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Printing money for a UBI will increase record high Inflation

Fowler, 22 --- Kyle Fowler is an American university student pursuing a business degree at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. He is passionate about discussions surrounding fiscal policy, monetary policy, and individual choice. Kyle is the spring 2022 intern with the Austrian Economics Center. (Kyle Fowler, "UBI And Inflation: An American Case Study", 5-20-2022, Austrian Economics Center, https://austriancenter.com/ubi-and-inflation-american-case-study/)//EG

Printing money one way in which the United States government finances its spending is through the use of the money printing press. The “print more money” argument, in general, , especially when applied to financing UBI. At the core of the coronavirus pandemic, the United States passed to “stimulate” the American economy. In 2020, the Fed actions which brought about the printing of more money, increasing the possibility of rampant inflation. This has seemingly been the case, as the latest CPI numbers an astounding 8.3%, near a four-decade high. Printing more dollars for the purposes of UBI will increase inflation further. Borrowing Throughout the past few decades, American spending projects have been financed by borrowing. A likely scenario is that UBI would be financed through borrowing, the same way American COVID relief bills . While unpopular, in recent years, American politicians have run up a budget deficit in the trillions, an astonishing $3.13 trillion in 2020. In 2021, the United States 5% of its total federal spending to paying the interest on its debts, for a total of $352.3 billion. As a reference point, the United States allocated $234.3 billion to pay for Veterans Benefits and Services. Is UBI important enough to accumulate more debt and interest, when 5% of the yearly federal budget is already used to pay interest accumulated on debt? Conclusion Undoubtedly, inflation is a significant issue facing the American public. For a nation that religiously relies on car travel and fossil fuel production, coronavirus spending and the energy price increase exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine war has been disastrous for the economy. The cost of food and other essential goods , providing an additional cost on the average American. During this inflationary crisis, with of Americans living in poverty, inflation has caused significant suffering for the American people. While supporters argue that UBI will alleviate these pains, further spending will aid further inflation as American spending bills have done in recent years. As a result, Yang’s UBI plan does not make sense from an economic perspective, given its propensity for increasing inflation. 

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