Senior White House officials were greatly disappointed by Wednesday’s report and surprised at how serious the inflationary problems are throughout the economy, according to people familiar with the matter. The report also fueled mounting concerns about supply chain bottlenecks.

For weeks, administration officials have been scrambling to try and alleviate the economic problems, frequently convening meetings across agencies and searching for solutions. But many administration officials have conceded they have few policy options to bring immediate relief to Americans, and the White House is concerned about ongoing political fallout, especially around the holiday season…

Most economists say there is a limited amount presidents can do to control inflation, especially when an economy is emerging from a drastic slowdown like the one imposed by the pandemic. But Biden, who likes to talk about the concerns of working-class Americans like his former neighbors in Scranton, Pa., is acutely aware of the political perils of pocketbook issues.