captioning sponsored by cbs >> brennan: i'm margaret brennan in washington and this week on "face the nation," 20 months into the pandemic, we'll sort out the conflicting signals on our recovery from covid and the covid economy. more and more americans are heading back to inoffice work, and the jobless rate is inching closer to pre-pandemic levels. but the broader economy is still struggling to shake off the impact of covid-19. prices are surging in sector after sector. businesses are struggling to find workers, and supply chains are tied in knots. >> the pandemic has been calling the shots for the economy and for inflation. >> brennan: so what can we do about it? we'll ask treasury secretary janet yellen. then we'll ask the head of the

minneapolis reserve bank neel kashkari for his perspective. plus we're starting to see the seasonal impact on covid cases, lead something states to encourage booster shots for all adults. we'll check in with former f.d.a. commissioner dr. scott gottlieb. and we'll talk with colorado governor jared polis, whose state isiest of wrestling with a new surge of infections. >> one in 48 of every coloradans are infected and contagious with covid-19. >> brennan: finally we'll ask world bank prendad malpass about fighting inflation. will wealthy countries fulfill their broken promise to help inpolice officerrished nations to cope with a hotter planet. it's all just ahead on "face the nation." >> brennan: good morning, and welcome to "face the nation."

progress in our slow march back to normal seems to be a continuing series of starts and stops, and there's a lot of confusion about where we are headed. most sundays, we start the broadcast with a look at what's going on that you need to know. and today's no exception, but one thing that's different is our mark strassmann is actually here in person. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, great to see you in person. >> brennan: so there were a lot of conflicting signals on the economy. what you can tell us? >> reporter: there are some fundamental disconnects going on with the economy between what it is we're all looking to buy versus what's availble on store shelves. that's number one. number two, people have money in the bank but they still feel financially vulnerable. and then there's this constant battle with sticker shock. econ101 in late 2021, when demand dwarfed supply and supply chains are bottlenecked. prices explode. inflation's peak surge in three decades. >> there aren't enough truck drivers, there aren't enough

trucks. all the way along it's kindave hot mess this year. >> reporter: the consumer price index what, we pay for goods and services year to year, sumped to 6.2% in october, the biggest surge since 1991. new car prices up 9%. used cars and trucks, astonishly, up 26%. gas, 50%. heating oil has climbed almost 60%, with temperatures dropping. and 2, 1 bacon up. you quickly see why inflation is now chewing into the president's popularity. >> many people remain unsettled about the economy, and we all know why. >> reporter: with pandemic restrictions loosened, consumer demand has roared back. millions of families with stockpiled savings want to spend. >> two palettes' worth, arctic animals. love it. >> reporter: and merchants want to sell. but supply chains from the ports to the highways remain knotted. among the worried-- u.s. turkey

farmers. it's less than two weeks before their super bowl. >> everything in the last couple of years has been a little more challenging, even down to boxes. >> reporter: help wanted, another sign fueling inflation. we've become a nation of quitters. more than foumi mre reports 104 io jobseptember economists disagree whether this inflation will worsen and about the potential impact of trillions in government spending, the infrastructure bill, the social spending bill, on tom of all that pandemic relief. inflation pressures the fed with rates now triple the average 2% gains it aims for annually. and with last month's gallup poll, nearly 70% of americans believe the economy is getting worse. there's also pressure on a president pushing for washington to spend more. soagain, the irony is with more

money in the banks millions of americans are better off, but they don't feel it, and nor do they believe, margaret, anyone has a plan for getting inflation under control. and many, if not most people, believe the economy is going to get worse before it gets better. >> brennan: all important consumer psychology. mark strassmann, thank you so much for being here. >> reporter: you bet. >> brennan: on friday, we went to the treasury department here in washington and sat down with secretary janet yellen. she told us, unsurprisingly, that our economic stability u he said that inflatus until te second half of next year. are you confident that prices for the average american will be down by the time we head into next november and election day? >> the pandemic has been calling want shots for the economy and for inflation. and if we want to get inflation down, i think continuing to make progress against the pandemic is the most important thing we can

do. i think it's-- it's important to realize that because of this inflation, the cause of this inflation is the pandemic. led to a dramatic increase in demand for products. households were unable to spend on surfaces, going out to eat and traveling. they shifted as they stayed at home, worked more from home. they shifted their spending on to goods that led to a surge in the demand for products. and although the supply of products has increased in the united states and globally, not as much as demand. americans feel confident about the job market. quits have increased to record numbers, which is a sign that people are getting outside offers. they're seeing wage increases.

that is something that didn't have to happen, and it really reflects the support that we gave to americans to keep up their spending and make it through the pandemic. but with supply disruptions, and this huge shift in-- in demand toward products, we are seeing some broadbased price increases. we have shortages of semiconductors that's really caused new and used car prices to rise, car production. >> brennan: 26% year over year for used cars. >> yes. >> brennan: gasoline up 23eu679%. eggs 12%. milk 6%. coffee 6%. >> we are seeing some big increases in prices. >> brennan: when does it get better? when do those spikes abate? >> when the economy recovers enough from covid that demand patterns-- people go back to eating out, traveling more,

spending more on surfaces, and the demand for products, for goods begins to go back to normal. and, also, labor supply has been impacted by the pandemic. labor force participation is down. it hasn't recovered. and i would expect that if we're successful with the pandemic, to be some time in the second half of next year, i would expect prices to go back to normal. >> brennan: because there could be a political cost to this. >> yes. well, there's an economic cost, and americans feel it, and when gas rises, average is now over capitol hill 3 a gallon, and some places quite a bit higher, americans notice is, and it makes a difference. but i just think it's important to put inflation in context of an economy that is improving a

lot from what we had right after the pandemic and is making progress. >> brennan: china's leaders have repeatedly asked for the trump-era tariffs to be lifted. if the biden administration did that, would it make things cheaper? >> it would make some dinches. difference. tariffs do tend to raise domestic prices. we put those tariffs in place, president trump in his administration did, in retaliation for unfair trade practices. >> brennan: should they stay in place? >> you know, we have said the u.s. trade representative, catherine ty has said we're revisiting the phase-one trade deal, and recognizing requests% to reduce tariffs in some areas. so that's certainly something that's under consideration. >> brennan: when we talk about the supply part of the challenge

you're dealing with here in the united states, is it the private sector's job to unclog the supply chain, or is there more that you can be doing within the administration right now? >> the supply chains are, by and large, private. but nevertheless, sometimes help in coordinating act actions is useful and necessary to unclog supply chains. we've been talking with the operators of ports in los angeles, in long beach, in savannah, trying to understand why there are such backlogs of ships waiting to offload their goods. those ports have agreed to stay open 24/7. and we've talked to the the retailers about trying to move their containers out to create

more room. we're leaving no stone unturned. even though this is-- this is mainly private. >> brennan: there are record level of job openings riement now. >> that's right. >> brennan: and, yet, there's a worker shortage at the same time. what is going on with the supply-and-demand mismatch here? >> the programs that were put in place, the american rescue plan, and the cares act, and other programs, really were intended to support households and families to get through this so that they didn't take a huge hit to their income. so financially, americans say they feel good about their finances. and that's not an accident. unemployment is low. labor force participation is quite depressed, relative to pre-pandemic levels. i think part of it reflects krnlz about covid and exposure to covid, especially in jobs

that involve public-facing activities. and partly, you know, the fact that child care workers, educators are in short supply creates child care problems that also tends to suppress labor supply. so as i say, when we really get control of the pandemic, i think labor supply will go back to normal. >> brennan: are we at a place where we need to increase immigration in order to meantime this challenge? >> well, you know, there are a lot of issues involved in immigration, but i believe that is one reason that we do face supply shortages-- shortages of certain kinds of workers. >> brennan: what does the economic recovery look like without paid leave? >> i think we will still have an economic recovery that will be

strong and, you know, support ongoing growth. but labor force participation, particularly for women, has been a problem in the united states now for some time. once upon a time, female labor force participation in the united states was higher than almost any developed country. and now, that is absolutely not the case. and when you compare the united states with other developed countries, a big difference that stands out is a lack of support for people working. >> brennan: right. >> and, particularly for women. now, i'm very hopeful and fully expect the "build back better" package to become law. >> brennan: but it was taken out of the framework. >> yes, so-- >> brennan: it's unlikely to have support in the senate. >> it's an important support for people to be able to work.

but there's a great deal of support in that package for child care. it ask a lot to make child care more affordable so that, for most families, child care expense would be reduced from i think about 13% now down to no more than 7% of their income. >> brennan: so i-- >> it would be two additional years of early childhood education that would be universal, and a child tax credit that would help families be able to afford to take good care of their children and also participate in the workforce. so i think that package will help boost labor force participation, particularly that of women. >> brennan: so you think what's in there is. because back in february, you told me women's participation is

down because they don't have access universally to paid family and medical leave and child care. is it essential to full economic recovery? >> it's something that we will try to legislate in the future. it looks like it won't be a component of this package. >> brennan: the president is expected to make his selection for the fed chair. do you believe zer jerome powell should be nominated? how important is his continuity? >> i will leave it to the president to make the decision. i have sailed i think chairman powell has done a very good job of running the fed, of addressing the issues, particularly that arose when the pandemic struck. but what's important is that president biden choose someone who is experienced and credible and there are a range of candidates. >> brennan: you can see our full interview with treasury secretary janet yellen on our web site and our youtube

channel. dr. scott gottlieb. stay with us. ♪ have a good time 'cause it's all right ♪ ♪ now listen to the beat ♪ ♪ kinda pat your feet ♪ ♪ it's all right ♪ ♪ have a good time 'cause it's all right ♪ ♪ oh, it's all right ♪

former f.d.a. commissioner and pfizer board member dr. scott gottlieb. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> brennan: you told us last sunday that we are entering the final end of this pandemic phase, but we could see an uptick in cases as we transition to the next phase. 20 different states in this country are seeing an uptick. should we prepare for a post-thanksgiving spike? >> well, look, we're going to see a postholiday spike. there's no question about that. people are exhausted right now, but we need to remain vigilant just for a little bit longer. i think we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, with a declining prevalence on the back endful delta variant. and we have oral drugs, so we see a point in time when this will still be a pervasive risk,

covid, but it won't be the prevalent risk it is now when it dominates our life.nt0 diffeentw the coronavirus has been experienced all through the pandemic. if you're in parts of the south right now, or the southeast, even if you're in the pacific northwest, where cases are coming down quite dramatically, or the plain states, certain mountain states, things are looking pretty good. in the south the prevalence is very low and unlikely to bump up substantially. if you're in the southwest right now, great lakes region, wisconsin, minnesota, michigan, parts of new england or western pennsylvania or northern new york, or certain mountain states like colorado, things don't look good. you haven't experienced the delta variant yet and things will get worse before they get better. >> brennan: you hshed the treasury secretary say basically everything is determined by the path of the virus when it comes to the economic recovery. when do we say covid is under control? >> i think covid is going to be under control in the back end of this delta variant, through a

combination of population-wide immunity. we're going to have a lot of people with immunity through vaccination or infection. people who choose not to get vaccinate read probably going to get infected by this delta variant, as well as the more rapid and widespread deployment of the tools now available. the oral antiviral drugs that people should have available in the first quarter, including one drug i'm on the board of pfizer. clth the vaccination for children. we now have the tools to get this under control. covid is not going away. this is going to be an endemic virus that stays with us, a lot like the flu. we may have to get vaccinated for this on an annual basis. this is not going to be sort of the pervasive risk its now that dominates our lives and dominates the economy. but there are still some parts of the country that haven't had the delta variant that unfortunately are going to be hit pretty hard, especially the unvaccinated or undervaccinated parts of the country, like the southwest, or certain states around want great lakes.

there's a question of what happens in the tristate region and the mid-atlantic. so far they're not seeing the big upticks. i think there is still some risk for that parent of the country as well. >> brennan: the n.b.a. is telling its players to get booster shots as soon as possible. dr. fowch seleaning pretty hard into the idea it is absolutely essential. why isn't the c.d.c. telling us to get booster shots now? >> well, look, i think the confusing message around boosters may end up being one of the biggest missed opportunities in this pandemic. we now see very clear evidence of declining vaccine effectiveness over time. there are different reasones yes that may be the case. but the trend is unmistakable. and this has been apparent since the end of the summer. now it's very clear. anyone who is eligible for a boost ear and most american rlz probably eligible for a booster at this point-- should be going up on the and seeking it it. this is the fastest way we can increase total immunity in the population. someone who has an old vaccine

that may have only 50% of its effectiveness left, they go a booster and they restore 95% of effectiveness within a matter of days. the fastest way we can get increased immunity in the population, increased total immunity in the population may be through boosting people who have already been vaccinated with two doses. plus it's going to be easier to convert that person. it will be much easy tore convince that person who has had two doses will of the vaccine to get a third than to convince one of the 18% of americans who has chosen to remain unvaccinated this long to get vaccinated for the first time. >> brennan: you said that was one of the biggest missteps in this pandemic? this pandemic has been full of mistakes. why is this the biggest one? >> look, i think when we look back, this may be a very big missed opportunity to try to get ahead of this delta variant. again, because this is going to be the fastest way we can increase the total immunity in the population. we have to look at the immunity in terms of not just how many people have been vaccinated but also the depth of immunity how many people have a lot of residual immune protection against this virus and are going

to be what we call a dead-end host and not be somebody who can catch and spread the virus. fastest way to turn someone into a dead-end host is to get them fully vaccinated. there are a lot of people with declining vaccine effectiveness right now who can both catch and spread this virus. if we give them the booster, we restore the full effectiveness of the vaccine. the other way, unfortunately, to get immunity into the population is get people infected and unfortunately, that's the way a lot of people are choosing to do this. if you go out and start vaccinating someone right now for the first time, it might take five or six weeks for them to gain immunity. see we need to do what we can right now. >> brennan: understood. we're 10 months into the administration. the president has nominated someone now to run the f.d.a. what do you think of this candidate? >> well, look, i think experience is important in these roles. that's why dr. janet woodcock has been exceptional in this role. she has a lot of experience in

the episode. rob calec also has a lot of experience. i inherited his f.d.a. he left at the end of the obama administration, and the beginning of the trump administration. i inherited his team. it was an outstanding team. most them stayed. i also inherited his policy he set in motion, including around opennoids where he set in motion an aggressive set of measures, increased regulation for immediate release on opennoids and started the discussion over the availability of opyoids which resulted in bipartisan legislation. rob did a lot. i was the beneficiary of a lot of things he set in motion. >> brennan: opyoids, of course, something that may couple in any hearing. thank you for your perspective. the former f.d.a. commissioner dr. scott gottlieb. we'll be right back.

. >> brennan: you heard and have

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