Biden: 'In the Last 6 Months, While the Rest of the Country Is Going Through Hell' (November 1, 2022)

On November 1, 2022, a week before the midterm elections, President Biden campaigned in Miami Gardens, Florida, for two Democrats: Rep. Val Demings, who was challenging Sen. Marco Rubio, and former Gov. Charlie Crist, who was challenging Gov. Ron DeSantis [1][9][10]. Consumer prices were 8.2 percent higher than a year earlier [2], and the national average price of regular gasoline, which had peaked at $5.006 a gallon in June, was $3.742 [3]. In a passage attacking oil company profits, Biden said that “the rest of the country is going through hell.” This short clip shows that line. Quotes are from the official transcript published by the American Presidency Project [1].

Key Moments

”While the rest of the country is going through hell”

Biden set up the line by turning to the oil industry. “Americans across the country have stepped up and are doing the right thing, but not everyone. The oil industry is not doing the right thing,” he said. “They haven’t met their commitment to invest in America and support the American people.” After citing Shell’s and Exxon’s third-quarter results, he said: “In the last 6 months, while the rest of the country is going through hell, six of the largest oil companies made more than $100 billion in profits. A hundred billion dollars in less than 200 days. It’s outrageous” [1].

”Gas prices are coming down”

Earlier in the speech he had said: “Putin’s invasion of Ukraine sent gas prices soaring around the world. But because of the actions we’ve taken, gas prices are coming down here at home. They’re down $1.25. I just passed a gas station on the way: $3.25 when it was 5 bucks when it took off this summer.” He added: “It’s a difficult time” [1].

”Pay higher taxes on your excessive profits”

He said the companies were “buying back their own stock because that’s how the CEOs get paid,” and repeated the warning he had given at the White House the day before: “Either begin to invest in America or pay higher taxes on your excessive profits and face other restrictions” [1]. In those October 31 remarks, he had called the companies’ profits “a windfall of war” and said: “My team will work with Congress to look at these options that are available to us and others” [4].

”Economic growth is up, price inflation is down”

Biden then turned to the latest data: “the economy grew 2.6 percent last quarter. And although it may not feel that way, people’s incomes went up the last quarter more than inflation. Economic growth is up, price inflation is down, real incomes are up, and gas prices are down” [1].

Fact Check

“The rest of the country is going through hell.” The clip’s title calls this an admission. In context, Biden was describing the strain of high prices to contrast it with oil company profits, but the strain was real: inflation was 8.2 percent in September 2022 [2], down only slightly from 9.1 percent in June, which the Bureau of Labor Statistics called “the largest 12-month increase since the period ending November 1981” [11].
“They’re down $1.25.” Accurate. The Energy Information Administration’s national average fell from $5.006 in the week of June 13 to $3.742 in the week of October 31, a drop of about $1.26 [3]. The $3.25 price he said he saw on the way cannot be checked.
Shell “made $9.5 billion in profit in 3 months.” That is Shell’s adjusted earnings figure for the third quarter. Its income attributable to shareholders, the standard accounting measure, was $6.7 billion, according to the company’s results presentation [5].
Exxon’s “third quarter profits were $18.7 billion … The most it’s made in its entire 152-year history.” Exxon’s record was real, and the figure Biden used was conservative: CBS News reported that Exxon “broke records with its profits in the third quarter, raking in $19.7 billion in net income” [6][7].
“Six of the largest oil companies made more than $100 billion in profits.” The White House did not publish its calculation, but the figure is plausible. Exxon and Chevron alone reported about $60 billion over the second and third quarters: $17.85 billion and $11.62 billion in the second quarter, and $19.7 billion and $11.2 billion in the third, according to CBS News [6][12].
“The economy grew 2.6 percent last quarter.” Accurate. The Bureau of Economic Analysis’s advance estimate put third-quarter growth at an annual rate of 2.6 percent [8].
“Price inflation is down.” Partly. The 12-month rate had eased from 9.1 percent in June to 8.2 percent in September, so prices were still rising quickly, only less quickly than in the summer [2][11].

What Happened Next

The election: On November 8, DeSantis won a second term “with nearly a 20-point margin,” carrying Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties, “longtime Democratic strongholds,” NPR reported, and Rubio won a third term, defeating Demings [9][10].
Gas prices: The national average kept falling, to $3.091 a gallon by the week of December 26, 2022 [3].
Inflation: The 12-month inflation rate fell to 3.0 percent by June 2023 [13].