What a difference a day makes.
— Stefani E. Buhajla (@StefaniBuhajla) February 28, 2024
When’s the last time you ate at Wendy’s, Senator Warren? And why do you think you have the right to tell a business how much they can charge their customers for a meal?
— Wicked (@w_s_bitcoin) February 28, 2024
Have you considered that surge pricing could drop the price of a median burger? It allows people who really need food, NOW, to get it, albeit at higher prices, while subsidizing those who eat off-peak.
I honestly don’t see why this is bad. (Or, any of your concern.)
— Troy Cross (@thetrocro) February 28, 2024
Think of it as a discount for dining in off-peak hours. That allows them to keep lines shorter and make better use of staff.
— William Tabor DDS (@WilliamTaborDDS) February 28, 2024
No, it’s price gouging plain and simple. Thank goodness we have senators like Warren looking out for us. What’s she going to do about it, though?
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