But the move to blame big firms for the price spikes has divided many supporters of the administration. Senior officials at the Treasury Department, for instance, have been unsettled by the White House’s attempts to blame some large corporations for inflation, skeptical of that explanation for the recent rise in prices, according to four people with knowledge of internal administration dynamics.

Senior Treasury officials are generally supportive of the White House’s broader antitrust strategy and believe it is possible that corporate consolidation is playing some role in higher prices. But they are wary that the White House’s recent efforts risk going too far.

“There are some people at Treasury, all the way to the top, that have a very strong analytical bent and recognize there is something to the notion that the lack of contestability in certain markets has driven up prices, but also think that it’s hard to imagine that’s a significant factor in the current surge,” said Eswar Prasad, an economist at Cornell University and former senior official at the International Monetary Fund. “There is unease at Treasury about pushing this line too hard,” he added. “There is a real concern there about this going too far.”