Former Vice President and now Presidential candidate Mike Pence released his first economic proposal this week, and it seeks to tackle inflation by cutting government programs like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Cutting the CFPB would save taxpayers $3.4 billion, according to Pence’s plan, which also suggested ending President Biden’s plan to cancel student loan debt, and freeze all non-defense spending. The moves are part of a plan to reportedly save taxpayers $1.2 trillion.
“Government cannot spend its way to prosperity, and yet Joe Biden is set on dismantling our once great economy and hurting families who can no longer afford food or find a good paying job,” Pence said in a statement. “My top economic priority will be to renew American prosperity by cutting wasteful government spending, restoring the value of the dollar, building resilient supply chains, and restoring American energy independence.”
The moves come as Pence, the former governor of Indiana before becoming Vice President, is struggling to gain traction among Republican voters and establish himself as a serious candidate. Of those who have declared their intention to run for the Republican nomination in 2024, Pence is the only one who has met the Republican National Committee’s polling threshold to participate in an upcoming debate, but who has not yet met the fundraising threshold.
