Democrats are continuing to celebrate the passage of the falsely named “Inflation Reduction Act,” and members of the press have been right there to play their part.

On ABC News, while appearing on George Stephanopoulos’ show, leftwing hack Jonathan Karl tried to make the case that it was a major legislative accomplishment. He proclaimed that Joe Biden is “on a roll” before fretting that the president isn’t getting the credit he supposedly deserves. He also made the case that the jobs numbers are “extraordinary” and that gas prices are dropping.

Chris Christie, who was part of the panel, then stepped in with a flawless reality check.

.@jonkarl: "If you look at our new poll, he's getting credit for almost nothing, he's on a roll, no question that Joe Biden is on a roll…"@GovChristie "They got Democrats to actually vote for a Democrat bill, what are we going to do? Drop the confetti at the White House?" pic.twitter.com/mlQ5rmqjFS

— Kevin Tober (@KevinTober94) August 7, 2022

Here’s the full exchange via Newsbusters.

JONATHAN KARL: If you look at our new poll, I mean he’s getting credit for almost nothing, he’s on a roll, I mean there’s no question that Joe Biden is on a roll legislatively, on the national security front, but he’s getting no credit for it. And, look, inflation is still a factor. Gas prices are actually coming down and have been coming down for almost two months. The unemployment numbers are remarkable. Not only the unemployment numbers but wage growth continues to rise. It’s just not keeping pace with inflation.

CHRISTIE: It’s an inside Washington role, George. It’s an inside Washington role. Like, they won on the Inflation Reduction Act, which is a ridiculous name, as you pointed out in the interview. But they won on that, they got Democrats to actually vote for a Democrat bill, what are we going to do? Like, drop the confetti at the White House.

I mean this is ridiculous. It’s an inside Washington role. The people in the rest of the country, are saying wait a second, I’m still paying much more for gas than I should. I’m still paying much more to cool my house. I can’t get groceries on the table and I’m worried about the future.

Christie is dead on the money here. All the pomp and circumstance over the Democrats passing a Democrat bill with Democrat votes belays the fact that Americans simply don’t care about most of what’s in the bill. Climate change consistently ranks as one of the lowest priorities among voters, and certainly, hiring 87,000 IRS agents and raising taxes isn’t any more popular. The only provision in the entire act that might see wide support is the capping of insulin prices, but that’s such a micro-issue that it’ll be out of the country’s collective psyche within days.

The entire reconciliation bill is, as Christie says, an “inside Washington roll.” It’s something that makes beltway dwellers squee, but back in the real world, people are still paying $10 for a pack of bacon. And the last thing they are going to be enthused by is seeing more of their taxpayer money wasted on green energy subsidies.  Further, Karl attempting to brag about gas prices dropping (remember, he’s supposed to be an unbiased journalist) just comes across as out-of-touch. Yes, gas prices have come back down after blowing past previous record highs, but they are still 80 percent higher today than when Biden took office. That’s not an accomplishment. It’s simply failing a little less.

That brings me to my broader critique of the media narrative that Democrats are on the comeback trail because they got a partisan bill passed and Joe Biden managed to not die of COVID. Normal Americans do not look at Washington right now and see a government that cares about what they care about. Instead, they see self-indulgence and unearned celebration from mediocrities who don’t have to face the challenges of the real world. Climate change subsidies that will be mostly used by well-off individuals? Is that really what Democrats think is a winning issue with inflation sitting at 9.1 percent? And even if inflation starts to drop (it has to at some point), it’ll take years before it gets back to a point that isn’t absolutely crushing.

In a few months, people are going to go to the polls, and I can guarantee you that they won’t be basing their vote on the “Inflation Reduction Act.” They will be basing their vote on what their personal situation looks like. Right now, the economy is retracting, with its only bright spot being an increase in jobs largely created by people taking on part-time positions to combat inflation. That’s not a winning environment for Democrats, no matter how much they try to will themselves to believe otherwise.