As inflation reached a three-decade high this month, conservatives in Congress capitalized on the moment by pinning the surge in prices entirely on government spending. The Republican National Committee advised Americans, “Be prepared to pay more this holiday season because of Bidenflation.”

This narrative is far from universally accepted, but it has put Democrats on the defensive as one of Joe Biden’s staple pieces of legislation — the $1.75 trillion reconciliation bill, or Build Back Better Act — awaits consideration in the Senate. The real or imagined threat of inflation could derail its progress entirely.

Biden didn’t help his cause when he blamed inflation on the $1,400 stimulus checks authorized by the COVID-19 relief bill. Prices have gone up because “people have more money now because of the first major piece of legislation I passed,” Biden said in a speech earlier this month, calling it an “irony.”