Note:  There is now a companion page about The Causes and Effects of High Oil Prices, which deals with the crude oil supply, the worldwide market, the controversy over offshore drilling, refinery capacity and many other issues.

Much has been said about high gas prices recently, starting in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and the retail price of gasoline spiked for a few weeks.  But the price of gas has a number of causes and effects that aren't discussed in any great detail on TV news shows.  (Other than sports and weather, nothing is discussed in much detail on television, but that's another story.)  This page represents an attempt to fill in the gaps.

Radical environmentalists and their friends in the news media would have you believe that high gas prices are primarily the result of corporate greed, poor planning, and insufficient government intervention.  In reality, this is a matter of supply and demand, and it is not the proper role of government to intervene.

The major causes of high gas prices include the increased demand for oil in places like China and India, high gasoline taxes, civil unrest in Venezuela, war in the Middle East, political instability in Nigeria, and too few refineries in the U.S.  President Obama has blocked the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline.  He has choked off oil production in the Gulf of Mexico.  Barack Obama wants to raise taxes on oil companies.  There hasn't been an oil refinery built in the U.S. since 1976, thanks to the environmentalists, EPA red tape, and leftist politicians.  Alaska is floating on oil, but drilling is impeded by environmentalists, EPA red tape, and leftist politicians.  Mr. Obama would rather see us all use mass transit or drive electric cars.  The Secretary of Energy says he wants gasoline prices to be comparable to those in Europe.  State and federal taxes are a large part of the price of gas, and then there's the Federal Reserve's monetary policy, which is weakening the U.S. dollar.  On top of all that, Barack H. Obama hates capitalism, and high gas prices are helping him to systematically strangle the U.S. economy.  If you want to pay $7.00 a gallon for gasoline next year, keep voting for Democrats.

On top of all the above, the price of gas is especially high in California, where radical environmentalism and restrictive environmental laws have been promoted for decades.

And don't get your hopes up about Ethanol, because that's not a viable solution either.

It's not just gasoline:  The price of everything is going up.  There's a subsection about generalized inflation at the link.

Note:  The newest information is at the top of the page.  The farther down you go, the older it gets, in other words.  But that might be of some interest to you if you're looking into the recent history of high gas prices.

California Gas Prices Expected to Skyrocket Further after Board Approves New Fuel Standards.  California drivers could potentially pay more at the gas pump next year after a state environmental agency voted to approve a proposal to tighten fuel standards in the name of reducing reliance on fossil fuels and combatting air pollution.  The California Air Resources Board (CARB) successfully amended its Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program on Friday.  The board issued a report last year estimating that the increased fuel standards would drive gas prices up by 47 cents per gallon by 2025.  However, a report from the University of Pennsylvania's Kleinman Center for Energy Policy suggests that CARB is underestimating the impact considerably.  The tightened fuel standards will actually increase fuel prices by 65 cents per gallon in 2025, 85 cents per gallon by 2030, and almost $1.50 per gallon by 2035, according to the University of Pennsylvania report.  CARB now says its projections are inherently unreliable.

Democrats Are In Deep Trouble.  Occasionally a Democrat will say publicly what the party really believes, that Americans live too well, and we must reduce our standard of living in order to emit less carbon dioxide.  This view is manifested in efforts to suppress oil and gas production and subsidize and mandate expensive renewables.  But the Democrats can't admit that their goal is to make gasoline unaffordable, so when elections roll around they release the strategic petroleum reserve to drive the price down.  The bottom line is that Democrats can yammer endlessly about the climate, but they can't run on a platform of unaffordable energy.

Gas Prices in California [are] About to Rise Even Higher.  Aseries of new state regulations are set to make gas prices in California rise even higher in 2025, despite the state already having the highest gas prices in the nation.  [Advertisement]  As the Washington Examiner reports, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) is set to vote on a series of new fuel standards regulations on November 8th.  These regulations, which will go into effect immediately if approved, will increase the average price of gas in the state by 47 cents, according to CARB's own estimates.  However, a study from the University of Pennsylvania's Kleinman Center for Energy Policy released its own study suggesting that prices are more likely to increase by at least 65 cents.  [The same advertisement again]  Following backlash after the initial announcement of the new regulation, CARB appeared to backtrack and suggested it would revamp the new rules to minimize the price increase.  But instead, they simply re-announced the same regulations with the added caveat that, instead of being able to calculate the price increase for Californians, their study simply could not determine what the price increase would be.  "I don't expect them to," said CARB Executive Officer Steven Cliff.  He added that although "there will be additional impacts to costs to refiners," he did not "think" that those costs would impact consumers as well.

'Climate' Policies in a Harris Administration.  Ground zero for the war on conventional energy in the United States is in Kern County, California.  It is home to some of the largest oil fields in the United States, with estimated reserves totaling more than 27 billion barrels.  Most of these reserves contain what is considered heavy oil, making it more difficult to extract and refine, but as a result, Californians have developed what are among the cleanest and most sophisticated extraction and refining technologies in the world.  All of that is melting away under a relentless regulatory onslaught.  Despite sitting on ample reserves, today, California imports 75 percent of its oil and 90 percent of its natural gas.  And despite subjecting taxpayers and energy consumers to literally hundreds of billions in extra costs in order to replace oil with renewables, 50 percent of California's total energy production is fueled by petroleum, with another 30 percent coming from natural gas.  That total, 80 percent from fossil fuel, is a mere two percent better than the global average.  In 2023, 82 percent of worldwide energy production came from fossil fuels.

Phillips 66 is closing Wilmington-area refineries after more than a century, marking the end of an era.  Over more than 100 years, the Wilmington and Carson oil refineries have pumped out millions of barrels of gasoline, filling the thirsty cars of Southern California's freeway-driving motorists.  Now, in an abrupt move that reflects the tectonic industry shifts driven by climate change, the transition to electric vehicles and demands for cleaner air, Phillips 66 announced Wednesday that late next year it is closing the twin refinery complex that produces about 8% of the state's gasoline.  The Houston company, which has operated the refineries since its 2012 spin off from ConocoPhillips, said it would replace their output with sources "inside and outside its refining network" and with renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuels from its San Francisco Bay Area refinery.

Gov Newsom claims Big Oil is to blame for high gas prices, but new report blames climate policies.  California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has continuously denied that the state's policies have anything to do with sky-high gas prices the state's residents pay, arguing that it's "Big Oil" driving up gasoline prices.  But a new study shows policies have added as much as $1.91 per gallon to what Californians pay at the pump.  According to AAA, Americans on Saturday were paying on average $3.177 a gallon for gasoline.  Californians were paying $4.676 per gallon on average.  The gap can vary.  A year ago, the average national price was $3.814 per gallon, while Californians were paying $6.059 per gallon.  According to the Energy Policy Research Foundation analysis by researcher Max Pyziur, California has several policies impacting gasoline prices that are entirely unique to the state.

California Dems Want State-Owned Oil Refineries.  California has some of the highest gas prices in the country because it has a ton of taxes and because it demands special gasoline blends that come through one single refinery and are far more expensive.  This is not because oil companies are greedy (or at least a whole lot less greedy than your average politician which isn't saying much because California pols make piranhas seem discreet, that's why hundreds of them have been convicted of corruption in recent years) but because the Dems actively want to make gas too expensive.  And yet they insist on pretending that they're not the reason gas prices are high.  Gov. Gavin Newsom, who does shock at the consequences of his own policies better than any politician in the land, signed a bunch of bills raising energy prices while blasting oil companies for being greedy.

It's Not the Fed That's Causing Inflation.  In their first week in January 2021, Joe and Kamala cut off every source of oil within their jurisdiction.  In the very next month, three things happened: our domestic production of oil plunged from 13.1 million barrels per day to 9.7, oil prices doubled from $55 to $110 per barrel, and the monthly inflation rate leaped from 1.4 percent to 9.6 percent.  The red-herring inflation chart they offer shows inflation peaking six months later, which distracts from the fact that their action was the sole cause of inflation.  It is a "trailing average" chart.  It takes the 9.6-percent monthly rate and averages it with the previous 11 months, which averaged 1.8 percent, and so on.  Thus, the peak of inflation appears to happen six months after it actually peaked.  A monthly chart would show the truth: that the reduction of oil supply was the direct cause of inflation.

CA Senate Pro Tem Refuses to Convene Special Session Called By Governor.  As he promised, California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a proclamation convening a special legislative session on Saturday after the state Assembly and Senate failed to pass a proposal he submitted on August 15 that would require the state's refineries to maintain reserves to allegedly prevent "price gouging" when there are supply shortages.  Of course, even analysts within Newsom's administration agreed that the measure would lead to a further increase in prices instead of bringing Californians any kind of relief at the pump.

Newsom Tells CA Lawmakers He'll Force Special Session If They Don't Pass His Bill to Increase Gas Prices.  Grasping for relevance, California Gov. Gavin Newsom is in the midst of a bit of a temper tantrum this week with the legislature — threatening to convene a special session if they don't pass his proposal to further regulate California's oil and gas industry.  Industry analysts say that the proposal, which would force refineries to "maintain a minimum fuel reserve to avoid supply shortages," would lead to increased prices for drivers in California, Arizona, and Nevada.

California: Next Stop, Venezuela.  The California Energy Commission (CEC) has proposed several government regulations of the petroleum industry in order to combat future gasoline price surges.  CEC regulators announced proposed government controls of the petroleum industry, ostensibly to combat future gasoline price surges.  CEC's proposed fiasco is unbelievable since it has a clear vision of the ultimate outcome:  Venezuela.  The CEC announcement comes as Chevron, one of the largest oil companies in the U.S., announced that it will relocate its operations to Houston, Texas, is moving out of San Ramon, California.  Its decision to leave follows years of aggressive environmental policy making from Democrats that hurt the company's business.  The CEC report is laughably called "Transportation Fuels Assessment:  Policy Options for a Reliable Supply of Affordable and Safe Transportation Fuels in California".  It's laughable because the report title includes the word 'Affordable.'

Women's Issues' and the 2024 Election.  [Scroll down]  Now, turn to the Biden-Harris regime's war on forms of energy that work (and its associated policy of propping up forms of energy that don't work at all).  While raising taxes to subsidize windmills and solar panels that will never — never — be cost-effective in their energy production, the Biden-Harris regime (with the full support of the Democrat caucuses in Congress and the bureaucracy) has directly caused a doubling of the cost of gasoline and diesel, while simultaneously contributing to the degradation of the electric grid.

On energy policy, Kamala Harris is clueless.  During the Biden-Harris administration, the price of energy has increased across the board.  In fact, according to a new report by the Heartland Institute, the Biden-Harris administration's energy policies have directly cost U.S. households $2,548 since 2021.  Specifically, over the past three-and-half years, residential electricity prices have increased 23 percent, industrial electricity prices have increased 19 percent, home heating oil prices have increased 69 percent, oil prices have increased 52 percent, natural gas prices have increased 32 percent, and gasoline has increased $0.97 per gallon, or 42 percent.  In short, the sudden spike in energy prices under the Biden-Harris administration is largely due to the fact that President Biden nixed the Keystone XL Pipeline project; delayed new leases for oil and gas drilling on federal lands; implemented a slew of new regulations on fossil fuel production; embraces Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing metrics; and supports so-called renewable energy with massive subsidies.  While those policies have resulted in a steep rise in the price of energy over the past few years, they absolutely pale in comparison to what Kamala Harris would have in store should she become the next president of the United States.

California gas prices [are the] highest in [the] nation after [a] July 1 gas tax increase.  California's gas prices are the highest in the nation after a July 1 gas tax increase.  The state's gasoline is even more expensive than that of Hawaii, which has no oil production and must ship its fuels across the Pacific Ocean.  California gas prices are at $4.79 per gallon for regular-grade fuel, higher than Hawaii, where fuel is $4.69 per gallon, and Washington, where fuel is $4.29 per gallon.  On July 1, California gas taxes increased to 59.6 cents per gallon, a number that does not include other taxes and fees that add a total of $1.62 per gallon to California gas.  With the American national average at $3.52 per gallon, California's taxes and fees add up to more than the cost difference between California gas prices and national gas prices.  Because the federal government and each state charge gas taxes, this pricing gap suggests if California were to adopt similar gas taxes in line with the rest of the nation, prices would converge with the national average.

Captain Biden and His Economics Crew are Tempting Fate.  First off, President Biden's disastrous energy-related executive orders to stop the Keystone XL pipeline construction dead in its tracks as well as suspending oil/gas permitting and leasing on federal properties was a true gaffe for a fossil fuel economy such as the U.S.  When these pronouncements went into effect, prices for future deliveries of gas and oil shot up immediately.  According to the Washington Post, average gasoline prices at one point in President Trump's last year in office reached a low of $1.85 gallon; during President Biden's era, average prices jumped to $4.93/ gallon before falling back to the $3.45-$3.25 gallon currently.  To further compound the energy cost increases at the producer level, Biden also suspended additional global exports of liquified natural gas (LNG), claiming that it contributed to the "[...] existential (climate) threat of our time."  However, scientists agree that LNG produces much less carbon dioxide relative to oil (-30%) and coal (-40%), making it the cleanest of all fossil fuels.  Existential threat?  Not in the U.S.; according to the EPA, the U.S. has cut air pollution by nearly 80% in the last 50 years.

The Editor says...
[#1] Climate change is not the "existential (climate) threat of our time," nor is it any threat at all.  The climate always changes, from night to day, from summer to winter, and we all deal with those changes as they happen.  [#2] The "cleanest of all fossil fuels" is not the fuel that results in the least production of carbon dioxide, because carbon dioxide is not dirty.  Carbon dioxide is plant food.  If the percentage of CO2 in the atmosphere doubled overnight, you would never notice the difference, except that the grass in your yard would grow a lot faster.  [#3] The EPA says "the U.S. has cut air pollution by nearly 80% in the last 50 years."  Yes but that is because unleaded gasoline was introduced 50 years ago, and lead in the atmosphere has been almost completely eliminated as a result.  The EPA could be eliminated now, and nobody would notice the difference, because every state has its own EPA.  California has several.

8 ways the Biden administration is working to increase gasoline prices.  The Biden administration claims that draining the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve shows its commitment to low gas prices.  In fact, this is yet another cynical ploy to disguise that its real goal is raise gas prices.  [Tweet]  Biden's claim that he released 1 billion barrels of gasoline to "lower prices at the pump" is his latest attempt to convince Americans he's trying to lower gasoline prices.  But in fact, he's doing his utmost to raise prices, because this is necessary for his anti-fossil-fuel goals.  From Day 1, President Biden has openly supported the destruction of the fossil fuel industry, from his 2019 campaign promise of "I guarantee you, we're going to end fossil fuel" to his 2021 executive order declaring that America will be "net zero emissions economy-wide" by 2050.  Biden's "net zero" plans require gasoline to be illegal or unaffordably expensive.

The Left Knows Leftism Doesn't Work.  [T]he left is not running on its record of the last three-and-a-half years but instead studiously ignoring it, at least temporarily through November.  Suddenly, we aren't hearing so much about cancelling pipelines and freezing federal oil leases, or so much demonization of the "greedy" oil companies.  Instead, Biden is further draining the strategic petroleum reserve and begging OPEC in general and the no-longer-demonized Saudi Arabia in particular to pump oil as fast as possible.

Vermont effectively criminalizes oil production.  Vermont recently passed legislation that will punish oil companies for producing oil, by forcing them to pay a share of damages allegedly caused by "climate change."  In doing so, the Green Mountain State has effectively criminalized the extraction and production of petroleum — and therefor petroleum products. [...] To say this is insane is to seriously understate things.  Assuming that greenhouse gases are in some way detrimental, how could it be possible to apportion "blame" amongst companies, industries, individuals, groups, organizations, vehicles, appliances ... and the government?  Nonetheless, typically timid GOP Gov. Phil Scott managed to be missing in action long enough for the bill to become law without his signature.

North Carolinians pay a quarter less than national average.  Three weeks from summer, and into the first unofficial week of it, North Carolinians are paying a quarter less per gallon of gas than the national average.  Thursday morning's averages, according to the American Automobile Association, are $3.31 for the state and $3.56 for the nation for unleaded regular.  That's down a nickel from a month ago, up 3 cents from a year ago for the state; and nationally, down 7 cents from a month ago and a penny from a year ago.  Diesel fuel is $3.84 per gallon for North Carolinians, 3 cents less than the national average and up 7 cents from last year at the same time.

Fear Trump — or Bust?  Recently, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez warned that Trump will conspire with oil executives to spike gasoline prices.  But even after Biden drained the strategic petroleum reserve before the 2022 midterms and is now again doing the same as the 2024 election approaches, gas prices have averaged only one-third cheaper than under Trump.  Trump tried to top off the reserve but was blocked by Democrats in Congress.  Nevertheless, he left Biden a nearly full reservoir of 638 million barrels (about 90 percent full), which Biden has now drained by some 270 million barrels to the present 51 percent full — and the levels are falling further as voting nears.

California [is] Setting Up [Its] Next Energy Disaster.  California could be a much nicer place to live if some of the progressives who run the place would stop trying their best to make everything more expensive. [...] Last year the state passed a bill called SBX1-2 which was brandished by Gov. Newsom as the country's first "gas price gouging law." [...] Threatening to fine or prosecute companies for making money is considered a great idea in Sacramento but there's every reason to think this is going to backfire on the state sooner or later.  The law passed but the regulators haven't put it into effect yet.  That decision will come sometime before the end of this year.  Meanwhile, California's gas prices are already the highest in the country and there's a real chance this scheme will make that problem worse.

Release from gasoline reserve raises doubts Biden will replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.  The Biden Administration announced Tuesday that it would release 42 million gallons of gasoline from the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve.  The release, the Department of Energy explained, is "strategically timed and structured to maximize its impact on gas prices."  This will, according to the DOE, help lower prices at the pump during the summer months when prices tend to go up along with demand.  The Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve was created in 2012 following Superstorm Sandy, which damaged two refineries and shut down 40 terminals in New York Harbor.  Some New York gas stations went as long as 30 days without a supply of gasoline as a result of the supply disruption.  The Obama administration established the gas reserve to prevent such a shock from happening again.  The 2024 Consolidated Appropriations Act, which became law in March, included language requiring the DOE to sell off the inventory from the reserve and shut it down once it was drained.

Biden Drains Entire Northeast Gasoline Reserve In Bid To Lower Gas Prices.  Back in March, when reading the mammoth, 1050-page bill that was meant to avert government shutdown, but was yet another pork filled free-for-all bonanza authorizing $1.7 trillion in in discretionary spending, we stumbled upon something that was truly shocking: after Biden singlehandedly drained half of the US strategic petroleum reserve to avoid obliteration for Democrats in the 2022 midterm elections, Congress has snuck in a provision that would sell off and shutter the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve, a move that while perhaps keeps gas prices lower for a day or two, would also leave the entire continental northeast defenseless to any true environmental catastrophe or shock.  We were so dismayed by the inclusion of this particular text, we wondered if it hadn't been put there solely for the benefit of America's enemies.  [Tweet]

Buying votes:
Biden to Release 1 Million Barrels of Gasoline From Northeast Reserve to Lower Summer Gas Prices.  The Biden regime announced Tuesday that it is releasing 1 million barrels of gasoline from a Northeast reserve to lower gas prices during the summer travel season.  [Advertisement]  The Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve (NGSR) was established after Superstorm Sandy to provide consumers with "supplemental supplies for a few days in the event of a hurricane or other disruption, until existing distribution infrastructure could return to full operation."  [Advertisement]  The entire reserve was required to be sold and closed in fiscal 2024, according to H.R.4366, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which passed in Congress back in March.  [Advertisement]  The gasoline will be "allocated in increments of 100,000 barrels at a time" from storage sites in New Jersey and Maine, the Associated Press reported.  [Advertisement]

Democrat-Run California About to Get Hit with 50 Cent per Gallon Gas Tax.  In today's edition of Getting What You Vote For, the dummies in California are about to get hit with a 50 cent per gallon gas tax.  Remember, California voters have handed the Democrat party full power over the former Golden State.  Democrats run everything from the governorship on down.  Democrats not only hold majorities in the state legislature, they hold veto-proof majorities. [...] According to Triple-A, the average cost of a gallon of gas in California today is $5.29.  That's nearly $1.70 more than the national average.  In some parts of California, gas costs $6.32 per gallon.

When Gasoline is $100 per Gallon.  The price of goods and labor is directly linked to money supply and market factors.  This is not merely "supply and demand" economics, but an issue of overheating (or overleveraging) an economy by printing and/or borrowing too much money.  When a government prints more money than the underlying economy is generating in real wealth, this is essentially a form of borrowing, often called "debt monetization."  The United States has been doing this for decades, staving off the ordinary fluctuations in the economy punctuated by innovations and growth alternating with recessions — borrowing money in times of turmoil softens the blow, but also forestalls the consequences. [...] The moral hazard is that rewarding one's pet projects and crony donors by printing money and disbursing it favorably is hard to trace.  The impact of this practice always falls on the poorest wage earners and fixed-income recipients in the form of higher prices and shrunken real incomes, but is virtually impossible to link back to root causes:  thus the temptation to do so because there is no accountability.

Soaring gas prices hammer Biden as presidential election nears, reportedly surge 18% in 4 months.  Gas prices have rocketed once again under President Biden's watch and this time, he will not be able to artificially deflate them as Americans are crushed by inflation and the presidential election nears.  According to Breitbart, gas costs 18% more now than it did in 2023 and we have not even hit the summer months yet.  "When President Trump left office, the national average for regular gas was $2.39/gallon.  Today, it's $3.65/gallon — 52%+ higher.  Under President Trump, the national average NEVER reached $3/gallon.  Under Biden, it hasn't been *BELOW* $3/gallon for 1,084 straight days," Republican National Committee's Research Team posted to X.

California Sets New Rule for Chevron, Gas Price Is Expected to Rise.  In a recent interview, energy expert Ronald Stein discussed California's shifting energy landscape and the challenges of transitioning away from fossil fuels.  As a former engineer and author on energy issues, Mr. Stein provided insightful perspective on the complex trade-offs involved.  California has made reducing oil production and dependence on foreign imports a priority.  However, Mr. Stein notes this has unintended consequences, like lost revenue for cities and increased costs passed onto consumers.  While aiming to curb emissions, Mr. Stein argues the state's policies may simply outsource them elsewhere through increased imports.  When it comes to renewable energy, Mr. Stein acknowledged the role of wind and solar but highlighted their limitations compared to fossil fuels.  As electricity alone cannot replace the vast array of products derived from oil, a total transition away from oil may not be realistic given society's material demands.

Biden is 'obsessed' with lowering gas prices, Energy Sec. Granholm tells 'The View'.  Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said Thursday that President Biden was "obsessed" with lowering gas prices, when pressed on how the president plans to address the rising cost of fuel.  Co-host of "The View" Alyssa Farah Griffin asked Granholm about gas prices, which she said were on the rise again. "What is the administration doing to lower those prices, and should we be worried about the conflict the Middle East contributing?" she asked.  Granholm argued that the price of oil was determined by the global market, and cited Russia's invasion of Ukraine as an example of a situation that might cause the price of gas to increase.  The energy secretary said Biden was "really focused" on lowering the cost, and touted the president's release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which put more supply on the market.

The Editor says...
[#1] The Department of Energy should not exist.  What does it do, that the private sector could not?  [#2] Joe Biden has done everything he can to restrict petroleum production for the last three years.  His only concern about high gas prices is that they might make it difficult to get re-elected.

MSNBC Host Pretty Sure Rising Gas Prices Due to Russian-Saudi Plot to Elect Trump.  With grocery prices steadily climbing, gas prices again on the rise, and overall inflation continuing to hammer tens of millions of Americans, the quasi-official Democrat media continue to pull out all the stops in their desperate attempt to prop up embattled Joe Biden and burn Donald Trump's campaign to the ground.  On Wednesday, MSNBC's Stephanie Ruhle took home the trophy.  "The 11th Ruhle" host twisted herself into a ridiculous pretzel as she heroically (in hopelessly biased fashion) tried to absolve Biden of blame.  Since Trump hasn't been in office for more than two years, she couldn't blame Trump.  But wait.  Ruhle is no amateur.  She decided she could blame those who (she thinks) want Trump to win in November.  In this case, "those" are none other than Russia and Saudi Arabia.  Yep, as Stephanie sees it, Russian dictator Putin and the oi-rich Saudis have concocted a plot to torpedo Biden and elect Trump.

Report: Biden Has Taken Over 200 Actions Against US Oil.  President Joe Biden and his administration have taken over 200 actions against the U.S. oil and natural gas industry as energy prices have gone up, according to a new report.  "President Biden and Democrats have a plan for American energy:  make it harder to produce and more expensive to purchase," the Institute for Energy Research states in a new report.  "Since Mr. Biden took office, his administration and its allies have taken over 200 actions deliberately designed to make it harder to produce energy here in America."  The analysis highlights actions Biden took on his first day in office, listing them chronologically through March of this year.  The first act was canceling the Keystone XL pipeline, issuing a moratorium on all oil and natural gas leasing activities in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and revoking Trump administration executive orders that decreased regulations in order to expand domestic production.

This Is Why The Price Of Gasoline Could Soon Double.  Can you imagine paying seven dollars for a gallon of gasoline?  It could soon happen, because it appears that Israel is about to strike Iran, and that is likely to cause events in the Middle East to spiral completely out of control.  Right now, approximately one-fifth of all oil used in the world goes through the Strait of Hormuz.  An apocalyptic war in the region could potentially close the Strait of Hormuz until the conflict is resolved one way or the other.  In addition, oil infrastructure could be destroyed in Iran and other nations in the Middle East as the fighting rages, and that could substantially reduce global oil production for an extended period of time.  Our way of life depends on cheap oil, and so if a major regional war in the Middle East causes the price of oil to go skyrocketing that is going to deeply affect all of us.

Biden Squandered America's Emergency Oil Reserves.  Now He Won't Refill Them.  Joe Biden canceled plans to begin refilling our Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), which he depleted to drive down gas prices ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.What is the SPR? It's our emergency oil reserve, meant for use during emergencies like war and natural disasters.  Last month, the Biden regime's Department of Energy said it planned to purchase three million barrels of oil to begin refilling the SPR.  But yesterday, it abruptly canceled the purchase due to the rising price of oil.  When President Trump left office, the SPR had 638 million barrels of oil.  Since taking over, Biden has drained 43 percent of the reserves, currently at 363 million barrels — a 40-year low.  In the months leading up to the 2022 midterm elections, gas prices spiked above $5 per gallon (national average).  In response, Biden sold off 180 million barrels from our SPR to drive them down.

Why do we support Trump?  [Scroll down]  When Trump left office, the price of a gallon of gasoline was about $1.86.  During the past year, the price exceeded four dollars.  Some places, it was even higher.  Trump supported the construction of the Keystone XL oil line, but Biden canceled it the first week in office.  Biden has made it clear that he wants to stop the use of all fossil fuels, to control climate change.  First off, they have no idea what causes climate change.  Carbon dioxide is a vital plant food.  And finally, they have no idea of the over 6,000 things made from fossil fuels, most of them from plastic.

US to Sell Off Entire Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve.  The sale of the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve is among the provisions intended to raise funds in one of six bills setting out appropriations for some federal departments this year after Congress narrowly avoided another shutdown last week.  Under a bill providing funding for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for the fiscal year, a million barrels of the government's strategic reserve of petroleum would be sold off — the same amount as in the NGSR, which is located in New York Harbor, Boston, Massachusetts and South Portland, Maine.  "Upon the complete of such sale, the Secretary [of Energy] shall carry out the closure of the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve," the bill states, and "may not establish any new regional petroleum product reserve unless funding of the proposed regional petroleum product reserve is explicitly requested in advance in an annual budget."

Florida Gas Prices Dip After Setting 2024 Record High.  The cost of gas in Florida increased last week, but by the weekend, it had stabilized.  The state average on Sunday, at $3.31 per gallon, was one cent higher than the previous week.  The state average increased by 21 cents per gallon two weeks ago, then decreased by 5 cents last week before increasing by 8 cents.  The state average dropped an additional 5 cents per gallon by the middle of the week, when it hit a new high of $3.37.  The peak price per gallon was $3.85 last year.

Biden Admin Reportedly Set To Greenlight Rule Change That Could Spike Gas Prices — But Not Until After The Election.  The Biden administration is expected to ease seasonal restrictions on ethanol-gasoline blends but has delayed the change until after the 2024 election to avoid a price spike, according to Reuters.  The rule change stems from a 2022 request from the governors of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin to allow the sale of gasoline with 15% ethanol year-round, known as E15 gasoline, lifting current seasonal restrictions that aim to reduce smog in the summer months, according to Reuters.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had originally set an effective date of April 28, 2024, for the changes when the agency sent the proposal to the White House in December, but that is now expected to be pushed back to 2025.  Top oil refiners, including HF Sinclair Corp. and Philips 66, have warned against the change, saying that it would complicate fuel supply logistics and increase the risk of area shortages, possibly raising prices, according to Reuters.  The ethanol industry has lobbied for the changes, saying that the environmental concerns are exaggerated.

The real reason Joe Biden won't punish Iran.  The pusillanimous response of Biden to attacks on U.S. troops has enraged critics.  Many want the president, who pledged to hold accountable "all those responsible" for the deaths of three U.S. soldiers, to strike Iran.  To go after the head of the snake and squash Tehran's ability to fund and train the terrorists who continue to attack U. S. personnel.  He won't do it.  Why?  Because he's scared to death that hitting Iran's oil fields or export facilities would drive global oil prices higher, and boost the cost of gasoline in the U.S. Gas at the pump might go back to $5 per gallon, a record reached in 2022; Biden, already a massively unpopular president, cannot tolerate that.  Nothing drags down his approval ratings faster than skyrocketing prices at the pump; in an election year, he will do everything possible to make sure that doesn't happen.

Energy is not Joe Biden's strong suit.  [Joe] Biden thought he would be able to stick it to Trump's energy decision to drill, drill, drill.  Curtailing drilling for oil not only caused the loss of good-paying jobs, crippling towns where the workers lived, and became the genesis of our inflation, but also returned America to being energy-dependent on our adversaries.  Apparently, what Biden knows about the oil business could be put in a thimble.  He just does not have a "slant" on "dirty" energy technology.  He even stopped completion of the Keystone Pipeline, choking delivery of tar sand oil from Canada.  Meanwhile, oil industry folks decided to improve their ability to get more oil from their current wells, so America is now back to producing more oil than we can drink.  While all this was occurring, Biden drew upon stored oil to keep the price of gasoline from going to $10.00/gallon, and now he is replacing these strategic reserves, stored in case of war, at higher prices.

Biden's 'America Last' Policy at Work.  A National Review article in November 2021 reported that, "Biden's approach to energy represents in microcosm his approach to the presidency in general."  There is absolutely nothing about Biden's contradictory approach to energy that makes any sense.  He wants the United States to reduce the production of fossil fuels, reduce the number of new pipelines in America, limit oil and gas drilling on federal land, and abandon the Trump administration's mission to maximize fossil fuels production.  He wants other countries, such as Venezuela, to produce more fossil fuels for American use.  He even asked the Saudis to increase production, but got snubbed.  He maintains that there actually isn't a supply issue at all, but that oil companies all got together to gouge customers, an issue that the FTC must immediately investigate.  He opposed new fracking, promised to 'make sure it's eliminated.'  He even appropriated Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's "Green New Deal."  Why did/does Biden behave in this manner?  Because he was/is trying to please the whacko far-left base of his party which is opposed to oil production because it's not 'green.'  For Biden, pleasing environmentalists means putting America Last.

Joe Biden and an old retail trick.  I recall gas prices inching toward $3.00 per gallon before Donald Trump took office, and was delighted as they slipped well below $2.00 before he left office.  I know because I keep a maintenance log for my vehicles, noting the date, place, price and cost of every fill up, as well as all maintenance items.  I'm not obsessive, just "squared away," as my brother-in-law puts it.  During Trump's time in office, I paid as little as $1.79.9. Under Biden, $4.59.9.  That's a major change, and benefit, for people living anywhere, but particularly for places like Wyoming, where folks regularly travel several hours and more, one way, for necessary shopping, which they often combine with eating out and tiny vacations.  Particularly when traveling in winter, Wyomingites also like to keep their tanks as full as possible. [...] For several years now, visits to the pumps have provoked much wailing, gnashing of teeth, and the taking of Joe Biden's name in vain from surrounding drivers, particularly after he's been mumbling yet again about Bidenomics and how he's brought gas prices down.  Who you gonna believe?  Joe and his old retail trick, or the gas pump?

Biden admin finalizes most restrictive offshore oil drilling plan in US history.  The Biden administration on Friday finalized a plan to dramatically curb the number of offshore oil and gas lease sales over the next five years as it continues to aggressively push green energy development.  The Department of the Interior's (DOI) five-year offshore oil and gas leasing program schedules just three Gulf of Mexico lease sales through 2029, marking the fewest number of sales ever included in such a plan, which the agency is mandated to issue periodically.  According to the DOI, holding the sales will enable future offshore wind leases under an Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provision that tethers the two.  "President Biden's approach to severely limit leasing significantly curtails access to a critical national asset," Erik Milito, the president of the National Ocean Industries Association, which represents both traditional and renewable offshore energy producers, said in a statement Friday.  "The White House simply ignores energy realities by once again limiting U.S. energy production opportunities."

Americans Must Choose Between Civilization or Its Destroyers.  The United States can produce annually more natural gas and oil than any nation on earth.  It once pioneered nuclear power.  It has vast coal reserves and sophisticated hydroelectric plants.  The old idea was to use these unmatched resources to transition gradually to other cleaner fuels such as hydrogen, fusion power, solar, and wind.  That way, consumers would still enjoy affordable energy.  And the United States could remain independent of coercion by the oil-producing Middle East.  But that was not the nihilist way.  Instead, the left deliberately cut back on pipelines, new energy leases, and fracking.  It bragged of an upcoming ban on fossil fuels.  In drought-stricken, energy-short California, the state is blowing up, not building new dams.  Is the nihilist agenda to punish with bankruptcy the energy-using middle class?  Is the hope that Americans will have to beg the Saudis, Iranians, Venezuelans, and Russians to pump more of the hated goo for our benefit so we would not have to dirty ourselves helping ourselves?

California's EV Conundrums.  The crude oil industry's time in California is limited, and the oil-refining industry is behaving as any industry would in comparable circumstances, by transitioning its operations away from gasoline to activities that will prove to be more profitable in the long run.  And as crude oil supply falls further, much higher gasoline prices will become a way of life for Californians, as the conundrums associated with EV mandates may be growing. [...] If gasoline is imported into California, which does occur when a California refinery goes offline for repair or maintenance, California typically imports gasoline via marine shipments, which usually take three to four weeks to deliver.  To meet the demands of the fourth largest economy in the world imports of gasoline into California come from sources that include India, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Russia, and New Brunswick, Canada.  This process is expensive and takes weeks for the fuel to arrive at California ports.

Our Establishment's Alternate Realities.  One common denominator that explains why previously successful societies implode is their descent into fantasies.  A collective denial prevents even discussion of existential threats and their solutions. [...] Consider natural gas and oil.  The Biden administration waged war on both by canceling pipelines, drilling on federal lands, and entire oil fields.  When the price soared and the 2022 midterms neared, Biden suddenly begged formerly shunned illiberal regimes like Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Venezuela to pump all the hated oil they could to lower the price.  A desperate Biden drained much of the strategic petroleum reserve — he has yet to refill it — simply to lower the price of gasoline and thus win voters back to the Democratic Party.  When the midterms passed, Biden resumed his attack on once bad, then good, and now bad again fossil fuels — at least until the 2024 election.

Biden Admin Releases Most Restrictive Offshore Oil And Gas Drilling Plan In US History.  The Biden administration on Friday unveiled the most restrictive offshore oil and gas five-year leasing program in history.  The Department of the Interior (DOI) announced the plan, which allows for three offshore oil and gas lease sales through 2029, with sales in 2025, 2027 and 2029.  That schedule represents the lowest number of sales that the administration could have pursued while maintaining its ability to push offshore wind development under provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and it is the "smallest number of oil and gas lease sales in history," according to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.  "The Biden-Harris administration is committed to building a clean energy future that ensures America's energy independence," Haaland said of the schedule's release.

The Hidden Factors Driving up Gas Prices in California.  Let's start by acknowledging the inconvenient truth about gas prices in the Golden State — they are not solely determined by global supply and demand.  Something more insidious is at play — the exorbitant taxes piled on at every level of government.  While it might be politically useful to focus on recent gas price fluctuations, California currently, and for a long time, imposes some of the highest gas taxes in the country.  This burdens hardworking Californians with an unfair and disproportionate financial strain.  We must not overlook the impact of these taxes in understanding why we pay so much at the pump.  And let's not forget about the environmental mandates imposed on the gasoline industry in California.  While it is admirable to prioritize the environment, we cannot turn a blind eye to the fact that these mandates come at a steep cost.

Biden admin unleashes 50-year mining, oil drilling ban across thousands of acres in New Mexico.  The Biden administration proposed to block of thousands of acres from future oil drilling or mining in northern New Mexico in an effort to protect Native American lands.  According to the Department of the Interior (DOI), the proposal would ban new mining claims and oil and gas development across more than 4,200 acres in Sandoval County, New Mexico, located north of Albuquerque.  If finalized and implemented, the action would remain in place for up to 50 years.  "Today we're responding to call from Tribes, elected leaders, and community members who want to see these public lands protected," Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement.  "We look forward to hearing more from the public to inform decisions about how activities, like gravel mining, may impact these lands, including the important cultural and natural resources."

Gas prices hit high for the year.  It's a little late in the year for gas prices to be just now hitting their high, but here we are.  [Tweets]  Yeah, we're playing with fire here, people.  We're draining the SPR to ease the pain, yet here we are with gas prices hitting their peak in September, which is a tad bit late in the year if you ask me. [...] Yeah, we're playing with fire here, people.  We're draining the SPR to ease the pain, yet here we are with gas prices hitting their peak in September, which is a tad bit late in the year if you ask me.

Gasoline Prices Soar to US Seasonal Record.  Average regular gasoline now costs $3.866 a gallon, a seasonal record on a trailing-12-months basis, according to data from the American Automobile Association.  Prices have risen by 7.8% in just eight weeks in a rare late-summer rally.  The gains have been driven by increases in the price of oil, which jumped about 20% in the past two months.  Top analysts from International Energy Agency and Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries have warned of a crude-market deficit through end-2023, underpinned by the extension of production curbs by Saudi Arabia and Russia.

The Editor says...
Somehow the writer avoids assigning any blame to Joe Biden, who has done everything he can to raise gas prices and choke the supply of crude oil.

Are You Better Off Today Than You Were Four Years Ago?  Despite the push for EVs, most Americans drive gasoline fueled vehicles and visit the gas station every week.  Are they better off compared to four years ago?  According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, gas is currently per gallon $3.84 compared to $2.62 four years ago, about a 27 percent increase.  Add the fact that in 2019, four years ago, the U.S. was energy independent for the first time since 1957.  In 2022, the U.S. imported 8.32 million barrels per day of petroleum, hardly energy independent.  The strategic petroleum reserve is depleted, and the Biden administration is doing nothing to rein in rising gas prices.  In fact they are making it worse.  Biden just cancelled oil and gas leases in the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge.  Biden also stopped the transport of fossil fuels by train, preferring far less efficient and more polluting trucks.

Biden's handlers want gas prices to go up.  They don't buy their own gas.
Biden Cancels Previously Issued ANWR Oil and Gas Leases in Alaska.  24 hours before Joe Biden announced he was cancelling all previously issued oil and gas leases in Alaska's ANWR region, Saudi Arabia and Russia announced oil production limits would continue.  Oil prices spiked near $100/bbl and then Joe Biden amplifies the problem by cancelling previously sold oil and gas leases.  There's no other way to look at the timing here, other than to accept this is Joe Biden intentionally driving up the cost of domestic energy in the U.S. and creating as much pain as possible.

Biden Under Fire for 'Unlawful Cancellation' of Oil Leases as Prices Hit Highest Point of 2023.  I don't think I'm the only one who believes the Biden administration is hellbent on destroying America.  In the latest move to undermine the country, President Joe Biden and his team announced Wednesday they will cancel oil leases in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  The move will block new drilling on millions of acres at a time when gas prices are at their highest level of the year and crude oil prices are surging, according to MarketWatch.

What the Left Did to Our Country.  Biden warred on fossil fuels, cancelling federal leases and pipelines, jawboning lending agencies to defund fracking, demonizing state-of-the-art, clean-burning cars, and putting vast areas of oil- and gas-rich federals lands off-limits to drilling.  When gas prices predictably doubled under Biden and the 2022 midterms approached, he tried temporarily to lease out a few new fields, to drain the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and to beg the Saudis, and our enemies, the Iranians, the Venezuelans, and the Russians, to pump more oil and gas that Biden himself would not.  All this was a pathetic ruse to temporarily lower gas prices before the mid-term elections.

Why wind and solar power are running out of juice.  Alternative energy madness — and that's what it is — has had its biggest impact in California.  But New York and New Jersey have adopted most of that state's mandates.  Sales of new internal combustion vehicles will be banned beginning in 2035 in the states.  All of the electricity sold to retail consumers will have to be "zero-emissions."  Homeowners and building owners will be forced to replace gas- and oil-burning space and water heaters with electric heat pumps.  And, gas stoves will be regulated out of existence.  New York also will soon implement another California import: a carbon "cap-and-invest" program, which will impose a tax on fossil fuels sold by wholesalers and utilities.  The billions of dollars collected each year will provide a green slush fund, allowing the governor and legislators to hand out money to their politically favored cronies, as has so often been the case in the past.  Washington State began its "cap-and-invest" program in January of this year.  Modeled after California's, Governor Jay Inslee promised the program would have "minimal impact, if any.  We are talking about pennies."  Instead, the program has raised gasoline prices — almost 50 cents per gallon so far this year.

Biden admin mulls more intervention in the market with new overtime pay 'rules'.  [Scroll down]  President Trump reduced regulations as fast as he could, and Joe Biden is increasing regulations as fast as he can.  As soon as Biden took office he decided his mission was to reduce drilling and push the green agenda to destroy companies that use natural resources to produce reasonably priced energy, and the prices started skyrocketing.  Crude oil is used in over 6,000 products, and every business and person uses energy.  Now, not enough people are buying expensive, impractical, and inefficient electric vehicles powered by a flammable pollutant (go figure), so the Biden administration proposed another new rule, one of impossible fuel standards which will decimate gas-powered vehicles and send costs even higher.  They show every day how little they care about what people want and can afford.

The bad, the ugly, and the sound of the pump.  Once upon a time not very long ago, I paid $25 to fill up my four-cylinder Ford.  Just a few days ago, I paid $40.  Please don't tell me that inflation is under control because the gas pump did not get that memo. [...] Inflation at the pump is killing small businesses, as the article points out.  My exhibit A on that point is the landscaping crew that comes around every other week.  I can see them at the gas station filling up their various tanks and mowers early Saturday morning.  Last week, I asked the owner of the business for a quick assessment of the inflation situation.  He said something in Spanish that translates to "it stinks" [...] The problem with inflation is that you can't explain it with numbers.  This is because inflation is food, gasoline, electricity, and going out to dinner.

What? Biden Sold America's Oil Reserve to China.  On and after January 20, 2021, [Joe] Biden has issued punitive, increasingly restrictive executive orders, regulations, and expensive legislation — passed by single-party government — intended to shut down big parts of the US fossil fuel industry.  Not satisfied to shut down supply, the federal government has — with and without legislation — methodically perverted the demand side of the curve, too.  After making gas and heating oil prohibitively expensive, they penalized makers of automobiles and countless gas-powered household appliances.  Specifically, they have punished makers of gas powered engines, cars, trucks, boats, lawnmowers, hammered the energy, construction, transportation, and farm sectors, then turned to appliances, aiming to outlaw everything from gas and wood stoves to refrigerators and water heaters.  The Democrat idea, fueled by activists, is to mandate everything by fiat.  The Soviets dealt this way, Chinese still do.  Biden's "make it all electric" mandate sees wind turbines and solar panels covering the Earth, powering the grid, now 80 percent fossil and nuclear.  By magic, wind and sun will run it all.

Gas Prices Soar Again to New High for 2023 Adding to Inflationary Pressures.  U.S. gas prices are soaring again, posing another challenge to an inflation problem the Federal Reserve has battled over the past year and President Joe Biden claimed is all under control thanks to the much-touted "Bideonomics."  The national average gallon of gas traded at $3.89 last week, its highest level since October 2022, according to the latest figures supplied by the AAA.

CBS's Gayle King suggests high gas prices come from 'extreme heat,' makes no mention of Biden policies.  CBS News' Gayle King told the channel's audience that one of the reasons gas prices have been going up is a result of "extreme heat." President Joe Biden's policies were not mentioned as a factor.  The CBS Mornings segment aired on Friday morning and King claimed that the rise in gas prices has been due to the heat of the summer.  She did not mention any economic policy.

The gas is high.  It's hot here and some countries are cutting back on production.  The heat is the heat and I've lived plenty of it in Texas.  In fact, I remember when our second son was baptized back in 1988 that it was 108 around here.  That holy water must have felt great on that baby's head.  I remember 1980 when we had a whole 30 days of 100-plus temperatures.  What I don't remember was gasoline going up.  So what's the other reason?  Countries cutting back production.  Of course, why is that even an issue when Texas and Alaska could take care of our energy needs?  Why are we suddenly depending on countries for one drop of oil?  The answer is the Biden administration listening to the climate-change fanatics who want to attack the problem by having American families paying more for energy.

Biden's balk at energy independence.  The ups and downs of energy prices have been mostly up over the last 2½ years.  And that's no accident.  Americans are paying dearly for the fuel that drives the modern world, thanks to President Biden's meddling in domestic oil production.  The characteristic sawtooth pattern of oil prices on the global market has taken a steeper upward jag lately, climbing more than $10 a barrel since Saudi-led OPEC curtailed production by 1 million barrels a day this month.  Subsequently, U.S. drivers have been greeted by gasoline prices that, on average nationally, have risen 6 cents a gallon in a month.  On the local level, overnight spikes of 25 cents are not unusual.

Gas prices hit $3.73-a-gallon nationwide, and $4.95-a-gallon in California.  Gas prices in the US have surged to an eight-month high after foreign suppliers slashed production, and experts are warning that a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico could trigger further increases.  On Friday the national average price of regular gasoline stood at $3.73-a-gallon, a sharp increase from $3.55 one month ago, though still well below the record highs seen last summer, according to AAA.  As usual, California has the highest gas prices in the nation, with an average of $4.95, and pump prices topping $6 in the Golden State's remote Mono County bordering Yosemite National Park.

We should all give Biden great credit for what he has achieved in office.  We should be giving Biden credit for energy and spending policies that caused inflation to skyrocket from under 2%, despite COVID to over 9% or 4% in May.  Oil is still around $70 per barrel, or up around 75% from when Biden was elected.  I am sure people on fixed income, the poor, and middle class are extremely happy that food and energy prices have leveled off at such a high level.  When Biden was running for office, he repeatedly said he was going to destroy the oil and coal industry:  "I would transition away from the oil industry, yes," Biden said.  As soon as Biden took office, he dictatorially halted oil and gas leases on US land and water.  Biden also dictatorially cancelled the permit for the Keystone pipeline the day he took office. [...] As a result of Biden's anti-domestic oil policies, the price of oil skyrocketed from around $40 per barrel the day Biden was elected to $84 per barrel in October 2021, less than a year later, which was long before Russia attacked Ukraine.  When the price of oil inflates by over 110% in one year, it causes overall inflation to also go up rapidly, because energy prices affect everything.  It is a simple concept.  Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Iran benefit greatly when the U.S decides it no longer wants to be a major oil market competitor.

Biden's theme is "finish the job."  Have you seen the job thus far?  [D]o you happen to recall what our energy situation was in America back in 2019? We were energy independent and became a net exporter of energy products for the first time ever.  Gas was down near a buck per gallon at times.  We were pumping so much natural gas that the drilling companies were literally giving it away at times to anyone with a truck to haul it.  On day one, Joe Biden halted construction on the Keystone XL pipeline.  More than 10,000 estimated jobs disappeared with the stroke of a pen.  A moratorium on new oil and gas permits on federal lands was issued.  Now rolling blackouts are a regular feature of life in many parts of the country.  Every state in the country recorded the highest gas prices they'd ever recorded over the past two years.  When House Republicans recently crafted a bill to restore energy production levels and fix the permitting process, Joe Biden immediately threatened to veto it.

Gas prices rise [for the] second straight week.  U.S. gas prices are trending back toward a single-year high as more Americans continue to give President Biden low approval rating.  On Friday [4/14/2023], two weeks after OPEC+ significantly cut oil production, the American Automobile Association (AAA) estimates the national average gas price is $3.66 a gallon — up nearly two cents from Thursday and eight cents from last week.  Within the past month, the national average has increased by 20 cents, which appears to show a trend in which Americans could see prices at the pump return to the $4.07 high from a year ago.  The steady increase in gas prices this past month have coincided with Biden's consistently low job approval rating.

Holding the right people responsible for the global energy crisis.  Skyrocketing oil and gasoline prices are not a failure of the oil industry.  They are the total failure of anti-oil politicians, who have artificially restricted the supply of oil with massive restrictions and threats to oil production and transport.  Contrary to rhetoric by Elizabeth Warren and others, oil and gasoline prices are not rising "because giant oil companies like Chevron and ExxonMobil enjoy doubling their profits."  If oil companies could control prices they would have done so during often-unprofitable 2015-2020.  There is no physical reason the oil industry can't meet rising demand.  The world has hundreds of years' worth of oil deposits.  There is no technical reason the oil industry can't meet rising demand.  It is more capable than ever thanks to amazing technologies like fracking.  Perhaps the greatest limiter of the supply of oil has been anti-oil politicians' constant threats to severely restrict or even ban oil production going forward.  E.g., when Joe Biden promises "I will end fossil fuel" and then becomes President, oil investors run for the hills.  The cause-and-effect of unnecessarily high oil prices is simple:  [#1] Anti-oil politicians around the world artificially restricted the supply of oil with massive restrictions/threats.  [#2] These restrictions prevented supply from keeping up with demand, and prices went way up.

Texas has the nation's cheapest gas prices, 37 cents per gallon below the national average.  A new study found that Texas has had the cheapest gas prices in the nation so far in 2023, coming in at 37 cents per gallon below the national average.  The car subscription service Finn found Texans paid an average $3.086 for regular-grade gas in January and February, below the current national average of $3.40.  Finn's study found Texans could drive the furthest on $50 of gas, which in Texas bought about 16.2 gallons and in a Ford F-150 would fuel drivers for 356.45 miles.

Blue State Is Imposing A New Climate Policy And Gas Prices Are Already Skyrocketing.  Gas prices in the state of Washington have surged 40 cents since the new year, when a new law designed to penalize greenhouse gas emissions went into effect, according to the U.S.  Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration (EIA).  Washington businesses that produce more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year will either need to purchase allowances from the state's Department of Ecology at quarterly auctions, or trade for them with another business later, a practice commonly known as "cap-and-trade," Axios reported.  Since the law was implemented, the cost of gas in the state has skyrocketed from nearly $3.70 to just over $4.10, according to the EIA.

EU Agrees To $100 Russian Diesel Price Cap.  EU members have agreed to support a price cap level of $100 per barrel on Russian diesel sales to third-party countries, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg on Friday afternoon.  The EU's ban on Russian seaborne crude oil products imports, including diesel and naphtha, is scheduled to go into effect on February 5.  The EU's proposal, submitted last week, called for capping the price of Russian diesel sold to third countries at $100 per barrel for products that trade at a premium and $45 for those that sell at a discount.  Similarly to the price cap on Russian crude, buyers outside the EU would continue to have access to Western insurance and financing for cargoes if they comply with the price cap.  The proposal also included setting a price cap of $45 per barrel for discounted products such as fuel oil, which sources suggest has also been approved.  The goal of the price caps is to limit Russia's revenues derived from crude oil and its refined products, while keeping the market supplied with Russian energy.

Gas prices have jumped for five straight weeks and are 'unlikely' to drop soon, experts say.  The current average for a regular gallon of gas $3.50, according to AAA.  While it's nowhere near the record $5.01 reached in June, its far more than what the average was heading into New Year's Day and what prices were one year ago.

Biden's Crude Oil Supply Raid Has Plunged America Into Crisis.  Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana got it right: Over the past two years, President Joe Biden stalled domestic energy production, begged Saudi Arabia to send more oil to America and drained the Strategic Petroleum Reserve — all in his effort to lower gas prices in advance of the 2022 election.  It's at the point where the national oil reserve created in 1975 to be available in the event of a national emergency is becoming its own emergency.  Under the Biden administration, the midterm election and spiking gasoline prices created a political crisis for Democrats, one that the president solved by draining 42% of what was in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve when he took office.

Liz Warren's Disappearing Act.  It's been one lie after another from the Democrats in D.C., compounded with economic policies that could only make matters as bad as possible.  When President Trump left office in January 2021, the national average for gasoline was around $2.30/gallon.  Biden immediately signed a series of anti-energy executive orders restricting fracking, oil exploration, and fossil-fuel production.  He did this for two reasons:  1) To counter and negate anything that President Trump had done, simply out of infantile spite;  2) To curry approval and favorable publicity with the Green New Deal faction and their supporters.  Predictably, retail gasoline pricing spiked.  It was soon in the mid-$3.00 range, more than a dollar over where it was under President Trump.  This was well before Russia invaded Ukraine.  This was not "Putin's price increase."  This was all Biden.  As fuel went up, transportation/delivery costs increased and pricing for all goods started to go up.  This was an absolutely unnecessary tax on the American public, diluting consumer's buying power and sapping their confidence.  The Biden energy policy's effect on overall consumer pricing would have been bad enough if that's all that there was.  But it wasn't, not by a long shot.

Six arrested after Sunnyvale gas station robberies total $200,000 in losses.  Police in Sunnyvale said they had arrested six men in a series of robberies of a gas station that netted some 30,000 gallons of gasoline — a haul authorities estimated was worth at least $180,000.  On Saturday, officers responded to reports of a theft in progress at the Valero gas station at 1097 E. Duane, according to the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety.  A store employee recognized one of the three suspects from a previous incident in which he allegedly gained access to a computer on a pump in order to steal gasoline.

18 Absurdities of the McConnell-Schumer Omnibus Spending Bill.  [#12] Doubling Down on Distortion of Energy Supply:  The Jones Act requires that products shipped between U.S. ports be carried only on the small number of vessels that comply with the law by being U.S.-made, flagged, and crewed.  Because of the Jones Act, it's often cheaper for states to import petroleum from other countries rather than do business with oil refineries in the U.S. It's why what little oil the U.S. used to import from Russia was going to Northeastern states and one reason why those same states face real supply insecurity this winter.  And yet, the authors of the omnibus spending bill seem not to care about this very real crisis; shockingly, page 692 would increase barriers to waiving Jones Act restrictions in times of emergency.  The bill would prevent waivers to deliver oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve on non-Jones Act ships without first going through yet more paperwork to approve such a waiver by the Homeland Security, Energy, and Transportation departments.

10 Steps to Save America.  [B]y 2020, the United States enjoyed inexpensive fuel.  It was all but independent in gas and oil.  It had become the world largest combined gas and oil producer.  That status radically curtailed the need for optional military engagements in the Middle East.  It gave America enormous clout against hostile oil exporters like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela.  And such independence helped reduce vast trade deficits.  Again, the Biden Administration simply exploded the idea of fossil-fuel independence as a gradual transition to sustainable energy.  So simply doing the opposite of its policies would correct the pathology almost immediately:  Issue more federal gas and oil leases, approve the Keystone and Constitution pipelines, reopen the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve, and build nuclear power plants.  The present course of high-priced and scarce gasoline and oil is eroding the middle class, spiking inflation, widening class divisions, and reducing American autonomy abroad.

California seeks to punish oil companies with new penalty.  California lawmakers on Monday introduced legislation to penalize oil companies for alleged price gouging, setting up a showdown with an industry that has long wielded political influence in the Golden State.  At the urging of Gov. Gavin Newsom, California Senate Budget Chair Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, proposed a new bill that would levy a penalty on oil companies when their profits exceeded a legally-established threshold.  The money raised by the penalty would then be placed in a fund that would be directed back to taxpayers in the form of rebates.  But the initial bill language is vague, failing to define the profit threshold that oil companies would be penalized for exceeding and lacking an explanation of who would be eligible for the rebates.  Newsom said those specifics will be sorted out over the course of the special session.  The move comes two months after the Democratic governor first unveiled a plan to levy a windfall profits tax on oil companies that were running up record earnings while Californians were getting squeezed at the pump.

Soros-backed group advises Biden admin that Clean Air Act could be used to 'control or prohibit' gasoline.  Governing for Impact, a group funded by George Soros, recently issued a memo to lawmakers advising the Biden administration that the Clean Air Act grants the Environmental Protection Agency the authority to "control or prohibit" the manufacturing and sale of gasoline, Fox News Digital reported.  "The Clean Air Act provides the Environmental Protection Agency with a number of tools to reduce air pollution," the memo read. "One powerful provision is Section 211(c), which authorizes the EPA to 'control or prohibit' the manufacture and sale of any motor vehicle fuel (or fuel additive) if resulting emissions will endanger public health or welfare (or impair emissions control devices)."  The memo, written by GFI and the climate group Evergreen Collaborative, argued that the EPA could force gas stations to establish electric vehicle charging stations on their properties.  "Under this authority, more stringent regulations on vehicle fuels — for example, requiring certain gas stations or national brands to install electric vehicle charging infrastructure — could both reduce deadly air pollution (such as nitrogen oxides and particulate matter) and incentivize the use of zero emissions transportation," the memo added.

The Editor says...
The rash pronouncement that nitrogen oxides and particulates are "deadly air pollution" assumes a lot of things that are not necessarily true.  Nobody is opposed to clean air, but surely the sponsors of the Clean Air Act didn't tell everyone that the law was intended as a weapon against gasoline.

Wyoming Sues Biden Administration, Alleges Suspensions of Oil Lease Sales [are] Illegal.  The State of Wyoming filed a second lawsuit against the Biden Administration, alleging that its suspension of oil lease sales were illegal.  Gov. Mark Gordon (R-Wyom.) announced that his state filed the lawsuit against the Interior Department for the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) decision to halt oil and gas lease sales in the state.  "This litigation is timely and vital to the interests of Wyoming citizens," said Gordon in a statement.  "Beyond that, Wyoming's energy resources can help power the nation and bring down costs at the pump.  BLM's decision to cancel lease sales sure seems to be a violation of both the letter and the spirit of the law.  "I firmly believe the pause in lease sales was politically driven and not based in law or fact," the governor continued.

If You Really Wanted to Destroy the U.S., Then...  First, you would surrender our prior energy independence.  Reduce new gas and oil leases on federal lands to the lowest levels of any president in history.  Cut back production at precisely the time the world is emerging from a two-year lockdown with pent-up consumer demand.  Make war on coal and nuclear power.  Drain the strategic petroleum reserve to make the pain for consumers more bearable for midterm election advantage.  Cancel the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge oil and gas field.  Block pipelines like the Keystone oil pipeline and the Constitution natural gas line.  Overregulate and demonize frackers and horizontal drillers.  Ensure there is less investment in their exploration and production.  Making use of internal combustible engines or fossil fuel power generation is prohibitively expensive.  Achieve a green oil dependency along the lines of contemporary Europe.

Joe Biden caused the diesel supply crisis he is complaining about.  During recent public appearances, President Joe Biden has continued to complain about energy prices as well as the potentially catastrophic shortage of diesel that has been forecast to hit the United States soon, particularly in the northeast.  Of course, he never takes the blame for any of this himself.  He instead tries to blame the "greedy" energy companies or, of course, Vladimir Putin.  He has called for bans on oil and gas exports and even suggested a mandate that diesel stocks be maintained at a higher level.  But a new report from the Institute for Energy Research addresses the actual root of these problems.  What we're facing is a significant loss in refinery capacity in the United States and its various territories.  We've lost more than a million barrels per day in production capacity, but rather than working to rebuild that capacity, the White House is issuing new edicts that will result in diminishing it further.

Our dangerous diesel shortage [was] caused by anti-fossil-fuel politicians.  Diesel shortages could get worse in the coming months as European bans on Russian fuel kick in.  Because diesel is a global market this will likely mean even higher prices in the US and Europe, and severe shortages in poorer regions.  Because diesel is a global market there are many contributing causes to diesel shortages.  The fundamental global cause is the global anti-fossil-fuel movement, which has suppressed all the fundamentals of diesel supply:  oil investment, oil production, oil refining, oil transport. [...] Instead of unleashing our diesel potential, clueless anti-fossil-fuel politicians destroyed it by
  [#1]   Preventing us from importing Canadian oil well-suited to our refineries
  [#2]   Preventing or shutting down diesel-producing capacity in the US
  [#3]   Threatening new diesel investments

Energy Policy Roadmap 2023.  Since the start of his presidency, Biden has indulged in apocalyptic concerns about climate change at the expense of American energy production, workers, and consumers.  Early in his presidency, aping the constant refrain from climate Chicken Littles, Biden signed an executive order, which stated, "There is little time left to avoid setting the world on a dangerous, potentially catastrophic, climate trajectory."  Therefore, Biden grandly declared, "it is the policy of my Administration that climate considerations shall be an essential element of United States foreign policy and national security."  Moreover:  ["]We must combat the climate crisis with bold, progressive action that combines the full capacity of the Federal Government with efforts from every corner of our Nation, every level of government, and every sector of our economy.["]  Federal agencies acted quickly to implement Biden's reckless order, and their policies continue to wreak havoc on American energy, consumers, and the economy.  For example, the Interior Department, led by radical former Rep. Deb Haaland (NM), banned new federal onshore and offshore oil and gas leases.  This is significant, because oil and gas production from federal lands and waters comprises about 24 percent and 11 percent of total U.S. oil and gas production, respectively.  To put those figures in context, "if U.S. federal land/waters was treated as its own country, the 2.67 million barrels of oil it produced daily in 2019 would have made it the 11th largest daily oil producer in the world that year."  Several states sued Interior to overturn the ban, and a federal district court recently ruled (again) that it is illegal.

The White House can end the energy crisis by next year if it wants to.  Power the Future is an American energy advocacy and research organization that promotes solutions to energy-related crises currently facing the United States.  In a report simply titled Energy Policy Roadmap, the group sets forth ten basic steps that President Joe Biden and/or Congress could begin taking immediately before we run out of diesel, experience more rolling blackouts, and all the rest of the very real threats America is facing because of the current destructive energy policies that are now in place. [...] Here is the bullet list, and every item on here could be put into motion tomorrow if Joe Biden has the will to take action or if the new Congress is willing to stand up to him and put corrective measures in place.
  •   Repealing Joe Biden's Natural Gas Tax
  •   Ending Biden's Oil and Gas Leasing Moratorium/Return Power to States
  •   Approving the Keystone XL Pipeline
  •   Blocking Biden's ESG Regulations
  •   Repealing the California Waiver
  •   Ending Activist-led "Sue and Settle" and "Citizen Lawsuits"
  •   Banning Use of the "Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases"
  •   Issuing Automatic Approvals for LNG Export Terminals
  •   Overturning Massachusetts v. EPA
  •   Stopping Biden's War on Coal

As Shortages Persist Under Biden, It's Time To Ask: Is This On Purpose?  Did the United States suddenly become a socialist basket case?  It's hard not to come to that conclusion after reading about the endless shortages plaguing the nation.  Each of which President Joe Biden either seems clueless to resolve or determined to make worse.  Let's start with the biggest one: the shortage of diesel fuel.  While Biden was busy draining the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to tamp down gas prices before the midterm elections, the real worry was that supplies of diesel fuel have been running short.  Two years after the short-lived COVID lockdowns ended, diesel inventories continued to trend downward to their lowest levels since 2008.  The cost for a gallon of diesel fuel is 46% higher than it was a year ago, according to AAA, and now costs more than $5 a gallon.

Energy Inflation Was by Design.  Although the price of oil has slipped back from recent highs, the factors behind high gasoline prices remain in place.  Foremost among these is the steep decline in U.S. oil refinery capacity triggered when Covid lockdowns crushed demand but continued after the economy reopened.  There has never been such a large fall in operable refinery capacity.  Moreover, Gulf Coast refineries were operating at 97 percent of their operating capacity in June 2022.  As [Joseph] Toomey remarks, "There isn't any more blood to be squeezed out of this turnip."  Toomey identifies five factors driving this decline in refinery capacity.  EPA biofuel blending mandates impose crippling costs on smaller refineries.  When conventional refineries are converted to processing biofuels, up to 90 percent of their capacity is lost.  Biofuel mandates cost consumers far more than federal excise taxes.  Toomey demonstrates that the Biden administration's claim that biofuel mandates protect consumers from oil-price volatility is totally false; biofuel prices, he writes, "are essentially indexed to the price of crude oil."  Biden could order the reversal of the EPA's retroactive biofuel threshold rules.  That he has not done so demonstrates that the administration isn't serious about making energy affordable again.  High prices for fossil fuel energy are an intended part of the plan.

Biden EPA Holds Up Major Oil Refinery Despite Looming Fuel Crisis.  On Thursday, the Biden Administration's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it would not reopen a key U.S. oil refinery in the Virgin Islands, despite a coming national shortage in diesel fuel that could prove catastrophic to the country.  According to the Daily Caller, the St. Croix refinery was first shut down in June of 2021 after the administration demanded a "Prevention of Significant Deterioration" permit, required by the Clean Air Act, that would prove the refinery's capabilities of reducing air pollution if reopened.  The refinery is owned by West Indies Petroleum Limited and Port Hamilton Refining and Transportation, LLLC.

Homemade energy crisis?  Another refinery, owned by Chevron, goes up in flames — sabotage of oil infrastructure?  The night of the midterm election, another oil refinery, this one owned by Chevron and located in El Segundo, Calif., caught fire under mysterious circumstances.  Firefighters were called to the scene, which was described as a "massive fire" [...].  Officials say they have no idea how the fire started.  [Tweet with video clip.] [...] A company spokesman from Chevron claims the fire did not impact the refinery's ability to supply petroleum products to customers throughout the Southern California region.

Biden yells 'There is no more drilling!' just months after claiming he never shut down energy production.  Is there any lie that's just too brazen for old Joe Biden?  Seems not. [...] Biden has blamed Vladimir Putin, OPEC's barons, Big Oil, global warming, Republicans, and all other things he could think of for high prices at the pump.  The one thing he won't do is consider what Americans can see with their own eyes: that before President Trump left office, gas prices were about $2 a gallon.  Now they are $5 and $6 a gallon in California, and well above $3 a gallon in the rest of America.  That's "lived experience."  The clearest reason for that is Biden's policies to halt drilling.  Back in January 2021, Biden signed off on an executive order dictating a ban of oil and gas drilling on federal lands.  Fox News has a string of other bans and hamperings he's done to stop energy production and drive pump prices sky-high.

Biden Keeps Promising To Make Energy More Expensive.  Believe Him.  Yes, we're going to make energy more expensive.  That's Joe Biden's closing message for 2022.  "We're going to be shutting these [coal] plants down all across America and having wind and solar," Biden told a crowd in deep blue California on Friday, arguing that it was "cheaper" to generate electricity from wind and solar.  Is it?  In California, which not only leads the nation in "clean energy" production but is leading the rest of us into rolling blackouts, residents pay 24.62 cents per kilowatt-hour for energy, around double the national average.  There are only three other states where residents fork 20 or more cents over, the isolated Hawaii and Alaska and the frack-banning New York.  The price of a gallon of gas in California is around two dollars over the national average, at $5.458.  In Texas, it's $3.173.  The president also forgot to mention that affordable natural gas, propelled by technological efficiencies like fracking, is as much a reason for the struggles of coal.

Fact check: Biden's midterms message includes false and misleading claims.  Biden's claim that the most common gas price when he took office was more than $5 is not even close to accurate.  The most common price for a gallon of regular gas on the day he was inaugurated, January 20, 2021, was $2.39, according to data provided to CNN by Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.  In other words, Biden made it sound like gas prices had fallen significantly during his presidency when they had actually increased significantly.  In other recent remarks, Biden has discussed the state of gas prices in relation to the summer peak of more than $5 per gallon, not in relation to when he took office.  Regardless, the comment last week was the second this fall in which Biden inaccurately described the price of gas — both times in a way that made it sound more impressive.

The Democrat War on Fossil Fuels.  The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) makes the business of refining oil difficult.  The law provides broad powers to the EPA.  It "directs the EPA Administrator to revise regulations to ensure that domestic transportation fuel sold or introduced into commerce, on an annual average basis, contains a specified volume of renewable fuel."  The George W. Bush Administration and a bipartisan majority in Congress enacted the EISA providing authority to the EPA to dictate terms for the blending of renewable fuels in refineries.  In 2021, 13.9 billion gallons of ethanol were blended into gasoline.  Unfortunately for refiners, they were mandated by the EPA to blend 20.17 billion gallons.  Since there was a shortfall in EPA mandated ethanol consumption in 2021, refiners had to purchase Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) credits to make up the difference.  Each gallon of ethanol produced as a biofuel for blending comes with a D6 RIN.  Each refiner/blender has a quota imposed by the EPA based on its annual mandate and the production capacity of the refinery.  If the refinery blends more than its quota, the surplus RINS may be sold as credits on the market.  If the refinery blends less than its quota, it must purchase RINS to make up the difference.  If no RIN credits are available on the market, they may be bought from ethanol producers.  In 2021 refiners had to purchase RIN credits for 6.27 billion gallons of ethanol and other biofuels they did not consume.

Joe Biden Complains Oil Companies 'Should Be Drilling More' After Vowing to End Fossil Fuels.  President Joe Biden complained that oil companies were not drilling enough for oil, despite his long history of trying to block oil and gas production in the United States.  "We haven't slowed them down at all, they should be drilling more than they're doing now," Biden said.  "If they were drilling more we'd have more relief at the pump."  The president spoke about high gas prices during a trip to New Mexico to campaign for Democrat candidates.  Biden, however, has acted several times during his first two years in office to lower the production of oil and gasoline in the United States.

The Democrat War on Fossil Fuels.  On October 19, in the heat of an election campaign, President Biden told the American people, "We need to increase oil production."  He went on to say, "My administration has not stopped or slowed U.S. oil production."  It was a disingenuous statement from a man whose sense of reality, fact, and fiction have become an undecipherable narrative.  Biden failed to mention the executive order he issued which stipulates, "the Secretary of the Interior shall pause new oil and natural gas leases on public lands or in offshore waters."  This pause is ongoing.  Biden uses the same executive order as an instruction to the secretaries of State, Treasury, Energy, Defense, and Homeland Security, "to organize and deploy the full capacity of its agencies to combat the climate crisis."  Millions of Americans are employed by businesses supporting the fossil-fuel industry.  Others choose to invest in fossil-fuel businesses.  All Americans rely on fossil fuels to power their businesses, transportation systems, and utilities.  Democrats will destroy these people's jobs, capital, and imperil the U.S. economy.

America Is On The Cusp Of A Fundamental Transformation.  No matter how bad Obama's actions while in office, nothing he did compares to Joe Biden.  Since being installed as president, Biden has done an insane number of things that simply make no sense from a rational perspective.  Literally the first thing Biden did was reduce the amount of energy available to Americans.  He canceled completing the Keystone XL Pipeline which would have brought more Canadian oil.  Soon thereafter, the administration threw up roadblocks to domestic oil production both offshore and on federal lands.  First, they curtailed new leases and "reviewed" existing ones.  Later, when they backed off from a complete ban, they instituted a virtual ban, which included increasing fees and other elements to make extraction more expensive for energy companies and everything more expensive for Americans.

Brilliant incentive, Joe.  Cheap gas is sure to follow.
Biden threatens higher taxes on oil companies if they do not work to lower gas prices.  President Joe Biden threatened Monday to pursue higher taxes on oil company profits if industry giants do not work to cut gas prices.  Biden has criticized oil companies that have made record-high profits as consumers struggle to keep up with high gas prices.  The price of a gallon of gas was $3.76 on Monday, according to AAA, down from a record of over $5 in June but still higher than a year ago.  "Their profits are a windfall of war," Biden said, referring to Russia's war in Ukraine, which prompted Western sanctions that reduced oil supply.  "It's time for these companies to stop their war profiteering."  "If they don't they're going to pay a higher tax on their excess profits," he said.

The Editor says...
When was the last time Joe Biden bought a tank of gas?

How Joe Biden Spits on Sound Economic Theory.  What is happening today is similar to what happened in the 1970s:  inflation at home, and the transfer of tens of billions of dollars from the oil-consuming nations to the oil-producing nations.  This began to occur beginning January 2021 with President Biden signing an executive order canceling the XL Pipeline.  Many other restrictions on the production of energy have led to a shortage and increased prices which add to inflation.  Many believe that inflation is caused only by the government's printing of money, however, increases in the costs of products that are considered necessities also cause inflation.  One of the biggest contributors to inflation is the cost of gasoline.

Have Democrats Lost Interest in the Working Man?  The Biden-Harris regime began — Day One — with a flurry of executive orders, cancelling the contracts in place for ongoing work on the Keystone XL pipeline.  Most were union construction jobs.  Thousands of workers were thrown out of work on the spot — no notice, no severance — just because the incoming regime's green agenda didn't square with the idea of a pipeline moving Canadian fuel southward.  In state after state along the route, materials were left sitting where they were, work unfinished, people fired and forced to move elsewhere to find new jobs. [...] Drilling, exploration, R&D, everything in the critical oil and gas sector that requires any federal permit, from drilling on federal lands, to drilling on private lands that require government access or government authorization of any kind, slowed to a crawl instantly.  For all intents and purposes, this development just isn't happening anymore.  And that's why gasoline has more than doubled in price.

Biden falsely says the price of gas was more than $5 when he took office (when it was $2.39).  President Joe Biden touted U.S. manufacturing gains Thursday on a trip to Syracuse — where he claimed gas prices were down compared to when he took office, when in fact they are higher.  'We're down $1.25 Since the peak this summer, and they've been falling for the last three weeks as well as well, and adding up real savings for families today,' Biden said.  'The most common price of gas in America is $3.39 down from over $5 When I took office,' he continued.  The average cost of a gallon of gas on the AAA site was $3.76 Thursday.  When he took office, it was averaging $2.39 — or about half what he said it was then — according to the Energy Information Institute.

America's energy crisis is mostly US Democrats' fault.  [Thread reader]  America is experiencing our worst energy crisis since the 1970s.  High oil prices are making driving expensive, while high natural gas prices are making heating and electricity far more expensive — above all in the Northeast, where some ratepayers might see prices >2X last winter's.  Here's a chart of residential natural gas prices over the last several winters from the US Energy Information Administration.  Notice the massive spike projected for this winter — meaning record heating bills for many.  [Chart]  Democrats are claiming there's nothing they could have done about today's oil and natural gas prices.  These prices, they say, are outside America's control because they are largely set by global markets.  In fact, had Ds been pro-oil/gas our prices would be much lower.

New York, New England Begin Rationing Heating Oil — Before Peak Winter Has Even Hit.  Biden's war on oil has consequences, and now the chickens are coming home to roost.  We've already gotten a taste of it nationwide with persistent, sky-high gas prices.  In California, we felt it this summer as our power grid was stretched to capacity by heat waves and we were subject to rolling brown-outs along with warnings not to use appliances or charge electric cars.  How very First World. [...] Bloomberg is reporting that the rationing of heating oil is already underway, despite it not even yet being November.  The reason:  stockpiles are at 30 percent of their normal levels. [...] The bottom line?  Americans will pay almost 30 percent more to heat their homes than last year — the most in 25 years.  Biden will continue to blame Vladimir Putin and the invasion of Ukraine for our oil woes, and scold Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for refusing to bend the knee and pump more oil, but it's Joe's own fault we're in this mess.

Ex-Keystone XL Pipeline Welder: Biden Administration 'Has Everything to Do' with Rising Energy Costs.  A former Keystone XL Pipeline welder recently blasted Democrat President Joe Biden's intent to cut gas and energy prices before the midterm elections.  "I don't know how he gets away with keep saying that he doesn't have anything to do with [high gas prices] when they've got everything to do with it," Neal Crabtree said during an interview this week with Fox Business.  Crabtree previously worked on the Keystone XL project and was among hundreds of others laid off after the president took office.

Democrat Senate Incumbents Refuse Responsibility for Fueling Inflation, Gas Prices.  Four embattled Senate Democrat incumbents have set a pattern of refusing to take responsibility for soaring inflation and gas prices that have occurred in record-setting fashion under their leadership. [...] On Thursday, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), who is losing in the polls to Republican Adam Laxalt, claimed gas prices are spiking because oil companies are not producing enough oil.  "Instead of increasing supply, they're taking in profits," she tweeted.  Masto did not mention that gas prices have spiked since Democrats regained control of the executive branch, legislative branch, and administration state in 2021.  Nor did she mention President Joe Biden's campaign promise to reduce oil drilling.  In the last two years, the Biden administration has succeeded in driving up private and public financing costs of oil drilling, halting drilling on public lands, and canceling the Keystone pipeline.

Biden wants high gas prices — he just doesn't want voters to notice.  Team Biden displayed some rare honesty Thursday, essentially admitting the prez is fine with high gasoline prices — he just doesn't want them to hurt Democrats in the midterms.  Rather than deny Saudi claims that Washington had only asked for a month's delay of OPEC+ plans to cut oil production, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby confessed: "We presented Saudi Arabia with an analysis" that showed OPEC "could easily wait" until its next meeting before its planned reductions.  And that next meeting is Dec. 4, after America votes.  Our own Michael Goodwin rightly and thoroughly flagged one outrage here:  This is a clear case of asking a foreign power to interfere in US elections, exactly the charge Democrats used to impeach President Donald Trump.  So let us beat home another obscenity:  This is further proof that no amount of American suffering will end President Joe Biden's war on gas and oil.

Joe Biden: $7 a Gallon Gas in California 'Always Been the Case'.  President Joe Biden during a visit to Los Angeles on Thursday dismissed gas prices in California reaching nearly seven dollars a gallon.  The president spoke with reporters briefly after getting tacos with local Democrats in Los Angeles.  When asked to react to prices reaching nearly seven dollars a gallon in California, Biden replied, "Well, that's always been the case here."  Biden argued that gas prices were still down nationwide from the previous highs in the summer, even though they have gone back up as much as 30 cents a gallon in some areas.

Newsom Tried Blaming Valero for High Fuel Costs.  It Did Not Go Well.  After Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom's state Energy Commission accused Valero Energy of price gouging and ordered an "explanation" from the company on the high price of gas in California, Valero sent a lengthy letter putting Newsom in his place and explaining why his answer is waiting in the mirror.  In doing so, the energy producer also exposed the true goal of Democrats' pain-is-the-point energy agenda. [...] The cold hard truth that Newsom, Biden, and Energy Secretary Granholm know — but refuse to admit — along with the real goal of their energy-killing policies.

Biden's October Surprise Is Even Higher Gas Prices, Experts Say.  Nationwide gasoline prices will surpass $4 per gallon as oil prices spike thanks to rising winter demand and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) heavy production cuts, experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation, endangering Democrats' midterm hopes.  Gas prices across the country have been rising for nearly three weeks and may go up even further after OPEC and its Russia-led allies, together known as OPEC+, cut daily production by over two million barrels of crude oil on Oct. 5, causing crude oil prices to increase, experts told the DCNF.  The nationwide average gas price sits at $3.92, which is 14 cents higher than the gas price on Sept. 29, according to AAA data.

L.A. Times: California Policymakers Have Failed for Decades on Gas Prices.  The reliably left-wing Los Angeles Times has published an unusually candid analysis:  that California's policymakers, given ample warnings about the state's vulnerability to high gas prices, have failed to do anything to address the basic problems that cause them. [...] But as a spokesman for Valero, the company that operates two of the state's 11 refineries, recently noted in a letter to the California Energy Commission, "market drivers of supply and demand, together with government-imposed costs and specifications," are the main reasons for high prices in California, and cited a recent federal judicial decision that dismissed claims of price collusion in the industry.  Moreover, he added, "California is the most challenging market to serve in the United States" because of regulations that require a unique blend of gasoline; because of its environmental regulations; and because state policymakers have made it difficult to operate refineries, limiting supply in a crisis.

Summers: We Can't Have 'Strategy of Total Hostility to Fossil Fuels' That We've Had.  During an interview aired on Friday's broadcast of Bloomberg's "Wall Street Week," Harvard Professor, economist, Director of the National Economic Council under President Barack Obama, and Treasury Secretary under President Bill Clinton Larry Summers reacted to OPEC+'s production cut by stating that "we made a mistake by canceling the Keystone pipeline.  We made a mistake by slowing down all kinds of permitting activity.  We made a mistake by being hostile as a country to natural gas."

OPEC Humiliates Biden While the UK Increases Domestic Oil Production.  It hasn't been a good week for Joe Biden. [...] OPEC+ announced that it would be cutting oil production in the weeks leading up to the 2022 midterm elections, despite his repeated pleas for them to boost production.  It was the latest in a long line of humiliations for Joe Biden — and, of course, entirely his own doing.  He's the one who put the brakes on domestic oil production and drilling, outsourcing our energy to foreign nations — including our enemies.  Now, gas prices are going to shoot up just before the midterm elections because of Biden's war on domestic energy.  For sure, increasing domestic energy production would go a long way toward fixing this problem, but Biden either hasn't figured that out yet or just doesn't care.

California gas prices hit new record highs.  California is facing surging oil prices in the wake of shutdowns at several oil refineries that produce a specific grade of fuel for the state.  Prices began to creep up in September after months of declines.  And unlike the nationwide rise in gas prices over the summer, this most recent spike is mostly confined to California and the West Coast.  There was also debate among experts about the effect of the move by OPEC+, which amounted to the biggest reduction since 2020 and was designed to boost sagging oil prices.  It remains unclear how the reduction would hit pump prices, but experts said it poses another threat to the shaky global economy amid growing concerns about an impending recession.  The OPEC moves comes a month before crucial mid-term elections in the United States.

Rising Gas Prices Plague Democrats Five Weeks from Election.  Gas prices have begun to rise again throughout the nation by more than 50 cents in the last week, plaguing Democrats who were likely hoping those prices would not factor into the minds of voters before the midterm election.  According to AAA data, gas prices in California have increased 52 cents from last week to $6.412 per gallon.  In Arizona, a battleground state with a high-profile midterm race, gas prices have jumped over 30 cents in one week.  In the all-important swing state of Nevada, gas prices have gone up nearly 40 cents in the last seven days.  And in Washington State, where Republicans could upset Democrats in the Senate race, gas prices have surged 30 cents since last Tuesday.

October surprise?  Why OPEC's planned price hike could pummel Democrats.  The midterm elections are weeks away and OPEC+ is threatening to cut oil production.  That's not good news for you, the consumer; it's also not good news for President Joe Biden and his fellow Democrats.  Biden's bump up in the polls over the past few months tracked declining gasoline prices.  For nearly 100 days, gas prices went down.  They peaked at a record high of more than $5 per gallon in June and reached a low of $3.67.  Now, at $3.80, they have begun to head back up.  According to the Real Clear Politics average of polls, Joe Biden's "disapprove" rating peaked at the end of June at 57.3% and dropped to 53.1% in mid-September, along with the slide in gasoline prices.  Since then, the percentage of voters expressing disapproval of Biden has inched higher, and GOP chances are looking brighter.

No, gas prices are not still going down.  In recent weeks, some of you may have noticed a series of advertisements running on cable news networks in particular, sponsored by some supporters of the Democratic Party.  They feature a series of "Thank Joe Biden" themes, primarily highlighting the hilariously named Inflation Reduction Act and claiming that Biden's actions have been "lowering prices" while encouraging people to donate to elect more Democrats.  But are people really falling for this?  Have you noticed prices getting any lower?  The White House Press Secretary keeps saying that gas prices are coming down thanks to Democratic policies.  It's true that gas prices did dip for a while over the summer, but anyone who has had to fill up their tanks recently already knows all too well that the trend was short-lived.  This is particularly true in California, where gas prices have now once again risen every day for more than a month.

Biden's 'woke' green energy is a joke that makes us dependent on China.  Do Democrats really not understand how supply and demand work?  Of course they do.  They know that, by repressing oil and natural gas production, they're making these resources scarce and expensive.  That's how they want it.  They think high gasoline prices will force people to buy costly electric cars.  But they know that their position of effectively rationing energy is highly unpopular, so they seek to scapegoat oil and gas companies — an easy target. [...] But the main reason for expensive energy prices is President Biden's suppression of oil and gas production.  It would have been easy for Biden to make up for loss of Russian oil imports through expanded domestic drilling.  Where the US imported around 18 million barrels of Russian oil per month, we produce 19 million barrels of oil domestically per day.

The Thinnest Veneer of Civilization.  [Scroll down] Europeans arrogantly lectured the world that they no longer need traditional fuels.  So, they shut down nuclear power plants.  They stopped drilling for oil and gas.  And they banned coal.  What followed was a dystopian nightmare.  Europeans will burn dirty wood this winter as their civilization reverts from postmodern abundance to premodern survival.  The Biden Administration ossified oil fields.  It canceled new federal oil and gas leases.  It stopped pipeline construction and hectored investors to shun fossil fuels.  When scarcity naturally followed, fuel prices soared.  The middle class has now mortgaged its upward mobility to ensure that they might afford gasoline, heating oil, and skyrocketing electricity.

Biden mindlessly yells at gas station owners to slash prices at the pump: 'Do it now'.  President Biden once again shirked any responsibility for skyrocketing gas prices and instead demanded that gas stations cut prices at the pump for drivers despite their costs to stay in business being dictated by the market.  [Video clip]  His flawed economic reasoning is that oil prices are dropping.  Oil prices are not the only factor in the price of a gallon of gasoline.  Taxation and crushing regulation as well as progressive policies have a lot to do with it.  It's almost as if Biden and the left want to drive gas stations out of business.

The Wrong Way to Respond to High Gas Prices.  The federal government's most sensible response to the high gasoline prices we are now experiencing is the exact opposite of what it is currently doing.  Instead of gimmicky gas tax holidays and promoting expensive electric vehicles most families can't afford, the government needs to help facilitate increased supply.  That means leasing more federal land and waters for oil drilling, expeditiously approving needed infrastructure like pipelines to quickly and safely transport oil and gas around the country, and repealing unnecessary regulations that are holding back gas producers.  However, policymakers, especially on the left, regularly respond to high gas prices by pushing "solutions" that may be good for optics, but useless, or even harmful, when it comes to lowering prices.

Here Are the Factors That Affect Gas Prices.  When gas prices are high, as they are right now, some policymakers will offer up myths, like price gouging, to explain what's going on.  But the reality is quite different.  While harmful government barriers that limit supply are often to blame, there are also simple economics at play and challenges that exist across the oil supply chain.  Understanding what goes into the price of gas at the pump is critical to both understanding energy and developing sound government policy.  According to the latest Energy Information Administration data, the cost of crude oil accounts for the majority (54%) of the retail price of regular gasoline.  Refining makes up 18%, distribution and marketing 17%, and taxes 11%.

Biden Demands Gas Station Owners Lower Prices Due To Big Oil's 'Record Profits'.  President Joe Biden called on gas station owners to immediately lower gas prices because oil companies are "making record profits" during a White House meeting on Monday [9/26/2022].  Biden said that the oil prices dropped last month and told gas station owners to bring down prices at the pump to reflect the drop.  Biden also criticized the oil companies that run gas stations for profiting off increased fuel costs; however, gas stations make only a 10 to 15-cent profit per each gallon of gas that they sell, according to The National Association Of Convenience Stores. [...] Gas prices are roughly 57 cents higher than they were in September 2021, according to AAA data.

Biden's gas scam.  Just a couple of days ago on Larry Kudlow I again read "gas prices are down."  Even the leading minds in the economy have bought into this.  But in reality, gasoline prices are not down.  The whole gasoline affair is a successful con that the Biden administration has so far pulled on Americans.  The essence is this: for passenger cars, which dominate the nation's highways and city streets, ethanol alcohol is not fuel.  It takes up space in your tank; over time, it corrodes the engine.  Other than that, it evaporates.  You will not get any mileage out of ethanol; diluted ethanol is simply vodka, and if you fill your tank with vodka, it will not run.  The engines of our passenger cars are designed to run on petrol, a product made out of oil and not out of quickly fermented wheat, sugar cane, and the like, as is ethanol.  The difference in mileage is quite significant, ca. 25%. Nobody notices because one cannot get pure gas anymore, and thus comparison of the mileage is eliminated.

Rising gas prices getting closer to $6 across Southern California.  Gas prices are inching their way closer to $6 a gallon again.  The average price for a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Los Angeles County jumped 8.5 cents to $5.55 overnight for the 19th consecutive day.  That same price also jumped in Orange County 9 cents to $5.52.  Ventura County and the Inland Empire also saw its average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gas also went up to $5.54 and $5.42, respectively.  Gas prices in Southern California have been on a steady rise after easing up over the summer.  Prices in California had reached a record high of $6.44 on June 14.

Gasoline, Electricity, and Biden's Fuel for the Inflation Fire.  Supply of gasoline was low in June and the demand for gasoline was high.  The result of this was quickly rising gasoline prices.  The Biden administration's proposed "solution" to this problem was to abruptly and artificially increase the demand for gasoline, which was already in short supply, by handing everyone more money to spend on gasoline.  There is no other possible outcome to such a policy than gasoline prices being driven artificially upward.  Seriously, understanding that much isn't exactly the stuff of advanced economics courses.  These are the simplest economic concepts that responsible parents should be teaching their children at an early age.  Did those in Biden administration pitching the "gas rebate" foolishness not get that talk, either at the dinner table or in the hallowed halls of Ivy League academies?  Color me skeptical.  I think they know precisely what happens when you artificially increase demand while supply is low.  They simply desire such price spikes on gasoline in order to get the poor and middle class on the trolley when it comes to electric vehicles.

Biden's Cabinet:  Let us Count the Ways.  [#5] Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm:  This choice is particularly rich.  Energy — which really means the management of nation's exploration and production of fossil fuels — is a very complicated and demanding position.  Unlike many other cabinet posts, the selection of Energy Secretary demands that the individual have actual, real expertise and experience in that area.  This is not a position for "on the job" training. [...] Granholm apparently has no real knowledge of anything and simply parrots the Green line that, "Fossil fuels are bad, buy an EV, drive past the gas station."  That's our national energy policy?

Biden Pats Himself on the Back about Gas Prices as Americans Pay at the Pump.  Brandon just got back from his trip to beg the sheiks of Saudi Arabia to pump more oil to keep prices lower for American consumers, a trip made more ridiculous even than it sounds at first glance thanks to Biden's heated, anti-Saudi rhetoric, his administration's hostility to American energy producers, and the lack of any reason for the Saudi's to go along with what Biden wants given his attempts to strike a deal with Iran and the fact that they make more money when prices are higher.  And, unsurprisingly, it doesn't really appear to have worked.  The Saudis will do as they please, particularly when Biden is the dimwitted American they're dealing with.  But that didn't stop Biden from using his Twitter account to start patting himself on the back about the recent dip in gas prices, making a small price correction in the still sky-high price of gas sound like a major victory for the American consumer and his administration.

Biden Energy Security Official Says Administration Cannot and Will Not Accept or Approve Long-Term Oil and Gas Development.  This guy popped up after the trip to Saudi Arabia and has been spouting hypocrisies ever since.  In this first segment, White House senior energy adviser Amos Hochstein, in charge of U.S. energy security, says the administration cannot accept or approve any long-term oil and gas development that undermines the urgency of the crisis they are exploiting.  Instead, Hochstein says U.S. energy producers should invest in oil and gas development that turns an immediate profit.  Keeping the oil and gas industry in a perpetual state of shortage, overcapacity and expense, allows the "transition" to windmills and solar to remain urgent.  Put another way, the energy crisis is part of the plan.  [Video clip]

How Biden made the energy crisis worse.  They may not like to admit it, but President Joe Biden and his team understand the need for a supply increase.  It explains the president's trip to Saudi Arabia to ask their king to increase oil production.  He has dispatched envoys to Venezuela and Iran for the same purpose.  Unfathomably, his administration continues its relentless attacks on domestic oil production.  More than one million acres of land in Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico have been removed from oil and gas production.  Access in the Atlantic and Pacific have been reduced to nothing.  Of the federal land available for exploration, only 20 percent has been made available.  Meanwhile, Biden's agencies from the Securities and Exchange Commission to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission have issued new guidelines based on his unwavering commitment to the climate change agenda.  The multiple, clear signals coming from Washington, DC have succeeded:  American oil and gas production is down and not rebounding anytime soon.  Consequently, prices remain high.  The administration has taken to bragging about prices coming down, but a gallon of gas still costs over $2 more than it did the day this administration took power.

The Left Should Be Happy with Biden.  The Left should be ecstatic that Joe Biden has given them everything they wanted. [...] For decades, the Left has amplified former Energy Secretary Steven Chu's 2008 dream that the government must spike fuel costs up to European levels.  That was seen as the best way to force unsophisticated Americans to quit burning gas and transition to renewable energy.  Biden took that sermon seriously.  He canceled federal energy leases.  He shut down ANWR.  He canceled pipelines and warned the oil industry its days were numbered.  Biden has done more than any other Democrat to ensure fossil fuels were unaffordable, forcing America's supposedly unthinking consumers to drive less or consider ditching their gas-engine cars altogether.

Who deserves credit for the recent drop in oil prices?  [Scroll down]  The Biden administration truly deserves credit for both the huge rise in prices and the minor fall in prices.  Throughout the campaign, and as soon as Biden took office, he stated that his goal is to get rid of fossil fuels.  That sent the message to traders, speculators, and producers throughout the world that the U.S. would no longer be a major competitor on the global markets, and prices soared.  The record high prices of energy then contributed to already raging inflation throughout the economy, brought on by federal spending and money-printing, and the public's purchasing power was decimated.  The media also get major credit for the high prices, as they have participated for a long time in the effort to destroy the fossil fuel industry.  They have indoctrinated the public into believing that the fossil fuel industry is destroying the planet, by just repeating what they are told and using easily manipulated computer models that have been completely wrong with previous dire predictions.  They have been willing to do this without asking for scientific data to justify the destruction or doing any research.

California cities ban new gas stations in battle to combat climate change.  Without realizing they were starting a movement in green energy policy, leaders of a small Sonoma Valley city seem to have done just that when they questioned the approval process for a new gas station — eventually halting its development and others in the future.  "We didn't know what we were doing, actually," said Petaluma Councilwoman D'Lynda Fischer, who led the charge last year to prohibit new gas stations in the city of 60,000.  "We didn't know we were the first in the world when we banned gas stations."  Since Petaluma's decision, four other cities in the Bay Area have followed suit, and now, leaders in California's most car-centric metropolis are hoping to bring the climate-conscious policy to Southern California.

Costco starts limiting gasoline sales in New Jersey as supply shortages worsen.  State law in New Jersey has long required that Costco allow anyone, including non-members, to purchase gasoline at its fuel stations.  That is changing, however, due to supply chain, inflation and shortage issues.  As many of our readers know, gas is typically — though not always — cheaper at Costco than it is at other service stations.  Because of this, residents of New Jersey without Costco membership have chosen to go there instead of, say, a local Shell station.  This week, however, Costco implemented the new rule across the state.  Customers without memberships will now need to get one first at the Costco fuel center before being allowed to fill up their tanks.

Biden falsely claims GOP is blocking 'efforts to lower your gas taxes'.  President Biden took aim at the opposing party Wednesday by falsely claiming that Republicans — rather than members of his own party — are preventing Congress from implementing his proposed federal gas tax holiday to blunt fuel costs.  "All Republicans do nothing [and] obstruct our efforts to lower your gas taxes," Mr. Biden said in Cleveland, Ohio, during remarks about the economy and employer pension plans.  "I proposed that, and I've asked the Congress to eliminate the federal gas tax for as long as this crisis goes on."  Last month, the president called on Congress to temporarily suspend the 18.4-cent-per-gallon federal tax that drivers pay at the pump for regular fuel and the 24-cent-per-gallon tax on diesel for three months.

Sorry, Biden, Gas Stations Can't Just 'Bring Down the Price'.  Over the holiday weekend, President Joe Biden discovered a new scapegoat for persistently high gas prices:  Americans who own and operate gas stations.  "My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril," Biden tweeted on Saturday.  "Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you're paying for the product.  And do it now."  It arguably lacks the pomposity of former President Donald Trump's memorable tweet that "hereby ordered" American companies to stop doing business in China, but the content is equally unhinged.  Biden has been aggressive about using vague executive powers to shape the economy in recent months, but that doesn't change the fact that an American president has no business whatsoever telling gas stations how much to charge at the pump.  If the tweet merely overstepped the limits of executive authority, though, it wouldn't be as noteworthy — that sort of thing is almost an everyday occurrence.  It's also a telling example of just how little the Biden administration seems to know about what it believes it can design.

Joe Says No:  Biden White House Blocks New Atlantic, Pacific Oceans Drilling as Global Energy Demand Soars.  U.S. President Joe Biden has proposed blocking all new drilling in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as the world cries out for more energy from more sources far from Russia, the Middle East, and the OPEC oil cartel.  Biden is also moving to shut down exploration and production of oil and gas on onshore federal lands while acknowledging the importance of fossil fuels in the U.S. energy landscape, as Breitbart News reported.

Awkward syntax in original.
GOP Rep. Garbarino:  Biden Has No Plan for [the] War He Says Gas Prices Will Remain High for [the] Duration of.  On Friday's broadcast of the Fox Business Network's "Mornings with Maria," Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY) reacted to President Joe Biden's declaration that gas prices will remain high for "as long as it takes" to stop Russia's invasion of Ukraine by stating that the administration hasn't given any sort of a plan for how to end the invasion.  Garbarino stated, "I don't think there is a plan.  I don't think the administration has a plan.  We — it hasn't been shared with us in Congress, and there should be — those discussions should be happening, but they're not.  But I love the fact that he's blaming gas prices only on this war.  You know, in November 2020, gas prices were around 43 — a barrel of oil was $43 a barrel.  And now, a month before Putin invaded Ukraine, it was $87.  So, it was already doubled in one year of his presidency.  So, the fact that he's blaming all of this on the Russian invasion of Ukraine is a joke.  He's just looking for someone else to blame for his bad policies. [...]"

Biden blames gas stations for high prices at the pump and even the Chicoms are laughing.  Old Joe is still trying to figure out where inflation comes from.  It's gotten so bad even the Chicoms are laughing at him.  This time the intellectually blindfolded president has pinned the donkey tail on gas station owners.

Jeff Bezos blasts Biden for trying to blame gas stations for astronomical prices.  Joe Biden has been blasted by Jeff Bezos and China for pleading with gas companies to lower their prices to help inflation-battered American.  The president tweeted Saturday: 'My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple:  this is a time of war and global peril.  Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you're paying for the product.  And do it now.'  The tweet came amid the July 4th holiday weekend where Americans are paying an average of $4.822 for gas.

Yes, You CAN Blame Biden For High Energy Prices.  [O]n May 12, Biden's Interior Department blocked a proposal to open up more than one million acres of land in Alaska for oil and gas drilling.  Two days later, Biden's Environmental Protection Agency blocked plans to expand an oil refinery in the US Virgin Islands.  Biden and his defenders said he had to block the expansion of the Virgin Islands refinery, given how polluting it was.  But had Biden's EPA allowed the Virgin Island refinery to expand, the owners would have poured nearly $3 billion into retrofitting the plant so it produced gasoline and other products more cleanly, while significantly increasing production at the same time.  Furthermore, anybody who cares about air pollution and climate change should want more oil and gas drilling, not less.  US emissions declined 22% between 2005 and 2020, mostly because cheap natural gas has replaced coal.

Joe Biden has a new scapegoat:  Your local gas station.  President Joe Biden is proving that patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels.  Recall that over the last couple of months, Biden has been desperately trying to explain away the high cost of gasoline.  When people didn't buy Democrats' scapegoating of oil companies, he claimed it was Vladimir Putin's fault.  Never mind how far gas prices had risen before Putin invaded Ukraine.  But people were not fooled, and so last week, Biden began appealing to our sense of patriotism.  The new message was that when you pay $7 for gas, you are paying for the "liberal world order."  Big surprise — even that message isn't getting the desired results.  So this weekend, Biden's team has found a new scapegoat:  your local gas station.

US energy producers roast Biden over gas prices tweet they suggest written by WH 'intern'.  On Sunday [7/3/2022], Biden tweeted that "companies running gas stations" should take note that "this is a time of war and global peril."  "My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril," Biden tweeted on Saturday.  "Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you're paying for the product.  And do it now."  Biden's tweet comes as gas prices are averaging at $4.812 nationwide, which is up 5 cents from one month ago.  In some states, however, prices are much higher.  In California, the average price per gallon of gas is $6.244 and in Illinois, it's $5.325.  Biden has attempted to deflect blame for the increase in gas prices to Russian President Vladimir Putin, dubbing it the "Putin's Price Hike," a term used repeatedly by the White House, despite his campaign promise to always take responsibility and not blame others.

US energy producers roast Biden for demanding 'companies running gas stations' lower pump prices.  The U.S. Oil & Gas Association took a hit at President Biden after he tweeted on Saturday that "companies running gas stations" should simply "bring down the price you are charging at the pump," telling him that he should "please make sure the WH intern who posted this tweet registers for Econ 101 for the fall semester."  "Working on it Mr. President.  In the meantime — have a Happy 4th and please make sure the WH intern who posted this tweet registers for Econ 101 for the fall semester...," the tweeted.  On Sunday, Biden tweeted that "companies running gas stations" should take note that "this is a time of war and global peril."

Despite Record Gas Prices, Biden Rejects New Drilling in Atlantic and Pacific.  Joe Biden has proven once again that he has no interest in reducing the record-high costs of gasoline, which have gone up throughout his time in office.  Biden not only wants to block all new oil drilling in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but he's also taking steps to shut down exploration of oil and gas on federal lands.  "A plan released Friday shows the White House proposed no more than 10 potential lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico, an option for one potential lease sale in the northern portion of the Cook Inlet of Alaska, and no lease sales for the Atlantic or Pacific planning areas over the 2023-2028 period," reports Breitbart.  This plan is not finalized, however, but any potential areas of exploration or sale not mentioned in the proposal will reportedly be off-limits from 2023-2028.

Biden administration unveils oil and gas drilling plans, gutting Trump-era framework.  The Biden administration published its long-awaited five-year offshore oil and gas leasing plan Friday one day after missing its June deadline.  The Department of the Interior (DOI) plan included the possibility of the federal government holding up to 11 lease sales off the coast of Alaska and in the Gulf of Mexico over the five-year period between 2023-2028.  However, the plan also put forward the option of the federal government holding no lease sales in that same time period.  "From Day One, President Biden and I have made clear our commitment to transition to a clean energy economy," Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement. [...] The plan didn't include any potential sales in the Atlantic or Pacific, effectively blocking drilling off the east and west coasts.  In the first version of the DOI plan, the Trump administration sought to hold a total of 47 sales across the Atlantic, Pacific, Gulf of Mexico and off Alaska's coasts.

Biden Takes Aim at America's Largest Oil Field, Threatens to Stop Production, Sending Gas Prices Soaring.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is preparing to cite the United States' largest oil field for violating ozone pollution standards, a move that will threaten the end of oil and gas production in the region.  According to the Texas Governor's Office, the proposed regulations will directly affect the Permian Basin, the largest oil field in the United States, accounting for 95,000,000 gallons of gasoline per day or 40% of the oil produced domestically.  This would be just one more move from Biden's administration to impact the lives of every American by reducing the fuel supply and causing gas prices to soar well beyond Biden's record of $5 per gallon.

The President's Empty Promises to Alleviate Pain at the Pump.  [Scroll down]  While the idea of a federal gas price relief seems noble, the President has proven unwilling to entertain solutions that promote increasing domestic energy supply.  He routinely delays oil and gas lease sales, citing concerns from environmentalists and global warming activists.  Apparently he forgets that he serves all 330 million American citizens, not only the Green Party.  President Biden and his administration would do well to allow gas price relief to remain a state-driven issue.  When gas tax holidays are conducted at the state level, consumers reap dramatic benefits.  72% of Americans currently support suspending their state fuel tax, something that often goes toward resurfacing and lane striping.  While federal gas tax dollars support the critical infrastructure mentioned by Secretary Granholm, suspending state gas tax collection has been popular throughout the nation as a temporary solution to the inflationary nightmare that is 2022 gas prices.

It's more than just pain at the pump.  Despite the United States being energy independent when President Biden assumed office, we are now paying record prices for petroleum products that are contributing to near-record inflation once termed by his administration as only "transitory."  The mere fact that the President is now blaming Putin for the energy crisis and begging Saudi Arabia and Venezuela for gasoline illustrates his administration's extreme naiveite and disjointed energy and national security strategy.  Even if his administration desires to go "green," his means to achieve that goal is both foolhardy, disjointed, and dangerous to our national security.

How can we fix things if you don't get involved?  Joe Biden and his puppet masters want to destroy fossil fuel use in the name of an unproven theory called "man-made global climate change."  Not only do they refuse to admit their guilt for the current crisis, but they don't seem to understand the unintended consequences of their actions.  Or the backlash in future elections.  In order to solve a problem, one must first understand complicity.  There is no redemption if there is no admission of guilt, and then remorseful contrition.  Every problem has a solution, and every error can be rectified.  Redemption would be signaled by gas prices returning to Trump-era levels, including energy independence.  Since the party in power doesn't understand cause and effect, or the Democrats intentionally sabotaged a successful economy, redemption won't grace our nation until the culprits have all left Washington.  On both sides of the aisle.

Mainstream media urging voters to ignore inflation, focus on imperiled democracy.  Recent surveys have consistently shown that runaway inflation is the most troubling issue to most Americans.  This has led many talking heads and media outlets to express deep concern that historically high gas prices and generally rampant inflation might lead to significant Democrat losses in the upcoming midterm elections.  The horror!  To help prevent this, Washington Post columnist Catherine Rampell, for example, informed her readers that it was a "wild fantasy" to believe that the GOP could lower gas prices.  Furthermore, in a Sunday opinion piece, she condescendingly warned voters to "think carefully about what they'll get if they cast their ballot based on gas prices."  By that she means evil Republicans who are pro-life and pro-Bill of Rights.  Rampell added, "The president does not have some super-secret special dial on his desk that can adjust gas prices, but many voters believe otherwise."  Yes, Catherine, I'm sure many voters think Biden has a "dial" on his desk that can adjust gas prices in real time.  (Not that he'd know how to use it if he did.)  In reality, most voters know that Biden killed the Keystone Pipeline on Day One, has rescinded or denied drilling leases, and has made it clear he is an implacable foe of the fossil fuel industry in every shape and form.  That is why gas prices have skyrocketed since he took office, and that is why voters are rightfully angry.

On gas prices, Biden is in Fantasyland.  Speaking to the American people from his office deep in the bowels of Fantasyland, President Joe Biden (typical government-enriched millionaire Democrat) gurgled his solution to the over 48% — and counting — zooming increase in the price of gas since Biden became president. [...] When it was first discussed a few months ago, a study at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania estimated that "[a] federal gas holiday from March to December would lower average per capita gasoline spending by $47."  Ok, $47 is $47, even in these Bidenflationary times, but this minuscule temporary so-called reduction screams publicity stunt rather than real solution.

Finding our Way Through a Wilderness of Mirrors.  In the face of extreme inflation in energy costs, Joe Biden goes hat in hand seeking more oil from repressive Venezuela and Saudi Arabia, while continuing to actually penalize domestic oil and gas producers, who would otherwise quickly increase production — a policy and regulatory mix that if reversed would both create jobs and alleviate American gasoline supplies and prices.

Biden Calls Gas Tax Holiday a 'Big Help.' Obama Called It a 'Gimmick.'  President Joe Biden has called on Congress to hit the brakes and provide "big help" to Americans through a federal gas tax holiday for the next three months.  But some Democrats, including former president Barack Obama, have expressed the move is merely grasping for an advantage in an election year.  On the campaign trail in 2008, Obama said of the tax suspension, "We're arguing over a gimmick that would save you half a tank of gas over the course of the entire summer so that everyone in Washington can pat themselves on the back and say they did something.  Well, let me tell you, this isn't an idea designed to get you through the summer, it's designed to get them through an election."

Biden Adviser Sperling:  Powell Didn't Contradict Biden, Gas Prices 'Due Solely to' Russia.  On Wednesday's broadcast of CNN's "The Lead," Senior Adviser to President Joe Biden Gene Sperling said that Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's comments that high inflation pre-dates Russia's invasion of Ukraine don't contradict President Joe Biden's rhetoric and "the reason we've seen the gas price rise, both here and really around the world, is due to Putin."  Sperling responded to Powell's comments by saying, "Jake, that is clearly correct, and that is not contradictory with anything this president said."

California Decides This Is a Great Time to Raise the State Gasoline Tax.  This morning [6/20/2022], the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline has dropped a few pennies from the all-time high on June 14; on that date it was $5.01, and this morning it is $4.98, according to the American Automobile Association.  Certain states are much higher; in California, the statewide average price for a gallon of regular gasoline is $6.39.  Naturally, at the end of the month, the state government of California will increase the state tax on gasoline, from 51 cents per gallon to 53.9 cents.  California has the highest taxes on gasoline.  This is separate from the environmental regulations that make gasoline more expensive in California:  ["]California's reformulated gasoline program is more stringent than that of the federal government — California gasoline must use a different formula in warmer weather in an effort to curb pollution.  As a result, gas prices in the state are typically higher and more variable because few supply sources outside of the state are able to offer California's unique blend of gasoline.["] [...] As the recent supply chain crisis helped illustrate, more than 40 percent of the container cargo in the U.S. passes through California ports.  Meaning that everything you buy that passes through California is influenced by the price of diesel fuel in the Golden State.

Biden's energy hypocrisy.  Joe Biden promised on the campaign trail in 2020 that he would "transition away from the oil industry," convert to 100 percent "clean" energy by 2035, and "end fossil fuels."  Shortly after taking office, he started to make good on this pledge by suspending all new gas and oil leases on federal property and ending the Keystone XL pipeline.  Now, faced with gas prices at a record high $5 per gallon and runaway inflation — aka the consequences of his own actions — Biden is looking for an off-ramp.

Five Reasons to Impeach Joe Biden.  [#3] Biden is waging war on the energy sector to deliberately destroy the American economy.  Under Trump, the U.S. became energy independent.  Biden reversed Trump's sensible energy policies, causing the worst inflation in 40 years, runaway gas, food, and heating prices, and looming recession.  As far back as the 2020 election, Biden has boasted about his intention to destroy our reliance on fossil fuels.  "Harvesting of fuel was cut back drastically," said Bill O'Reilly, "and that caused the price of gas at the pump to rise, and that lit inflation, as all other goods went up in price as well because they are trucked to the stores and businesses.  That is all on President Biden."  Now millions of Americans can't afford to put food on the table.  Biden's decisions are informed by his surrender to the extreme left wing of the Democratic Party.  Their plan is to destroy the American economy in order to bring about a Marxist, socialist tyranny controlled by the unaccountable bureaucrats of the Deep State.  We cannot tolerate a president who seeks the transformation of America into another Venezuela.

Chuck Todd Pretends Not to Know Things.  In a segment intended to protect the Biden regime from the outcome of their energy policies, the latest distraction is to claim gas prices are not high when "adjusted" to account for the inflation that Joe Biden has created.  Due to the scale of impact from Biden energy policy there is no real way to obfuscate at a level that hides reality.  However, Chuck Todd from NBC gives it a try.  Comrades, if you can fill up your car with 2010 gas prices, paid for with 2010 wages[,] Then surely you can fill up your pantry with 2010 food prices[,] while living in your house with 2010 mortgage or rent prices... or something.  [Video clip]

Your Government is trying to kill you & Depopulate the planet.  [Scroll down]  In the UK, the cost to fill up an average family car with petrol recently surpassed £100.  The public is being told this is being driven by war in Ukraine and moves to reduce Europe's dependence on Russian oil.  But if this were true, how do you explain this —  [Chart]  As of June 2022, the price of crude oil per barrel is $120.67, and the average price per litre of petrol in the UK is £1.85p.  But back in June 2008, the price of crude oil per barrel was $187.04, and the average price per litre of petrol in the UK was £1.04p.  So as things stand, the price per barrel of crude oil is 35.4% down from the price in 2008, but the price per litre of fuel is 78% up from 2008.  Can you see now how you are being lied to when the Government and mainstream media tell you that these rising costs are due to the war in Ukraine?

Regulation, COVID-19, and giant explosions:  Why the US is short on oil refining.  President Joe Biden is asking oil refiners to manufacture more fuel and help him tame record gas prices, but the shortage of refining capacity holding them back was years in the making and can't be quickly remedied.  Biden's letters to seven of the nation's largest refinery operators solicited more output from the industry while criticizing refiners for overseeing high profit margins.  However, a look at the scale of refinery losses over the past three years, which have been largely driven by the toll of the COVID-19 pandemic, regulations, and investor preferences for fossil fuel alternatives, illustrate just why industry leaders are warning there's no easy fix.

The Democrats' Capricious Energy Policy Has Been a Disaster.  Democrats have spent decades warning that the United States must stop using the most efficient and affordable energy sources or it will be consumed by heat waves, fireballs and cataclysmic weather events.  Every flood, every hurricane — every natural event, really — is now blamed on climate change.  We have burdened our children with an irrational dread over their future.  Then again, many in The Cult of Malthus won't even have children.  So, why, if we're on the precipice of this apocalypse, if saving the planet trumps every other concern, is President Joe Biden begging everyone to drill?  On the days Democrats aren't blaming Vladimir Putin for rising gas prices (a cost the president not long ago argued was worth paying for "freedom"), they're blaming oil companies for profiteering.  Wednesday, as the national average hit $5.014 (nearly $2 higher than last year), Biden sent letters to refining companies threatening to once again abuse his executive powers if they do not immediately alleviate high prices — a political appeal to the imaginary "greedflation."

Major Recession [is the] Only Realistic Way for Gasoline Price to Drop:  Experts.  The only thing that could curb the current record-high gasoline prices would be a major drop in demand, i.e. a recession, according to several experts.  Theoretically, a major shift in U.S. foreign and energy policy could make a difference too, but nobody seems to realistically expect that to happen.  Gas prices have particularly pained Americans, climbing in recent months to more than $5 a gallon.  Some experts even consider it the driver of price inflation, which hit a four-decade high of 8.6 percent in May.  The price hike has been caused by several factors piling up, including currency inflation, anti-carbon policy moves, misjudging the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.  "We've made a lot of policy errors in this country and overseas to put us in this situation and it's not going to be easily fixed," commented Phil Flynn, senior analyst with The Price Futures Group.  "If we start to reverse some of those policies, the market can start pricing in a better future."

Peter Doocy Nails WH in a Lie and Complete Contradiction on Inflation, Oil Production.  At this point, our gas prices are skyrocketing to the moon, while Joe Biden and his team seem to have no idea what they are doing from one minute to the next, as their positions contradict each other.  Biden sent energy companies a threatening letter demanding that they produce more oil and suggesting consequences if they did not comply.  Shades of a communist government.  Exxon responded back, essentially saying that he had no idea what he was talking about — it was a very polite, "you're full of it."  They said that they kept producing through the pandemic, even though they lost billions in the process.  But that the real answer is consistent government policy that allows for stable growth — the opposite of what Biden has done.

Gas prices officially smash EIA record, rise to $5.107 a gallon.  Maybe this is the "historic" part of Karine Jean-Pierre's claim to CNN's Don Lemon last night that Joe Biden has put America in a good economic position.  "Historic" certainly describes the position American consumers face when pumping gas into their vehicles.  If yesterday's data from AAA and the Washington Post made the record unofficially official, the EIA's official finding confirms that gas prices not only hit a new record, but also rose thirteen cents in a week to land at $5.107 per gallon. [...] Even in December, as the winds of war began first stirring in Ukraine, the Biden administration predicted that gas prices would remain stable in 2022 at $2.88 per gallon: [...] Even apart from the war in Ukraine, which US intel had already started to warn would unfold, this prediction was absurd.  How did Biden and his team predict gas prices would fall while the economy expanded and Biden kept obstacles in place for new drilling and refining?

Here's What the Biden Admin Claimed Gas Prices Would Be This Year.  In November 2020, experts came out of the woodwork to dismiss the idea that gas prices would skyrocket under Joe Biden as conservatives predicted.  "A dubious meme has emerged online in conservative circles:  The price of gasoline will spike because Joe Biden is taking office," the Washington Post reported in November 2020.  The meme featured a gas station with gas prices of over $5.00/gal, but the author dismissed the meme, insisting that "although a president's actions — including Biden's climate policies — can nudge the price of oil, the effect is marginal at best, experts say."

Is Biden Purposely Raising Gas Prices to Fuel His Green Agenda?  The national gas average hit a new record of $5.00 a gallon this week, and it doesn't look like prices are going to fall anytime soon.  Americans are frustrated with President Joe Biden's lies about the economy, and many believe he is at fault for their wallets shrinking.  A new poll conducted by the Trafalgar Group found that over 53 percent of people "believe the Biden administration is intentionally letting gas prices rise to make Americans use less fossil fuels."  While 56 percent of voters agreed that the high fuel prices is Biden's fault.  Gas prices have nearly doubled since Biden took office just over a year ago when the national average price was just $2.39.

Your Pain at the Pump Is Biden's Plan.  June 9, 2022 — a day that will live in infamy.  That's the day that the national average for gasoline officially broke $5.00 a gallon.  And, yes, Joe Biden did that!  Gas prices have more than doubled since Biden took office, and they have been breaking new records day after day after day.  Some California gas stations are approaching $10 a gallon.  Sadly, your pain at the pump is only going to get worse.  But here's what you must understand and what you must help your friends and family members to understand:  Your pain at the pump isn't an accident.  It's all part of Joe Biden's plan.  High energy prices are the predictable, desired, and deliberate result of the Democrat jihad against the American energy industry.  They are an essential element of their "climate change" agenda.

Biden threatens oil companies over record gas prices, tells them to pay their taxes.  President Joe Biden said Exxon made 'more money than God last year' as he attacked oil companies for not 'drilling' or paying taxes while gas prices are breaking records in a speech Thursday where he continued to blame 'Putin's price hike' on 41-year high inflation.  Biden spoke at the Port of Los Angeles just hours after a report was released showing annual inflation in the US has jumped 8.6 percent, blowing past expectations and dashing any hopes that consumer price increases had peaked.  'Today's inflation report confirms what Americans already know — Putin's price hike is hitting America hard,' he said and conceded that prices need to come down further.

'Gas Prices Too High': Police Told To 'Respond' To 911 Calls By Phone.  Due to the soaring price of gas in America, police departments in several Michigan counties have told officers to manage "whatever calls are possible" over the phone as they have already exceeded their fuel budget for 2022 in June. [...][ The American Automobile Association (AAA) has reported that Michigan had seen one of the highest average weekly gas-price surges in the country.  Prices were previously climbing weekly but are now increasing on a daily basis.  On Tuesday, a gallon of regular fuel cost $5.21, up from $5.17 the day before.  A week ago, it was $4.70 a gallon.  Last year, gas prices were $3.01 a gallon, marking a ridiculous 73% increase.

The Biden administration's feckless diesel policy.  Ordinary Americans are feeling the pain from high gas prices but the real problem is skyrocketing diesel prices and, helped along by looming shortages.  Nevertheless, the Biden administration is doing nothing to solve the problem.  How can Biden and his buddies on the left not realize that America runs on diesel fuel in the over-the-road trucks that deliver our food, pharmaceuticals, building supplies, and even the gasoline and diesel delivered to filling stations?  The short answer is that they do realize the harm that they are doing to the economy but they do not care.  Perhaps thanks to Hunter Biden's business plans, Joe Biden plans to force Chinese solar panel power on Americans, whether they want it — or can afford it — or not.  There's no room in that plan for addressing the high fuel costs that the "great unwashed" are enduring.  Biden and his administration may avert their eyes but, when the price of diesel fuel soars, trucking and material supply companies will pass those rising costs directly to consumers in the form of rising food prices.

Flashback: When 'Experts' Claimed Gas Prices Would NOT Skyrocket Under Biden.  No one can say we didn't warn you that gas prices would go up under Joe Biden.  President Trump predicted it on the campaign trail.  "It's an incredible thing that's happened over the last few years, a lot of great things, and you're paying, what, $2 a gallon for your gasoline?  That's okay," he said.  "You know what that's like?  That's like a tax cut," he pointed out.  "That's bigger than a tax cut.  If Biden got in, you'd be paying $7, $8, $9.  Then they'd say, 'Get rid of your car.'"  And boy, was he right.  As gas prices hit historic highs, Democrats have been using that in a push for people to buy electric cars that are typically in the range of $60,000.

$5 gas, 32% jump in AAA gas-stranded calls, and Michigan county rations 911 responses.  If you thought that Joe Biden's energy policy only figuratively left Americans in the lurch, think again.  Gas prices have risen so high and so fast that drivers have become much more reluctant to fill up their tanks, the Washington Post reports this morning.  The number of roadside-assistance calls to AAA from drivers out of fuel have skyrocketed 32%, with 50,000 such calls in April alone.

Biden Continues Obama's 'Fundamental Transformation' of America.  Most Americans probably thought Obama was simply predicting his historic election as the first Black president of the United States.  But he had far more sweeping changes in mind for America, including the destruction of the oil and gas industries in the name of "climate change" and absorbing millions of illegal immigrants as a form of wealth redistribution writ large.  Once elected, Obama got right to work.  Steven Chu, Obama's energy secretary, had announced in September 2008, "Somehow, we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe," which was $9 to $10 a gallon.  In 2010, the Obama administration canceled offshore oil drilling leases in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.  In 2011, a federal court held the moratorium on drilling to be illegal and ordered the leases to be reinstated.  But Obama's Department of the Interior refused to obey the court order and was held in contempt of court.  Policy analysts writing at the time pointed out that the moratorium was not only damaging the economies of the gulf states but the American economy overall, sending gas prices (and therefore the prices of other goods) higher.  Sound familiar?

The national average for gas just hit $4.92.  People who don't understand economics think gas stations are making bank on this price increase.  There was an issue loading this tweet.  Click here to troubleshoot.  Gas stations make pennies (like literally several pennies) on each gallon sold.  There's a reason most of them can't afford time or manpower to clean those bathrooms.  No, my woke friends, this has absolutely everything to do with government corruption and market principles.  You want Big Oil to stop raking in insane amounts of dough?  Stop artificially constricting the market and killing competition by starving the American energy industry.  That's entirely on Biden.

Biden Cabinet Members Admit There is Nothing More That Can Be Done to Lower Gas Prices.  It looks like the Biden administration has quit pretending about their energy policy.  Joe Biden's Commence Secretary Gina Raimondo and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen both threw in the towel on gas prices today saying, "there isn't very much more to be done."  The high gas prices are an intended feature of the climate change ideologues controlling U.S. energy policy.  [Video clip]

Democrat senator says it doesn't matter — to her — how high gas prices are.  Just two years ago, when Trump was in office, the United States was energy self-sufficient, and gas was $1.99 a gallon.  Were the oil companies so much more beneficent under Trump?  "International markets" don't matter when your nation is energy independent, Debbie.  Now, thanks to Democrats and their policies, we are dependent on the whims of nations like Russia and Venezuela that despise us.  President Biden canceled the Keystone XL pipeline the day he took office.  He has since vetoed other pipelines, rescinded oil and gas leases, banned drilling in ANWR, and come down hard on fracking.  These are the reasons for skyrocketing gasoline prices in America.  It doesn't matter what Russia does or who is at war, etc., if we are energy independent.  The Biden administration has deliberately prevented America's oil, coal, and gas companies from operating efficiently and producing low-cost energy the way they once did so recently and well.  And then blamed America's oil, coal, and gas companies for the resulting higher energy prices.

The Biden team seems to have given up on doing anything about inflation and high gas prices.  Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has changed her tune from calling it "transitory" to saying that she expects it to persist for a while. [...] They don't actually want to do anything because it would interfere in that "incredible transition" Joe Biden was talking about to a fossil-free environment.  Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) sums up the Biden Administration's response, as only he can.  It's hard to beat Kennedy when it comes to the folksy quotable.  "When I feel inadequate, I just look around.  On really bad days, I see liars, and frauds, and meatheads in every direction."  Kennedy said this is what the Biden-Harris D.C. has given the American people.

Biden Administration Declare National Emergency for Clean Energy Production.  Joe Biden shut down domestic energy development, cancelled pipelines, cancelled leases, retracted the ability to drill in ANWAR (Alaska), and triggered massive new regulatory approaches from the Commerce, Interior and Energy departments.  The resulting increases in oil, natural gas, gasoline, electricity and energy costs overall — which became fuel on the furnace of inflation, have now created the energy crisis that Joe Biden is declaring a national emergency to solve.  Biden himself has no idea what is happening; he is simply following the instructions of the policy operators who are in control of the administration.  It is the people in the circles of Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and the climate change activists within the DC bureaucracy that are executing the nuts-and-bolts shifts.  They tell Biden what to do, and he cluelessly does it.  We are the people who end up paying the price for their effort.

NBC Report, National Avg Gasoline Prices Likely to Reach $6/Gal by Labor Day.  Surprisingly this NBC report admits the obvious.  The national price of a gallon of unleaded regular gasoline is projected to hit $6.00/gal by Labor Day.  Some states like California are already exceeding that amount, with reports that some CA gas stations are near $10/gal.  [Video clip]

White House:  Frustrated Americans Should Remember That Gas Prices Are Even Higher in Other Countries.  The White House on Monday [6/6/2022] reminded Americans frustrated with record-high gas prices that the cost of fuel was even higher in foreign countries.  White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre responded to questions about high gas prices during the daily briefing by noting it was "really important" that people understood that prices were higher across the globe.  She noted that gas prices in the European Union were $8.15 a gallon, prices in Germany were $8.88 a gallon, and prices in Canada were $6.23 a gallon.

9 states, DC now suffer average gas prices above $5 a gallon — and all but two are run by Democrats.  Nine states and the District of Columbia start the week with gasoline prices above $5 a gallon, an unseemly record that is causing political repercussions.  Only two of the states, Arizona and Alaska, are run by Republican chief executives.  The rest are run by Democrat governors and one mayor, according to the latest survey by the AAA motor club.

This country doesn't need solar panels.  It needs petroleum.  QmlkZW4gaXMgYW4gaWRpb3Qh
Biden will trigger DPA, waive tariffs for two years on solar panels to boost productions.  President Biden will invoke the Defense Production Act to spur domestic production of clean energy technology and order a two-year tariff exemption on solar panels imported from Southeast Asian countries in a bid to tackle rising energy prices.  The move will accelerate production of solar panel parts, building insulation, heat pumps that more efficiently regulate the climate in buildings and equipment for making fuel cells and other electricity-generated fuels.  Mr. Biden also will waive tariffs on solar panels imported from four Southeast Asian countries in a move to nudge Americans toward green alternatives amid rising energy prices.

Diesel Once Again Racing Higher Than Prices For Crude Oil, Gasoline.  Diesel prices have wrapped up four days of trading in which they are finishing far higher than they were at the start of the business week and have moved up faster than crude and gasoline prices.  It's a worrisome trend for consumers because it signals that once again, diesel is moving at a pace more bullish than that of the petroleum market as a whole.  That it already has done so in recent months is evident in the gasoline-diesel spread seen on price signs outside of retail outlets, and it has a complex set of causes.  Ultra low sulfur diesel for July delivery settled on the CME commodity exchange Friday at $4.2803 a gallon.  That marked a gain of 7.19 cents per gallon on the day for an increase of 1.71%. It traded as high as $4.3250.  For the week — which was just four trading days, given the Memorial Day holiday — July ULSD rose 9.6%, posting a gain of 37.5 cents per gallon.

The Cost Of Gas Has More Than Doubled Since The Day Biden Took Office.  The average cost of a gallon of gasoline has officially more than doubled since the day President Joe Biden took office on January 21, 2021.  On Saturday [6/4/2022], AAA reported that the average price of a gallon of gasoline was $4.819. On the day that Biden was inaugurated, gas cost motorists just $2.393 per gallon on average. [...] On Wednesday, The Daily Wire reported that Biden suggested the high cost of gasoline is here to stay for quite some time, as he lamented to reporters that it is "not likely" he can simply "click a switch" to bring down prices.  Biden made his remarks regarding gasoline from the White House-crafted fake Oval Office set — which he reportedly uses so that he can stay on a script from a teleprompter.

You'll fill up more often, because ethanol yields less mileage per gallon.
Biden administration raises amount of ethanol that must be blended with gas.  The Biden administration on Friday set new requirements that increase the amount of ethanol that must be blended into the nation's gasoline supply but reduce previous ethanol-blending requirements due to a plunge in fuel demand during the coronavirus pandemic.  The Environmental Protection Agency said it would set the 2022 levels for corn-based ethanol blended into gasoline at 15 billion gallons.  But even as the new rules increased future ethanol requirements, the EPA retroactively reduced levels for 2020 by 2.5 billion gallons and by 1.2 billion gallons for 2021, reflecting the lower amount of ethanol produced and decreased sales of gasoline during a period when the virus led to a drop in driving.

Energy Secy Sees Silver Lining In High Gas Prices.  A representative of the Biden administration gave an update on its so-called Green Agenda.  Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm (D) claimed high gas prices will justify a transition into supposedly clean energy.  On Thursday [6/2/2022], Granholm spoke at the Hillsborough River dam in Tampa to promote hydroelectric energy.  During her speech, the former Michigan Governor laid out the Biden administration's plan to replace fossil fuel. [...] However, the US relies on fossil fuels for more than 80 percent of its energy consumption.

Policymaker Push Against Fossil Fuels Means "Will Never Be Another Refinery Built In US"; Chevron CEO Says.  US gas prices at the pump have never been higher than they are right now, despite crude prices being below previous highs  [Chart]  In fact, refining margins (as indicated by the so-called 3-2-1 crack spread) have exploded to historically high levels in recent weeks...  [Chart]  ..amid lower product supplies from Russia and China and surging demand for gasoline and diesel (driving the barrel equivalent prices for jet fuel, gasoline, and diesel notably higher than crude)...  [Chart]  However, to take advantage of this is not easy, as Chevron CEO Mike Wirth noted in an interview with Bloomberg TV, adding refining capacity is not easy, especially in the current environment.

Gas prices leap to nearly $10 a gallon at California station after smashing record highs nationally.  Gas prices have surged to nearly $10 a gallon in parts of California as costs continue to climb amid unprecedented inflation.  Overnight Friday, gas prices hit a national average of $4.76, according to AAA — an increase of nearly 20 cents in the span of a week.  Along the US West Coast, the pain at the pump is even worse, with Californians now seeing an also previously unseen average of $6.24 cents.  The state saw gas costs surpass the $6 mark for the first time in history over the weekend.

Our Economic Misery Isn't an Accident, It's the Plan.  There are predictions that gas will hit $6 a gallon nationwide by the summer because the Biden administration has worked hard to raise energy prices and create artificial shortages.  Biden's people just got through once again sabotaging oil and gas leases because they want higher energy prices.  $6 a gallon is not the result of political inattentiveness, that is the plan.  Inflation isn't an unintentional accident either.  The Left spends like drunken sailors to feed its agenda, but also because spending is an innate good in the Cloward-Piven sense.  Devalue money and you wipe out the middle class.  Then you can reboot the economy on new terms.  Biden wasted trillions of dollars and is busy blaming "corporate greed" for high prices. [...] The utterly blatant goal is to eliminate millions of cars by making it too expensive to drive.  And Democrats are working on this on multiple ends, from environmental and safety regulations, to raising gas prices, to artificial car shortages.  Even those who can afford an electric car or get a government subsidized one will be kept off the road by high power rates.

IEA Warns of Possible Gasoline Shortages and Need for Rationing.  Does anyone remember during the Jimmy Carter era when odd/even days on license plates to get gas?  Well, if the International Energy Agency is accurate, and the issue extends into the U.S. as predicted by many industry insiders, we could very well see gasoline rationing once again.  Beyond all the obfuscation, denial and continual pretending, the reason for the gasoline shortages is related to this forcible shift in energy policy that is underway in Europe and the United States.  It's not a shortage of oil, it's the new era where the Green New Deal is the policy priority.  The people within the Biden administration do not care about the consequences, Biden is pushed in front of the camera as a useful idiot to take the blame.

Biden's Energy Inflation Is No Accident.  In a press conference last week following his meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Japan, President Biden praised the escalating price of gasoline as a positive step toward realizing the Democratic Party's dream of enacting the Green New Deal.  "[When] it comes to the gas prices, we're going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it is over, we will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over," Biden said.  Biden followed these comments by giving lip service to the millions of Americans forced to spend an increasing percentage of their disposable income on putting gasoline in their vehicles.  According to a study recently by economist Dr. Edward Yardeni, American families are now paying what amounts to $5,000 per year to put gasoline in their automobiles, a painful increase from just $2,800 a year ago.

These 10 States Had The Most Expensive Gas Over Memorial Day Weekend.  As the national average for gasoline rose to a new record high of $4.62 a gallon on Memorial Day, prices varied throughout the country affecting drivers on one of the busiest travel days of the year.  According to AAA, gas prices went up one penny since Sunday and gasoline is now 44 cents more expensive than it was just last month, CNN reported.  On Memorial Day of 2021, gas prices averaged $3.05 a gallon, according to AAA.  The Biden administration has continued to face criticism over the record-breaking gas prices and has been blaming the increase in price on the war in Ukraine.  AAA also said around 34.9 million people are traveling by car for Memorial Day weekend, which is 4.6% higher than in 2020, CNN noted.

Every Time Biden Drained Strategic Oil Reserves, Prices Ended Up Higher.  Oil and gasoline prices increased after each of President Joe Biden's three Strategic Petroleum Reserve releases which were designed to curb consumer costs.  Biden ordered a 50-million-barrel SPR release in November, a 30-million-barrel release on March 1 and a 180-million-barrel release on March 31, saying the "historic" actions would ease pressure felt by Americans at the pump.  But marketplace and government data analyzed by The Daily Caller News Foundation paint a different picture.  On Tuesday, the average price of gasoline reached an all-time high of $4.59 per gallon, according to AAA data, while domestic oil prices remained above $110 a barrel, far higher than their 2015-2021 average of $53.15 per barrel and 2021 average of $68.14 a barrel, Federal Reserve data showed.

Biden Raising Gas Prices on Purpose, Top Republican Says.  A top Republican said on Friday [5/27/2022] that President Joe Biden is raising gas prices on purpose.  Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) made the remarks when he was asked on Fox Business's "Wall Street with Maria Bartiromo" to respond to Biden's recent comments where he said raising gas prices is part of "an incredible transition."  "I think that's the main takeaway from his statement, that he is telling the American people they're doing this to you on purpose, that the transition period is being imposed by policies coming from the Biden administration," he said.  "This is a conscious effort by the Biden administration to destroy fossil fuel production in the United States, to get away from fossil fuels, and you're living this experience.  This is an irresponsible shutting down of oil and gas production in America, making us more dependent on oil and gas from bad actors, and it's destroying the American economy," he continued.

Biden Admin's Favorite Gas Talking Point Is False, Economists Say.  The Biden administration has insisted that record-breaking gasoline prices are solely caused by Russia's war in Ukraine.  The claim is false and "laughable," economists told the Daily Caller.  The White House often describes higher prices at the pump as "Putin's price hike," but prices were going up steadily after President Joe Biden took office.  The price already increased by 55%, rising from a U.S. average of $2.11 when Biden took office to $3.51 the day before Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to invade Ukraine, according to Forbes.  "The 'Putin's price hike' is laughable — and you can tell because no matter how hard they try to advance this particular little bit of propaganda absolutely nobody but White House spokespeople use the word," John Cochrane, a Hoover Institution senior fellow, told the Caller.

Rising cost of fuel is the price we pay for their 'green' Utopia.  Speaking at a press conference in Japan, Joe Biden said, "When it comes to the gas prices, we're going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it's over, we'll be stronger and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over."  Any slightly observant person recognizes Biden is suffering serious mental decline — he's a stooge!  Of the many corrupt interests he serves, the 'green' agenda may be the most obnoxious — the "solutions" are laughable. [...] Our pain at the pump is intentional — it's simply the means to Biden's masters' end for a 'green' agenda — even if the "transition" requires "despotic inroads" — it's worth it for them.

A Cabinency of Dunces.  We are in a fuel price spiral that is destroying the middle class.  Yet when Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was asked about plans to lower gas prices, she laughed off the idea as "hilarious."  Later Granholm preposterously claimed, "It is not the administration policies that have affected supply and demand."  Apparently haranguing those who finance fossil fuel production, canceling the Keystone Pipeline, suspending new federal oil and gas leases, and stopping production in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge all had nothing to do with high fuel prices. [...] In Senate testimony Secretary of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland refused to explain why her department is slow walking federal oil and gas leases at a time when Americans are paying between $5 and $6 a gallon for gas.  Haaland was unable to provide simple answers about when new leases will result in more supplies of oil and gas.  Her panicked aides slid talking points to her — given that in deer-in-the-headlights fashion, she seemed incapable of providing senators with basic information about U.S. energy production on federal lands.

A Dark Age in America.  Nationally, gas averages around $4.30 per gallon — $1.37 more than last year.  Anyone working an hourly job at $15.00 must work almost five post-tax hours to buy ten gallons of gas.  In California, the average price for regular gas is $5.22.  In Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, prices are at or near $6.00 ($1.58 higher than May 2021).  In those areas, $15 requires more than eight hours of work for ten gallons of gas.  Higher gas prices are a direct result of Joe Biden's day-one E.O. that shut down American drilling, production, and the XL Pipeline.  Instead of lifting those sanctions to help Americans, he and his administration refuse.  They cannot allow domestic drilling and production because it interferes with their Green Agenda.  They lie about it.  "We've issued more leases!" — ignoring the fact that without permits and a rollback of onerous environmental regulations, those leases aren't worth a dime.  Without permits, producers can't drill.  With the regulations, the cost of compliance is prohibitive.  There is no profit in drilling.  Under Biden, trans-shipping is the only way to transfer oil to a refinery.  With diesel hovering around $6.00 per gallon, that cost to truckers is extraordinary, which is why food prices are so high.

Illinois Gas Station Owners Sue Over Having to Post Democrat Propaganda.  Gas prices are high everywhere.  They've risen so much that several states have suspended their gas tax, while others are considering doing so.  And then there's Illinois.  The Democrat-dominated legislature in Illinois is so magnanimous that they're not suspending their gas tax, but they're delaying increasing it until the end of the year. [...] Not only that but the Democrats also required gas stations to post signs that are "clearly visible" — four by eight inches or larger, with a bold font — reading "As of July 1, 2022, the State of Illinois has suspended the inflation adjustment to the motor fuel tax through December 31, 2022."  No big deal, right?  Well, if a station refuses, the owner faces a fine of $500 a day.  And the signs are clearly meant to be propaganda that screams, "LOOK AT WHAT DEMOCRATS ARE DOING FOR YOU PEONS!"

Biden Wants To Drain Another Emergency Fuel Supply.  President Joe Biden is mulling taking action to release federal diesel stockpiles in an attempt to curb the worsening supply shortage of the key fuel in New England, CNN reported Monday [5/23/2022].  Biden recently asked officials to begin preparing a plan to order a release of fuel from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve (NEHHOR), a government stockpile of ultra-low-sulfur diesel last tapped in 2012 during Hurricane Sandy, a senior administration official told CNN.  The move reportedly reflected the president and White House officials' concerns about surging diesel fuel prices and declining private-sector inventories in the northeast.  "The system is definitely under strain," the senior administration official told CNN.  "We think this looks like the exact circumstance where consideration of the release should be done and that's what the president has directed," the official continued.

Biden Blocks Oil Drilling On Millions Of Acres Of Land As Gas Hits $4.13 Per Gallon.  The Biden administration reversed a Trump-era policy Monday [4/25/2022] that massively expanded the area available for fossil fuel leasing even as gasoline prices remained near an all-time high.  The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued a record of decision, reducing the land available for energy leasing in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A) to its level set in 2013.  In June 2020, former Interior Secretary David Bernhardt finalized a decision allowing 18.6 million acres, or 82%, of the NPR-A's subsurface estate to be open for oil and gas leasing.

Biden Admits U.S. Gas Prices [are being] Driven by [an] Incredible Transition Away from Fossil Fuels.  During a joint press conference held in Tokyo, Japan, held by Joe Biden and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Biden was asked about the financial pain Americans are feeling with massive increases in gasoline prices.  Outlining how his energy policy is directly related to the gasoline price, Joe Biden said:  "Here's the situation.  And when it comes to the gas prices, we're going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it's over, we'll be stronger and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over."  Yet again proving the intent of the administration is to implement the 'Green New Deal' through executive action.

Biden praises high gas prices as part of 'incredible transition'.  Out of touch as ever, President Biden celebrated record-high gas prices Monday, gushing that the pump pain was part of "an incredible transition" of the US economy away from fossil fuels.  "[When] it comes to the gas prices, we're going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it's over, we'll be stronger and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over," Biden said during a press conference in Japan following his meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.  The president then insisted that his administration's actions, rather than increasing the price of gas, had actually been able to "keep it from getting worse — and it's bad."  Only then did Biden pay lip service to millions of Americans who have found themselves spending thousands of extra dollars to fuel up their vehicles.

The Collapse of Trust.  Looking at the issues facing our country, there seems to be something pernicious for which we don't seem to know what to do to correct the downward trajectory that is shaking us to our core. [... For example,] The sky-high cost of energy:  Why do we have a shortage of energy and are we being told the truth?  The salient question every American should ask is, have they been deceived by the President?  Old "circle back" Psaki was asked endlessly why we are producing less energy, even today?  Pre-Pandemic, under Trump, the U.S. was producing a record 13 million barrels of oil per day and we were even exporting it.  Production fell 3 million BPD due to slackened demand.  Production is now back up to 11.6 [million] BPD but is not accelerating.  Why?  Could the underlying reason be the simple truth that Biden articulated in 2019 "I want you to look at my eyes.  I guarantee you.  I guarantee you.  We're going to end fossil fuel."  Is he just keeping his promise and lying to the rest of us?  My take is simple; he wants high prices and cares not about the damage to the American family and its position in the world to support his Green New Deal initiatives.

It Sure Looks Like Joe Biden Is Trying to Purposely Destroy the Country.  [Scroll down]  [I]t sure seems like Biden is purposely trying to destroy the country.  For example, in the midst of exploding gas prices and a diesel shortage, which exacerbates inflation because products have to be transported, the administration decided to cancel more oil and gas leases.  Again, in the middle of record gas and diesel prices, which are helping to make already out of control inflation even worse, the Biden administration is canceling leases, almost certainly as part of its delusional, green-energy strategy.  Where does that leave you?  It leaves you suffering, and if Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm's recent testimony is any indication, they don't care one bit.  Go buy an electric car, they continue to scream, even as they aren't available and the costs for them are astronomical.

That which cannot be said.  The Senate Interior Committee held a hearing yesterday to examine the Biden administration's fiscal year 2023 budget request for the Department of the Interior.  The committee has posted video of the hearing here.  The hearing presented an opportune moment for Interior Secretary Deborah Haaland to let her light shine and she did not disappoint.  In the clip below Secretary Haaland avoids answering the question whether gas prices are too high.  [Tweet with video clip]

Sen. Sullivan Lists What Biden Has Done Just in Last Three Weeks to Block Oil Production.  I've previously reported how Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) took Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm apart when she tried to blame rising gas prices on Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.  Then there was Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) who exposed an insane announcement from the Interior Department about stopping all new oil leases.  Interior Secretary Haaland also refused to tell Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) whether it was environmentally better to produce oil in Venezuela or the U.S. — his point being if this is about what's better for the environment, you'd want to produce it here.  Yet the Biden team is hindering production here, while reaching out to Venezuela.  How can the Biden team claim that they are doing everything they can to bring down gas prices, if they continue on the path they have been on since Joe Biden came in — being anti-energy?  Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK), who comes from the oil-rich state of Alaska, blew the whistle on that by listing what the Biden Administration has done, just in the last three weeks that has impeded oil and gas production during his questioning of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.  [Tweet with video clip]

When it comes to energy production, the midterm elections matter.  The day before Joe Biden entered the Oval Office, America was a net energy exporter with a rapidly growing economy, despite the effects of the Democrat-demand lockdowns.  On his first day in the Oval Office, Biden immediately took steps to cut America's energy production and, by vetoing the Keystone Pipeline, its access to energy.  America instantly began an inflationary climb that accelerated with the War in Ukraine.  What a Senate Energy Committee hearing revealed is that the Biden administration is only just getting started.  If America is to survive, Biden's wings must be clipped and that can only be done with a veto-proof majority in Congress.

Senate plays Stump the Secretary:  Are gas prices too high?  Yesterday, we took note of Joe Manchin's broadsides against Joe Biden's energy policy, but that wasn't the end of the White House's woes.  Scott Johnson noticed that Interior Secretary Deb Haaland had trouble with other members of the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee as well.  So did the RNC, which clipped out this question that every American could answer in a heartbeat.  Haaland, however, refuses to tell John Barrasso that she thinks gas prices are too high:  [Video clip]  The EIA average when Biden took office was $2.464 per gallon.  Today's average is $4.591 per gallon, an increase of 86.3% in just fifteen months.

When it comes to energy production, the midterm elections matter.  Two amazing moments emerged from the Senate Energy Committee hearing, one on the watch of Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and the other during questioning by Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska). Sen. Manchin's moment came when he questioned Interior secretary Deb Haaland, a woman with absolutely no business holding the position.  Haaland has no background in land management.  Instead, her sole qualification is that her mother is Native American, which is how Haaland (whose father is a Norwegian Minnesotan) identifies herself.

Why Diesel-Fuel Costs Are Really Rising.  Because the president has informed us that he is not a mind-reader, and thus cannot foresee problems such as the infant-formula shortage, allow me to assist him by putting a spotlight on the next giant flashing neon sign of trouble that he and his team should be watching closely: the cost of diesel fuel.  As of this morning, the national average cost of a gallon of diesel fuel is $5.57 — which is the record high, according to the American Automobile Association.  A year ago, it was $3.17 per gallon.  (The national average cost of a gallon of regular gasoline this morning is $4.52; one year ago, the cost was $3.04.)  We are now reaching the point where the cost of diesel fuel is making some goods too expensive to transport.  One trucker told the Orlando Fox affiliate yesterday that, "The cost of diesel is single-handedly taking us out of the game one by one no matter how big you are. ... If you're getting paid $2 per mile you're not taking that load no matter if it is baby formula or orange juice because the cost of diesel is $5 plus.  You just can't take that load."

Pumping Up Prices.  It's not complicated.  Prices change because of supply and demand.  During the COVID-19 pandemic, fewer people drove, and demand for gasoline dropped.  So did its price.  Oil drillers then did less drilling.  Now demand is up because people are driving again.  But it takes time for producers to adjust.  "It takes months, not days, for a company to increase production," says Biden.  I'm relieved that the president understands that, but he ignores how his own policies reduce production and raise the price of gas.  He didn't mention that when he canceled a long-planned sale of offshore oil rights this week.  Activists want Biden to also kill a pipeline that would bring oil from Canada to Wisconsin.  They've already delayed it five years.  They delayed the Keystone Pipeline for 16 years, until Biden killed it altogether.

Biden's road to record-high gas prices may soon lead to rationing.  Gasoline prices at the pump have always fluctuated within a regular epicycle of global oil prices, but the Biden administration's every policy choice from its first day in office has contributed significantly to this week's news that gas prices exceed $4 a gallon in all 50 states.  President Joe Biden and the Democrats seem determined to repeat every policy mistake of the 1970s, and it might not end until Biden attempts to impose price controls and rationing.  Start with Biden's cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline on Inauguration Day.  This act was more shocking than merely the loss of unionized jobs and an insult to our largest trading partner; it is the first time to my knowledge that any president has canceled a private-sector project that was already under construction.  It is one thing to block a permit; the government does that all the time.  It is another thing to revoke a permit already granted absent some malfeasance, and there was none by Keystone alleged.

Alberta Premier Mocks Biden for Refusing Canadian Oil.  One of the most frustrating aspects of the Biden administration [...] is the way the U.S. went from a net energy exporter to record high gas prices and a reliance on oil imported from other countries.  The administration knows exactly what it's doing.  The White House has acquiesced to the environmental lobby, and the end game is a push for "green energy" that's both infeasible and expensive, at least right now.  But that hasn't stopped the drive to punish Americans who haven't followed the administration's flippant advice to buy an expensive electric vehicle.  In the meantime, until all you rubes go electric, the administration is looking to nations that are hostile to American values like Venezuela and Iran.  If we must import our oil, why not get it from North America?

Average gas price in the US hits record high of $4.589 as JPMorgan says to expect national average to hit $6 by the end of summer.  Gas prices in the US reached a new record high Thursday [5/19/2022] — recording a national average of $4.589 per gallon — with analysts at JPMorgan now warning that that number could surpass the $6 mark by the end of the summer.  'There is a real risk the price could reach $6+ a gallon by August,' Natasha Kaneva, head of global oil and commodities research at the prominent investment bank, told CNN Tuesday.  The concerning forecast comes as US gas prices have surged to previously unseen highs during Joe Biden's presidency.

Is Biden's 'Success' Our Mess?  Barack Obama's energy secretary-designate Steven Chu once gaffed in the 2008 campaign when he openly wished that U.S. gas prices would reach European levels.  In truth, the Left has always believed the only way to achieve their objectives of discouraging driving, forcing middle-class Americans onto trains and buses, and persuading them to live in urban high-rises rather than drive carbon-spewing cars from spacious suburban ranch-style homes was to encourage high fuel prices.  Is that agenda why Biden, during the current energy crisis, simply canceled new federal oil and gas leases?  As diesel hits $7 a gallon in California, why else did he refuse to finish the Keystone XL pipeline or reopen Alaskan oil fields?

Biden Once Again Turns to Venezuela for Oil After Shutting Down U.S. Leases.  he Biden Administration is reportedly set to announce that it will lift several sanctions and other restrictions on Venezuela, allowing for the purchase of oil from the socialist dictatorship.  As reported by The Daily Caller, two anonymous administration officials said that the federal government will soon ease up some of the energy sanctions against the Latin American country, and will allow the American oil company Chevron to enter into negotiations to purchase oil from the state-owned firm PDVSA.  In return for the lifting of sanctions, dictator Nicolas Maduro has tentatively agreed to talks with opposition leader Juan Guadio, who has claimed that Maduro's rule is illegitimate and that he is the rightful president of Venezuela.  The agreement was made "on the basis of ambitious, concrete and irreversible outcomes that empower the Venezuelan people to determine the future in their country through democratic elections," according to one of the officials.

Gas stations in Washington reprogram pumps for $10-a-gallon fuel.  A national gas station chain is reprogramming its pumps in Washington state to accommodate $10-a-gallon fuel as the nation's average gasoline price soars to $4.57-a-gallon, almost twice the $2.41 average during Trump's last month in office.  Other gas stations in the state have begun running out of gas as supplies become crunched, with reports saying at least 10 stations have run dry.  The shortages are mainly effecting regular unleaded and premium gasoline, though diesel supplies are rapidly shrinking too.  Meanwhile some states — such as California — are reporting spiraling prices of up to $5.98 this week.

US Will Soon See Average Gas Prices Above $6 A Gallon, Energy Analyst Says.  The average price of gasoline nationwide could reach $6 per gallon this summer, far above historic levels and near California's current prices, an analyst at JPMorgan said Tuesday [5/17/2022].  "U.S. gasoline prices to break above $6," Natasha Kaneva, JPMorgan's head of global oil and commodities research, wrote in a note to investors titled "Cruel Summer," according to Bloomberg.  "Typically, refiners produce more gasoline ahead of the summer road-trip season, building up inventories.  But this year, since mid-April, U.S. gasoline inventories have fallen counter seasonally."  The average pump price in California surpassed $6 a gallon on Tuesday, increasing more than 46% year-over-year, and increased again to $6.05 per gallon Wednesday.  The increase represented the first time a state's average gasoline price was $6 a gallon or more.

Gas Prices Are Over $4 a Gallon in All 50 States for the First Time Ever.  Not only is the national average for a gallon of gas now over $4.50, but gas prices are over $4 a gallon in all 50 states.  Both are historic firsts.  Gas prices reached an average of $4.52 a gallon on Tuesday, according to AAA. That's up from $4.37 a week ago, and up from $3.05 a gallon a year ago.  Aren't you glad Biden raided the Strategic Petroleum Reserves?

Record-high gas prices reported for seventh day.  For the seventh consecutive day, gas prices hit a record high.  According to AAA, the average for a gallon of regular gas reached an all-time high of $4.48 nationwide on Monday [5/16/2022] after increasing by 1 cent overnight, AAA said.  According to AAA, gas has increased 16 cents in the last week, 41 cents in the last month and $1.44 in the last year.  This streak of records topped the nation's previous record of $4.33 set back on March 11.

Now the "decarbonization" people will see what life is like without gasoline, and it won't be pretty.
Sri Lanka Runs Out of Fuel, Says it Faces 'Most Difficult' Summer.  Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe announced on Monday that his nation had "run out" of petroleum-based fuel during a national address in which he predicted that the next two months will be "the most difficult ones of our lives," Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.  "We have run out of petrol. ... At the moment, we only have petrol stocks for a single day," Wickremesinghe said on May 16.

Gas prices reach new record high.  Average gas prices in the U.S. reached a new record high Tuesday, according to AAA's gas price calculator.  The national average cost of a regular gallon of gasoline hit $4.523 early Tuesday morning.  This topped Monday's record of $4.483, which in turn had beat Sunday's record of $4.470.  The price comes as the European Union edges toward oil sanctions on Russia amid the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine.  It also comes amid record-high inflation, with the consumer price index reaching 8.3% in April, hovering near March's 40-year high.

Biden Maladministration Cancels Oil & Gas Lease Sales, While Demanding More Oil Production.  [Scroll down]  At $106/bbl and natural gas at $7.70/mcf, US oil companies are producing as much oil & gas as we can.  No amount of compelling can quickly increase production.  It takes years of investment to significantly increase production.

LA gas prices continue steady rise, cross the $5.90 mark again.  The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in Los Angeles County rose for the 16th straight day Friday, hitting $5.919 per gallon.  The price rose 2.2 cents over the last 24 hours, the largest daily increase since Feb. 25, according to the latest numbers from AAA.  The 16-day streak follows a run of 28 decreases in 30 days.  The average price is 6.7 cents more than one week ago, 8.7 cents higher than one month ago and $1.75 greater than one year ago.  It is still 15 cents less than the record high of $6.07 set on March 28.

Gas lines, here we come:  Pelosi to push federal price caps on gasoline.  The 1970s came back so fast, I didn't even have time to buy some leisure suits.  Faced with massive inflation and an energy crisis, the obvious solution would be to incentivize more extraction and refining by lowering regulatory hurdles, a solution that eventually helped end the cyclical energy crisis 40 years ago.  Instead, Democrats have decided to act by canceling lease sales, erecting more regulatory hurdles, and attacking ... "price gouging."  Bloomberg Energy reporter Javier Blas reports that Nancy Pelosi will float a bill in the House that would give Joe Biden the authority to impose price controls on gasoline:  [Tweet]

Speak for yourself, pal.  The earth is not my mother.
United Nations:  Embrace High Gas Prices For The Sake Of Mother Earth.  Climate experts commissioned by the U.N. will release what is claimed to be the definitive guide to "halting global warming" on Monday, in a report ordering how societies and economies must transform to ensure a "liveable" future.  The U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is responsible for the publication designed to shape the global climate response in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.  AFP reports the IPCC published the first two instalments earlier this year in a trilogy of mammoth scientific assessments covering how greenhouse gas pollution is claimed to be heating the planet and what that means for life on Earth.

Biden's Climate Czar May Have Inadvertently Revealed Deep Dysfunction In The Administration.  Top White House climate adviser Gina McCarthy copied a CBS News reporter on an email chain Wednesday announcing the administration would cancel a series of oil and gas lease sales.  "The Cook inlet sale was canceled.  It is not proceeding," McCarthy wrote to other White House officials in an email, CBS reported.  Another official reportedly responded immediately saying that a decision hadn't been made yet.  Interior Department (DOI) officials then reiterated that sentiment to CBS, also saying the agency hadn't decided if it would move forward on the lease sales Wednesday evening.

After Biden Promised to Lower Prices, Diesel Hits All-Time High.  The national average for a gallon of diesel fuel reached it's all-time high on Monday according to the latest data from AAA that also showed unleaded gas is nearly tied with its record-high price reached earlier this spring.  Remember when President Biden said he was working on lowing the price of gas in order to help alleviate the inflation pain Americans have been facing since he took office?  The White House heralded the "historic" decision to release a never-before-seen amount of oil from the nation's strategic reserves and looked for back-pats from the usual mainstream media lapdogs for Biden's supposedly quick action to help Americans.

NY gas prices hit record high as inflation slams wallets.  New York motorists have good reason to grumble this week as gasoline prices throughout the state hit an all-time high — with pump costs surging well above the record-setting national price tag.  In the New York City metro area, the average cost of a gallon of regular gas surged to $4.671 on Tuesday — the highest on record — with some individual stations charging more than $6, according to AAA data.  The average prices are up more than $1.50 per gallon versus the same day a year ago.  Nehal Syed, an employee who answered the phone at a Shell station on the Upper East Side, said customer complaints are on the rise alongside the high prices.

Biden's Plan to Reduce Gas Prices Proves to Be a Miserable Failure.  [Scroll down]  Biden announced in March that he would be releasing 180 million barrels — one million barrels a day for six months — the largest release since the reserve was created back in 1974.  But we see how unsuccessful that has been because it's not addressing the problem.  It's just emptying our savings account so if we truly hit an emergency, we'll be up a creek without a paddle.  Biden also said that the EPA would be allowing the sale of E15 gasoline — ethanol-blended gasoline to supplement the supply.  He was hoping that would bring the prices down just before the election, even if they might shoot up afterward.  But that hasn't worked.

Gas Prices Reach New Record High.  The national average price for regular gasoline reached a new record-high on Tuesday [5/10/2022], according to AAA.  The new high — $4.37 a gallon — breaks the previous record of $4.33 set on March 11.  Gas prices jumped 5 cents overnight and a whopping 17 cents in the past week, CNN reported.

Report: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware Gas Prices Hit 'All Time Highs'.  Democrat-led Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware are experiencing "all-time high" gas prices, WPVI-TV reported on Monday [5/9/2022].  "It's $4.64 a record gallon in Philadelphia, 14 cents above the statewide average," the ABC News affiliate found.  "It's $4.50 in Pennsylvania, $4.47 in New Jersey and $4.40 in Delaware."  According to the report, drivers are paying on average $4.32 per gallon nationally for unleaded — "$1.36 over what it was on this day a year ago." The national average for diesel has also hit an all-time high at $5.54.

Gas Prices Are Spiking Again and Could Hit a New Record High Soon.  Gas prices are rising rapidly, yet again.  The national average for a gallon of regular is up 11 cents in one week and now sits just 5 cents below the all-time high notched in March.  At this rate, gas prices could reach a new record high very soon — perhaps even over the weekend.  According to the automotive club AAA, the average price per gallon is $4.28 on Friday.  That's an increase of more than 4 cents since just yesterday and 11 cents since last Friday.  The highest average price for a gallon of regular gas ever recorded in the U.S. was $4.33, on March 11.  Meanwhile, several cities saw average gas prices soar beyond $5 for the first time.  The surging cost of gasoline in March contributed to the 8.5% inflation rate, a four-decade high.

$6 a gallon for diesel fuel:  Record prices zap truckers in Northeast and California.  Diesel fuel prices hit a record $5.37 a gallon on average nationally Monday and rose above an average of $6 in several Northeastern states and California, analysts reported.  The cost increase results as countries stockpile diesel and other fuels out of fear that Russia will cut off natural gas supplies to more European neighbors.  The cost of a gallon of diesel fuel in the U.S. rose 12 cents a gallon since $5.25 a Saturday alone.  It was up 29 cents in a week, AAA's Fuel Gauge Report shows.  Before the current price rise, the previous record was $5.13 a gallon set March 12.

Joe's Gas Problem:  Prices Up 80% Since Biden Took Office.  According to a recent report from the Daily Wire, the average price of gas is up 80% since Joe Biden took office last year.  "When Biden moved into the White House on January 20, 2021, a gallon of regular gasoline cost an average of $2.37, according to gasbuddy.com," DW reports.  "In early March, the national average rose to as high as $4.34.  Today it's nearly $4.20, the American Automobile Association (AAA) reported Monday."  "To be fair, gas prices moderated modestly toward the end of April, but remain above $4.00 a gallon," Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum, said in a statement last week.  "Since the start of the Biden Administration, gas prices are up over 80 percent."

Top Democrats push for federal crackdown on high gas prices.  Citing growing worries about high gasoline prices, Democratic leaders announced an effort Thursday [4/28/2022] to give the Federal Trade Commission increased authority to crack down on companies that engage in price gouging.  In doing so, they downplayed the possibility of other options such as a federal gas tax holiday or offering oil companies more government incentives to increase production.  Instead, they said the FTC needs more tools, including stiffer fines and penalties and a team of dedicated experts to monitor markets and go after price gouging.

The Editor says...
Gasoline is a legal product.  It is widely available from a number of competing sources.  "Price gouging" is a misleading and subjective term used by those who hate capitalism.  The owner of a gas station has a right to sell gasoline at a profit.  If his profit is too high, the customers will let him know by making their purchases somewhere else.  A tank of gas doesn't last very long, so the customers are constantly shopping for a competitive price.  The government can't force the retailers to lower their prices.  The high price of gas is entirely due to the government's unwise actions since Biden was installed as President in January of 2021.

Polls Show Voters Blame Joe Biden for Gas Prices.  "President Joe Biden has tried to shift blame for the spike in gasoline prices, but most voters aren't buying his excuses," writes Rasmussen Reports.  The cost of energy has close to doubled under His Fraudulency Joe Biden.  In response, rather than actually doing something about it — like opening up America's vast energy reserves — Biden has chosen to strangle America's energy industry and blame everything and everyone else.  Biden has blamed the energy companies for price gouging.  He's also, laughably, blamed the energy companies for not drilling enough.  He's blamed the pandemic.  He's blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin.  He's blamed the war in Ukraine.  It's all been lies, lies, and more lies, and this polling makes clear that, despite the White House's lies and billions of dollars in corporate media propaganda to legitimize those lies, the voters aren't buying it.

California to raise its gas tax, already the highest in the nation.  California lawmakers appear unlikely to pause the annual summer increase in the state's gasoline tax ahead of a May 1 deadline, Gov. Gavin Newsom's office said on Monday [425/2022]. Newsom, a Democrat, had previously expressed support for helping California motorists experiencing pain at the pump by waiting to implement a 5.6% tax hike scheduled to take effect on July 1.  The tax is used to fund roads and other infrastructure projects; the state's Legislative Analyst's Office projected the tax will generate about $8.8 billion in revenue during the 2021-22 fiscal year.

How America Became La La Land.  America was energy independent until the arrival of the Biden Administration.  On the orders of his Green New Deal masters, Biden immediately began canceling federal oil and gas leases.  He stopped new pipelines.  He jawboned against the private financing of fossil-fuel production.  Biden was hellbent on his way to fulfilling his campaign promises of eliminating the use of natural gas and oil on his watch.  Then prices soared and the public grew irate.  In response, still more incoherence followed.  The Biden Administration would not reverse its destructive energy policies.  But as it floundered in desperation, Biden begged American enemies Iran, Russia, and Venezuela to pump more oil on our behalf.  In vain, it beseeched Saudi Arabia to produce more of the hated icky stuff that we had in abundance but would not fully produce ourselves.  Biden tapped the strategic petroleum reserve.  Yet the existential peril was not war or natural catastrophe but Biden himself and his far more dangerous policies.

E15 fuel announcement will backfire.  The Biden administration has announced the suspension of the rule that prevented the sale of fuel containing up to 15% ethanol alcohol during the summer months.  The current rack price (wholesale price) of a gallon of ethanol is about 75% of the rack price of a gallon of pure gasoline, so the retail price of E15 fuel should be cheaper than regular E10 fuel by about 10 cents per gallon, according to the White House.  The additional ethanol will replace some petroleum-based fuel, which will slightly reduce the demand for crude oil and theoretically lower its price.  E15 (also known as Unleaded88) fuel sales have been banned from June 1 to September 15 because alcohol is more volatile than gasoline.  The concern was that ethanol evaporates more readily than gasoline in the summer heat, and then the fumes contribute to smog.  President Trump issued an executive order to allow the sale of E15 during the summer to please farmers, but courts overturned the order.  This time, President Biden had the EPA issue an emergency rule permitting summer sales of E15, but environmentalists may challenge this rule in court.

Biden's next plan for high fuel prices:  Crappy gas.  Even as Joe Biden continues to try to blame high gas prices on Vladimir Putin (a claim that not even the mainstream media is swallowing), the White House is still scrambling to find something they can do to lower gas prices ahead of the midterms.  Or at least that's what the Biden administration is claiming to be doing, though there are obviously some less pristine motives behind this week's announcement that Biden will wave restrictions on higher ethanol content in gasoline this summer.  There were very good reasons that those restrictions have been in place, but even if this move only cuts the price of gas by ten cents (and only in certain markets, not across the entire country), the Democrats clearly see a potential opportunity to run up some political points in the process.

The Editor says...
The price may or may not stay the same, but your mileage will get worse, because ethanol doesn't have the potential energy per gallon that octane has.

Illinois Dems' Outrageous Strong Arming Of Small Businesses.  Late on Friday night, when most of us were either sound asleep or out kicking off the weekend with some partying, Democrats at the Illinois statehouse in Springfield were busy trying to save their jobs by bullying owners of gas stations.  In the wee hours of Saturday morning, lawmakers in the Land of Lincoln put forth and passed a controversial and probably unconstitutional bill requiring gas stations to post stickers on their gasoline pumps.  The stickers will laud the efforts of the Democrat-controlled legislature by stating the following; [...]

Will Joe Biden Bring the U.S. Down With Him?  Many of Biden's gaffes and much of his political mischief fit seamlessly into the Democrat plan for the nation. [...] When it comes to energy, the disaster compounds.  Biden's Executive Order on the first day of his assuming office canceling the Keystone XL pipeline project, and his suspending oil and gas leasing on public lands and waters, has ensured that American energy independence has become a thing of the past, that energy prices would soar, and that rampant inflation would devastate the domestic economy.  Skyrocketing gas prices are merely the canary in the coal mine.  Blaming Russia is a patent "red" herring.

Democrats cry crocodile tears over high gas prices.  Democrats are so nervous about November's election that they just wasted a morning in the House Energy and Commerce Committee trying to scapegoat the oil industry for the high price of gasoline.  "Big Oil is lining their pockets with one hand and taking billions in taxpayer subsidies with the other," said Rep. Frank Pallone, a New Jersey Democrat, in one typical statement.  "Meanwhile, the American people are getting ripped off as these companies choose to keep production low so that their own profits stay high."  It is difficult even to know where to begin with such nonsense.  But before going into the granular details about the false and misleading Democratic assertions on this issue, ask yourself one simple question:  Do oil companies make their money by not selling as much oil as possible when global prices are really high?  Or do they make money by selling as much oil as possible when prices are really high?

If demand is too high, raise the price.  It's that simple.
Irony: Mexico Moves to Cut off Cheap Gas as Americans Cross Border to Escape Biden Price Hike.  This report might not reach the level of "Babylon Bee" satire, but it sure pegs the hell out of the needle on the irony meter.  As the Biden Border Crisis continues to worsen, and the most inept president in modern history and his war on energy have contributed to increasing gas prices, virtually from the beginning of his presidency, Mexico would like a word:  Our southern neighbor is not happy with Americans crossing the border in search of lower prices at Mexican gas stations.  That statement alone is ironic on multiple levels, but it gets "better."  As reported by Reuters on Saturday, the Mexican government has been subsidizing gasoline to soften price spikes, but it has announced that the policy would be suspended in areas close to the U.S. border this week — citing shortages as more and more Americans hop over to fill their tanks.

House Democrats Block American Energy Again.  Democrats in the House of Representatives blocked Republican efforts to move ahead with consideration of the American Energy Independence from Russia Act on Thursday that would have reopened U.S. energy projects to combat the rising cost of fuel caused by the Biden administration's anti-fossil fuel agenda.  218 Democrats voted against considering the proposal offered on the House floor by Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN), defeating the House GOP's plan for the fourth time and stopping the Republicans' plan to to bring relief to Americans who saw gas prices hit their all-time average high in March.  The legislation offered by Republicans would have green-lit the Keystone XL pipeline project, stripped restrictions on liquified natural gas exports, jumpstarted oil and gas leases on federal lands and waters, protected energy development from further attacks by President Biden, and required plans to replenish oil drawn from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

Pelosi Remarks on Gas Prices Show Dems [are] Planning More Pain for Americans.  It's long past time that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) should have retired.  I'm not a big advocate of hide-bound rules as to age or term limits.  But in her and in Joe Biden, you see the problems of advanced age and related issues that are harming our country.  Of course, it's not just the age, but lousy policies that they are trying to impose on us as well, such as Joe Biden deciding that instead of working on promoting more American production he's just going to drain our reserve of petroleum dry to try to drop prices before the midterms so Americans won't decimate Democrats in November.

Biden backs green radicals even though Americans want U.S. energy.  Americans are frustrated with skyrocketing gas pump prices, but they disagree dramatically with President Biden on how to fix the problem.  A national survey just conducted by the Winston Group reveals a strong bipartisan majority of Americans prefer an "everything" energy approach — more oil drilling, more alternatives, maximum carbon free nuclear energy, and doing more to promote conservation.  Yet, President Biden, facing record high inflation and record low approval ratings, remains committed to his political alliance with radical green environmentalists. [...] Let's look further at what Biden has done.  As one of his first acts in office, he shuttered construction of the Keystone XL pipeline; it was President Biden who ended federal oil leases and it was the Biden Administration who begged Riyadh and Caracas to produce more energy instead of allowing U.S. energy producers to fill the energy gap and keep prices in check.

Oil prices shouldn't hinge on dictators issuing executive orders to kill fossil fuel companies.  Joe Biden and the Democrats have declared war on oil companies since the day Biden took office, and from that moment on, oil prices have spiraled.  Yet, not once has Biden taken blame for the ruination of the poor, the middle class, and small businesses that have taken the brunt of the higher prices. [...] This didn't happen because of Vladimir Putin, as Biden claims.  First, Biden called the price increases transitory.  Then, he and his administration claimed that his good economic policies caused growth and the demand caused the price increases.  What a joke.  We had high demand throughout Trump's term and ... low prices.  Then he said the oil companies were greedy and blamed them for the high prices.  Isn't it amazing that the greedy oil companies weren't that greedy while Trump was president?  Then, he started blaming Putin for all inflation even though it has been occurring since he took office.

Biden blames COVID and Putin for soaring gas prices, and says Americans will save $80 a month if they buy an electric car.  President Joe Biden said Thursday [3/31/2022] that record gas prices were caused by the pandemic and Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine as he unveiled a two-pronged plan to increase supply and reduce demand.  He announced he would release a million barrels of oil per day from the nation's strategic reserve for the next six months and accelerate the switch to electric vehicle[s].  But his analysis of the cause of the crisis will attract criticism for opponents who accuse him of shifting the blame for his administration's economic woes.

The Editor says...
The article above is accompanied by a handy chart that shows the price of gasoline since 2019.  Gas prices went down during the Covid pandemic, and started to climb rapidly as soon as Biden was elected, due to his rash and destructive behavior.  Neither Covid nor Putin had anything to do with today's record high gas prices.  Joe Biden is lying.

Pelosi Remarks on Gas Prices Show Dems Planning More Pain for Americans.  It's long past time that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) should have retired.  I'm not a big advocate of hide-bound rules as to age or term limits.  But in her and in Joe Biden, you see the problems of advanced age and related issues that are harming our country.  Of course, it's not just the age, but lousy policies that they are trying to impose on us as well, such as Joe Biden deciding that instead of working on promoting more American production he's just going to drain our reserve of petroleum dry to try to drop prices before the midterms so Americans won't decimate Democrats in November.  Pelosi was asked on Thursday about the gas prices.  She started with a little truth and in the process, undercut one of Biden's big lies, blaming everything on the "Putin price hike."  She made a mistake and admitted that was only "partially" true.  [Tweet]

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen Says Nothing Will Deter Biden Administration from Eliminating Fossil Fuels.  Current Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is a Davos/WEF devotee of the highest magnitude.  Yellen is ensconced in the worldview of those who run the operations of central banking and global finance.  She is the globalist secretary of world treasuries and has been throughout her professional life.  As more people become aware of the Build Back Better agenda, or as some would say "The Great Reset," and its direct connection to the dreams and aspirations of the climate change ideologues in the elitist class, it is worth paying attention when Yellen says nothing will deter the Biden administration from eliminating fossil fuels; and it is her role to make that objective financially possible.

The Editor says...
There is one thing that can keep the Democrats from eliminating fossil fuels:  Elections in even-numbered years.  If the Democrats are defeated soundly in the next few elections and run out of town, the price of gasoline will go back down to half what it is now.  Maybe lower.

How Presidents Influence Gas Prices.  The Democrats are nothing if not creative and nervy.  They play the political game of influencing public opinion far better than Republicans.  Even though their PR efforts are aided by a media that is overwhelmingly liberally biased, the Democrats are still way better at the "blame/influence" game than Republicans.  The Democrats' latest gambit is to blame all the recent bad economic news on Russia's invasion of Ukraine.  "High gasoline prices and inflation are Putin's fault," they squawk, secure in the knowledge that the NY Times, MSNBC and CNN will not contradict them, even though they all know it's blatantly untrue.  Gasoline was $2.25/gallon when President Trump left office and it quickly rose to $3.50 in the first year of "President" Biden's term.  He was directly and unequivocally responsible for the rise from $2.25 to $3.50 as of February 14th, before Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The Sheer Madness of Today's Left.  [Scroll down]  Normally, the mad Left would not object terribly to the ensuing fuel price hikes.  Remember, Joe Biden bragged on the campaign trail that he would end fossil fuels during his tenure.  Obama's soon-to-be Energy Secretary Steven Chu said during the 2008 campaign he wished to see American gas prices match those in Europe (i.e. $9-10 a gallon).  And then President Obama himself did not disagree.  He meekly added that such increases should be "gradual."  He had also warned that his cap-and-trade initiatives would necessarily "skyrocket" electricity prices — without suggesting that his off-guard brag was even a gaffe of unexpectedly telling the truth.  So green orthodoxy dictates that the highest possible fossil fuel prices are good.  Unaffordability will hasten the end of gas and oil, ensuring currently subsidized but uneconomical green energy as the only remaining alternative.

SoCal Residents Drive to Tijuana For Cheaper Gas.  Californians in San Diego are driving across the border into Mexico for cheaper gas.  Gas prices in California are averaging $6 a gallon thanks to a combination of Joe Biden's war on domestic energy production and high taxes in the Golden State.  The gas prices in Tijuana cost an average of $3.96 a gallon — a whopping $2 a gallon cheaper than in California.

California Gas Prices Reach All-Time Record High.  California's average gas price reached a record high of $5.90 per gallon on Friday, according to AAA.  Just last month, the state's average gas price was $4.79.  One year ago, the average price of gas in the state was $3.88, a full $2.02 less.  Nationwide, the average price of gas ($4.24) has increased by about 70 cents since Russia invaded Ukraine.  But gas prices had already risen about a full $1.00 since President Joe Biden assumed office and waged war on American energy independence.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to give tax breaks and up to $800 debit cards to all Golden State drivers as gas hits $5.88 a gallon.  California drivers shouldering the highest gas prices in the nation could soon get a tax break, free public transportation and up to $800 debit cards to help pay for fuel — but economics experts warn it'll drive up inflation even more.  The proposal was revealed Wednesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom, as gas prices have continued to soar in recent weeks from pandemic-induced inflation and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.  'That direct relief will address the issue that we are all struggling to address and that is the issue of gas prices,' Newsom said in a video posted on Twitter this week.

Record-high gas prices pose surprising new problems for consumers at [the] pump.  With gas prices in the United States the highest they've been in 14 years, drivers are facing a new kind of pain at the pump: fueling limits that may deny them a full tank.  Because credit card companies refuse to reimburse station owners for fraud or disputed charges above the $75 threshold, many pumps limit transactions to $75.  That used to be more than enough for a fill-up — but not these days.

Democrats plot to halt inflated gas prices by ... printing more money.  Democrats don't seem to ever learn Economics 101, do they?  That's obvious enough in their various bone-headed schemes to beat soaring gas prices at the pump by throwing new money at the problem. [...] The logic of this bad idea is that gas prices can be treated with COVID-style stimulus checks — everyone gets one, and the Fed can print up another batch of cash to take care of the payouts.

GOP Launches Voter Mobilization Effort At Gas Stations.  The Republican National Committee (GOP) has revealed a new voter mobilization strategy to win the midterms later this year.  They are registering voters at gas stations across the country as Americans pay record-high prices for fuel.  "Don't like the #BidenGasHike?" Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel tweeted Saturday.  "Vote!  Republicans are coming to gas stations nationwide to register voters!" she said.  [Tweet]  The GOP told Fox News the new voter mobilization effort at gas stations began on Saturday.  GOP staff and volunteers registered people to vote at gas stations in Phoenix and Scottsdale metro areas of Arizona, where the price at the pump for regular gasoline soared to $4.60, and diesel is around $5 a gallon.  These record-high prices have infuriated drivers as inflationary forces wipe out their wage gains.

Fact-checking Biden's claim that oil and gas companies are price gouging.  As rising prices at the pump continue to squeeze wallets, President Joe Biden has stepped up attacks on oil corporations that he claims are charging motorists more just to pad their pockets.  It was the latest scapegoat for the high fuel costs that have put political pressure on Democrats.  Biden and his aides had previously attempted to pin the blame on Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose invasion of Ukraine prompted Biden to ban imports of Russian oil and gas earlier this month.

I Try Not To Use Certain Words.  The history of price controls is entirely black.  They create shortages of the very things the controls supposedly make "affordable!"  Yet it was inevitable that the Usurpers would seek to impose price controls.  Price controls are actually people controls.  They say to the producer and the vendor, "We the Rulers will decide what your goods and your labor are worth" — while those same Rulers go on merrily inflating the currency, rendering it worthless, and arrogating huge chunks of the price-controlled items to themselves.  "The needs of the State come first," don't y'know.  There's no more effective method for reducing a society to poverty, black-market dependency, and dog-eat-dog savagery.  The suggestion of price controls is always accompanied by insinuations that producers are "profiteering."  People must be provided with a villain to blame other than the regime.  It's worked in the past; it would probably work today.  Did Nixon's price controls on gasoline increase the supply of gasoline?  If you're not old enough to know about that episode, allow me to provide the answer for you:  NO!

White House dragged over reported harebrained scheme to give Americans gas cards.  The Biden administration White House is being ridiculed over an establishment media report that it'd "considered giving Americans gas cards to help offset high prices" up until congressional Democrats told them to cut it out.  "The White House this week considered having the IRS send gas cards to Americans — a short-lived idea that some key House Democrats vehemently opposed," Axios confirmed on Saturday [3/19/2022].  Congressional Democrats reportedly found the idea extraordinarily unappealing because it'd "be expensive and poorly targeted," "worsen inflation and wouldn't do much to lower costs" and "be a slow process that could bog down the IRS in the middle of the filing season."  While their reasons were valid, the public glommed on to some other reasons, like the fact that the administration is apparently willing to do anything — virtually anything — to deal with exorbitant gas prices, except for, you know, rolling back their anti-gas/oil policies.

Report: WH Had an Extremely Dumb Idea on the Table to Address Gas Prices.  Joe Biden and his team have been skyrocketing because of pushing this fiction about how gas prices and inflation were Vladimir Putin attacking Ukraine.  This, despite the fact the prices have been high for months, long before Putin invaded.  They even came up with a cute little talking points phrase to use that they pushed out to all their operatives:  "Putin's price hike."  But that gambit didn't work, so they tried to blame it on oil companies — just like tried to blame the rising food prices on the price of meat or inflation in general on rising car prices.  But Americans are placing the blame squarely on Biden.  Now of course, the Biden team was lying when it came to gas prices.  But a new report shows that either they don't understand the real cause of inflation or they simply don't care about the cause, because they were considering doing something that would make everything worse.

Getting Squeezed at Pump?  Blame Biden, Not Putin.  All across the country, Americans are facing staggering gasoline prices, pinching their wallets even further as inflation runs rampant.  But what's causing gas prices to skyrocket?  The Biden administration blames Russian President Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine, as well as greedy U.S. business owners, for the sharp rise in prices.  But that doesn't pass the smell test for Katie Tubb, a senior policy analyst for energy and environmental issues at The Heritage Foundation.  "I think it's incredibly disingenuous for the administration to say that, in part because Americans aren't stupid and they saw prices go up before Russia invaded Ukraine," Tubb says.  "And so I find that, honestly, a very discouraging characterization by the Biden administration."

California Democrats Float $400 Checks to Taxpayers After Hiking Gas Taxes.  California Democrats, who have raised gas taxes and vehicle license fees in recent years, are now proposing to send $400 checks to the state's taxpayers to help defray the high cost of fuel in the latest surge, which is hitting the state's drivers hard.  While the entire country is paying more for gasoline, thanks to surging post-pandemic demand, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the Biden administration's hostility to oil and gas development, California's price is the highest in the nation.

Democrats [are] Urging Biden to Make Gas Even More Expensive.  Despite gas prices being at record highs and likely to continue to go up for the foreseeable future, Joe Biden seems to be looking everywhere but the United States for energy.  He would sooner buy energy from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, or even Iran than drill in the United States.  Yet, for some House Democrats, Biden needs to do more than just ignore domestic energy opportunities; they want him to ban them outright.  According to a report from Politico, this week House progressives will call on Joe Biden to use his executive power and declare climate change a national emergency, issue a ban on fossil fuel drilling on public lands, and end fossil fuel subsidies.

Manchin on Energy: 'The Superpower of the World Should Not Depend on Iran, Venezuela'.  Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) says that as the one global superpower, the United States should not be dependent on countries like Iran and Venezuela for energy.  "It's senseless to risk our energy security and reliability by depending on immoral actors like Iran and Venezuela to produce for us," Manchin shared on Twitter along with a clip of his appearance on Morning Joe.  "Instead, the federal gov't must encourage — not inhibit — responsible oil and gas production to keep America and our allies safe and secure."

Congressional liberals press Biden to declare emergency and restrict fossil fuels.  Liberals in Congress are pressing President Joe Biden to invoke emergency powers to push ahead with Democrats' climate change agenda and to put new restrictions on fossil fuels, even while gasoline remains at its highest per-gallon price on record.  With legislation stalled in Congress, the nearly 100-member Congressional Progressive Caucus released a slate of policy recommendations Thursday for Biden to pursue, calling on him to use executive action to deal with a list of topics his "Build Back Better" agenda sought to address, including the development of more green energy technologies and placement of restrictions on new fossil fuel production.

Atmospheric carbon dioxide:  A little perspective, please.  When President Biden was sworn into office, crude oil was selling for forty dollars a barrel or less.  The price was reasonably stable, and gasoline and diesel were affordable for most drivers.  Biden came into office preaching the benefits of clean energy and stopped the new drilling on and leasing of federal lands to promote it.  As a result, the United States went from being an exporter of crude oil and natural gas to an importer with a large source of imported oil being Russia.  As the supply tightened, producers raised the price and the crude that was selling for forty dollars a barrel when Biden took office has been selling for up to one hundred and thirty dollars a barrel and the price of fuels has increased proportionately.  The cost of shipping goods has increased to reflect this cost of fuel which has given the United States a problem with inflation.

Biden/Harris — Dumb And Dumber.  With Biden and Harris leading us, our nation has never looked worse.  If a problem is not a racial grievance or a political kickback, they have no idea what to do.  And as bad as Joe Biden is, most Americans agree we would rather have him than Kamala. [...] Biden and Harris are blaming the one-year rise in gas prices on a two-week war with Russia.  Only an idiot would believe that.  Maybe Dr. Fauci can be trotted out to tell Americans that if we do not drive for two weeks, we can flatten the gas price curve.

Elizabeth Warren Promised High Gas Prices, Joe Biden Delivered Them.  In September of 2019, Elizabeth Warren promised to do something on her first day in office that would rebuild the Russian economy, grow China's influence and support the Maduro regime in Venezuela. [...] What Senator Elizabeth Warren promised in that tweet is EXACTLY what Joe Biden did on his first day in office.  Now, before going further, let me explain something about that relationship that will likely make a lot more sense.  You might remember when all the democrat candidates in the 2020 primary were told to drop out right before Super Tuesday, as part of the organized effort to stop Bernie Sanders from becoming the nominee.  The lone holdout was Senator Elizabeth Warren.  She was polling essentially even with Joe Biden while Bernie was leading.  It was very well documented at the time that Senator Warren was negotiating terms with the Biden team for her compliance and support.  Eventually, as the controlled party momentum grew, Warren agreed to drop out of the race, and she endorsed Joe Biden.  The terms of that agreement were never made public, but when we look at the priority of Warren, and compare it to the literal duplication of that pledge that was carried out by Joe Biden, well, the coincidence doesn't look coincidental.

U.S. Average Gas Prices Soar 22% in Two Weeks to Record $4.43 Per Gallon.  The average U.S. price for regular-grade gasoline at the pump soared a whopping 79 cents over the past two weeks to hit a record $4.43 per gallon on Sunday [3/13/2022].  That exceeds by 32 cents the prior all-time high of $4.11 set in July 2008, AP reports.  Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey said Sunday the new price is still some way from the inflation-adjusted record high of about $5.24 per gallon.  The price at the pump is $1.54 higher than it was a year ago, with plenty of consumers pointing directly at President Joe Biden and his policies.

Basic Truths About Oil.  In 2020, President Joe Biden declared war on oil and gas in America.  In a Democratic primary debate, Biden declared, "No more subsidies for the fossil fuel industry.  No more drilling including offshore.  No ability for the oil industry to continue to drill, period.  It ends."  High gas prices are all part of his plan.  The other day, Biden declared that there was nothing his administration had done to raise prices or restrict drilling.  Actually, there have been plenty of regulatory measures taken and offshore leases curtailed.  More importantly, Biden declared war on fossil fuels.  If you were an investor, would you invest in a company the president of the United States declared he would end?  The Biden administration's entire posture has been against the oil and gas industry, which has fostered uncertainty in the market and disincentivized further investment.  They have coupled this with regulatory gusto.  They have additionally refused to fight activist Obama-appointed judges using climate change as an excuse to shut down offshore oil drilling.

Awash In a Sea of Stupid.  [Example #4] Blaming Putin for Higher Gas Costs:  Biden's entire energy policy has been to starve U.S. citizens of the plentiful conventional fuels, including oil and gas, and driving up their cost which began rising soon after he was elected and have not stopped rising.  He said that he planned to increase energy costs, and it is the one promise he has certainly been keeping, a promise which seems as certain to tank his party in the midterms as it has been a big factor in his plunging popularity.  So, what are the Democrats to do to deflect attention from the fact they are responsible for this?  Well, like Elizabeth Warren, a fake Indian but genuine demagogue, they can try to blame the energy producers, but that doesn't seem to have persuaded enough voters, so — hey... blame Putin!  And that's exactly what they've tried.  Unfortunately for them, that's easily proven to be nonsense.  Li

As Gas Prices Hit Record Highs, These 10 States Have Seen the Biggest Jumps at the Pump.  Gas prices continue to skyrocket, sometimes as much as 5 cents or more a day, and it might not be surprising to hear that the 10 states with the highest gas prices are dominated by Democrats.  Per-gallon prices have surged to the highest recorded rates in American history — and they keep going up.  On Friday, the national per-gallon cost was $4.33, according to the AAA gas price monitor, which is getting perilously close to double the $2.82 it was a year ago.  Gas prices jumped 50 cents in one week, and these wildly rising costs are biting deep into Americans' wallets.  And for those in deep-blue California, it is even worse.  The average per-gallon price there is $5.69.  And our trucker friends are getting hit even harder there with $6.21 cents a gallon for diesel, according to USA Today.

Why Are Leftists And Elitists So Happy About Skyrocketing Gas Prices?  As I write this article crude prices have somewhat stabilized around $110-$115 a barrel, which translates to a little over $4 a gallon for gas across most of the country.  I don't expect this to last very long.  My guess is that regular gasoline will end up in the $7 to $8 per gallon range before US shale oil roars back and balances out the market.  I realize that this is a conservative estimate and perhaps a best case scenario.  Gas could go much higher depending on speculation in oil markets as well as continued government interference from the Biden Administration.  The big secret is that gas prices were already going to inflate to epic highs, the Ukraine event is not a catalyst, it's just adding a little petro to the house fire.  The fact is, there are some people out there that are desperate for prices to go much higher regardless of what happens in Ukraine.

Yellen Says Suspension of Federal Gas Tax on Table to Ease High Costs at Pump.  Temporarily suspending the federal gas tax is among the options being considered to provide relief to American consumers as inflation is expected to remain "uncomfortably high" throughout the year, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Friday.  "We're looking at a range of things that we might do to relieve consumers.  The gas tax is one of the things on the list", Yellen told reporters on Friday [3/11/2022] at a social services agency in Denver, Colorado.  Colorado Gov. Jared Polis urged congressional leaders earlier this week to consider legislation to temporarily suspend U.S. gasoline taxes to help provide savings and relief to Americans struggling to keep up with spiking gas prices.

The Editor says...
Gas prices are not "spiking."  To spike is to increase sharply and immediately decrease at about the same rate.  Gas prices are exhibiting a rapid increase which will not be reversed while socialist Democrats are in charge of the federal government; in particular, the executive branch.  High gas prices are not a side-effect.  They are the goal of the anti-capitalists.

Taxes [are] Nearly 25% of What Illinois Drivers Pay at the Pump.  As gas prices nationwide continue to rise, Illinoisans are forced to pay even more thanks to notoriously high gas taxes that rank No. 2 in the nation.  One big culprit is Gov. J.B Pritzker.  He doubled the state gas tax in 2019 and allowed further increases in local gas taxes, adding $3.50 to every 15-gallon tank of gas, or $0.23 to every gallon for Chicago drivers.  Illinois' average gas price has reached $4.53, over a quarter more than the national average of $4.25, according to AAA.  Gas prices in Chicago are even higher at $4.77, adding more pain to motorists.

Gasoline Prices [are] Headed Right Where The Democrats Want Them.  While running for president, Barack Obama said electricity prices will "necessarily skyrocket" under his energy plan.  As gasoline reaches unaffordable heights for many Americans, never forget that the Democratic Party wants to inflict painful energy costs on the country.  It's in its political DNA.  As of Thursday [3/10/2022], the average U.S. price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $4.32, the highest ever recorded in this country.  A month ago, it was $3.48.  A year ago, about six weeks after Joe Biden took the oath of office, it was $2.82.  Recent projections that the U.S. average would peak at $4.25 a gallon around Memorial Day weekend now seem quaint.  Would anyone be surprised if prices were nearly double that in much of the country before they begin to recede?

Diesel Soars to Record High, Impacting 3.5 Million American Truckers.  The national average price for diesel fuel on Wednesday [3/9/2022] reached an all-time record high, impacting 3.5 million American truckers throughout the nation.  Rising 84 cents in one week, Wednesday's national average hit $4.883, up 13 cents overnight, according to AAA.

Biden Tries to Blame Energy Failures on 'Putin's Gas Price Hike'.  When President Biden was inaugurated, the average price of regular gasoline in the U.S. was $2.38.  A little over a year later, the price has reached a record high of $4.32.  Attempts by the White House to blame this increase on Vladimir Putin notwithstanding, the price had already risen to $3.53 before Russia invaded Ukraine.  The problem is obviously the direct result of Biden's irresponsible energy policies.  During his first few weeks in office he issued a series of executive orders for the explicit purpose of discouraging domestic energy production — while demand for fuel was rapidly increasing.  The inevitable result has been stratospheric gas prices.  The attempt to label this increase "the Putin spike" is only the latest red herring the White House has deployed to divert public attention from the genuine cause of the problem.

Joe Biden Doesn't Want Your Gas To Be $4 A Gallon.  He Wants It To Cost Even More.  Gas prices in the United States hit a new all-time high under President Joe Biden's watch on Tuesday [3/8/2022], clocking in at an average of $4.17 per gallon, surpassing the previous record of $4.11 set in 2008. [...] The third week of February, before the Russian invasion of Ukraine started, the average price of U.S. gas was $3.53 per gallon, compared with $2.38 the week Biden took office:  a $1.15 difference.  (That fact hasn't stopped Press Secretary Jen Psaki from lying through her teeth to blame the spike entirely on Russia.)  But, bumbling though they are, the Biden administration did not just achieve rising gas prices through accidents and incompetence.  Your pain at the pump isn't just unforeseen collateral damage of the White House's policies — it's a very intentional result of it.  That's right:  Biden wants staggering gas prices to force you from being able to drive where you want, when you want, as much as you want to.  It's all a part of his green energy agenda, which panders to radicals on the far-left side of Biden's ever-further-left party.

The Green Immoralists.  [Scroll down]  Climate-change moralists love humanity so much in the abstract that they must shut down its life-giving gas, coal, and oil in the concrete.  And they value humans so little that they don't worry in the here and now that ensuing fuel shortages and exorbitant costs cause wars, spike inflation, and threaten people's ability to travel or keep warm.  The Biden Administration stopped all gas and oil production in the ANWR region of Alaska.  It ended all new federal leases for drilling.  It is cancelling major new pipelines.  It is leveraging lending agencies not to finance oil and gas drilling.  It helped force the cancellation of the EastMed pipeline that would have brought needed natural gas to southern Europe.  And it has in just a year managed to turn the greatest oil and gas producer in the history of the world into a pathetic global fossil-fuel beggar.

Rising gas prices have 'everything to do' with Biden says former Keystone XL pipeline worker.  Former Keystone XL pipeline worker Neal Crabtree insisted that President Biden's policies "have everything to do with" exorbitant energy prices Wednesday on "Hannity."  "The president of the United States is lying to you when he says that his policies have nothing to do with the prices of energy," Crabtree told host Sean Hannity.  "They have everything to do with the prices going up." Biden's cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline and waiving of sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline "broke" Keystone XL pipeline workers' hearts, Crabtree added.  "We take a lot of pride in producing American energy," he said.  "We want to do it here at home."  Workers could build the pipeline in about eight months, he estimated, adding that he is "tired of hearing" that construction would take three years to complete.

Biden Gets Confused Trying to Find His Way off the Stage.  Joe Biden is supposed to be in charge, yet he doesn't seem to understand what he's even doing from moment to moment.  On Wednesday [3/9/2022] he pushed yet another claim that has no basis in reality — "a gallon of gas is down 14 percent today," he declared.  [Tweet]  The national average is up almost 17 cents from the day before, when it was $4.104 and the "highest in history." [...] The memo has gone out now to all the Democrats to call the rise in prices "Putin's price hike" — as though Americans aren't able to remember beyond the last couple of weeks.

High Gas Prices Cause New Problem for Car Owners:  Gasoline Theft.  Gustavo Galvéz, owner of Galvéz Auto Clinic, can testify to the new problem Southern California drivers are facing:  gas thieves.  A few days ago, a landscaper asked him for help with his vehicle, and they discovered a new modus operandi for criminals.  "He went to start the car to go to work, and it didn't start," Galvéz said.  "Well, he brought it here to see what the problem was and the gas tank had a hole in it."  Apparently, Galvéz said, someone used the hole to take the gasoline from the car.

Energy Sec.  Granholm dodges questions on gas crisis as aides whisk her away, block camera.  Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm refused to answer questions from a Fox News reporter on Wednesday [3/9/2022] while her aides scrambled to push reporters away in an altercation that was caught on video.  "Hi, Secretary Granholm," Fox News Senior Political Editor Andrew Murray asked the secretary as she walked down a hallway flanked by her aides following her speech at CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston.  Granholm recoiled in surprise as Murray attempted to ask her a question about Iran and gas prices.

Merkley: 'We Should Have a Climate Emergency' and Need to 'Have the World Transition' to Green Energy to Undercut Russia.  On Monday's broadcast of MSNBC's "All In," Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) argued that in order to undermine Russia's power, we have to "end our dependence on oil and have the world transition to renewable energy."  Because Russia will be able to sell oil as long as there's demand for oil, and called for a "climate emergency."  Merkley said, "As long as there is a world market for oil, Russia will be able to sell its oil.  And so, unfortunately, not all my colleagues yet understand that the way to undercut the power of Russia is to end our dependence on oil and have the world transition to renewable energy."

The Editor says...
The high price of gasoline is not the result of a "climate emergency."  It is the result of a series of unwise decisions made at the highest levels of the Executive Branch of the U.S. government.  The previous president was able to keep U.S. oil and gas production going quite well, and gas prices two years ago were about half of today's prices.  As soon as the earth-worshiping tree-hugging environmentalist fruitcakes are pushed aside and the oil companies are unleashed, the price of gas will automatically drop to the lowest level that competitive capitalism will support.

This Invasion Is Brought to You by ... Western Environmentalists.  For more than 40 years, the environmentalist movement has been warning that global warming is the result of mankind's burning of fossil fuels and poses an "existential threat" to human and other biological life.  This is one of the many grandiose lies the Left uses to reshape, if not destroy, Western civilization. [...] Within months of assuming power, the Democratic Party, an extension of the environmentalist movement, forced America to revert to dependence on foreign oil, including Russian oil.  Beholden to the environmentalists, candidate Joe Biden made promise after promise to curtail oil and gas production: no new fracking on government land, no drilling in the Alaskan Arctic, and shutting down the Keystone pipeline.  Putin got the message.  So, thanks to environmentalists, not only is America once again dependent on foreign oil, Germany is dependent on Russian oil.

Report: Democrat-Led States Have 'Highest Gas Prices in the Country'.  Nine out of the top ten states with the most expensive cost of gas per gallon are led by Democrats, according to a report from the Republican Governors Association (RGA).  "The new data comes just days after 25 Republican governors called on the White House to reverse energy policies that have kneecapped America's domestic energy production," according to the organization.  "Experts say the rising cost of gas is related to the effect Russia's invasion of Ukraine has on foreign oil supplies the Biden Administration has come to rely on."

Dear Biden Voters:  Did You Vote For This?  Gas prices are exploding but the rise in fuel prices didn't start last week.  They've been going up since the moment Joe Biden took office.  The legacy media wants us to believe that Russia is our biggest problem when it comes to price spikes, but the data tells us Biden has been the biggest obstacle.  All the way back in January of 2021, AAA recorded the biggest jump in the national average price since 2009 (surely it's purely coincidental that 2009 was the beginning of the previous Democrat administration).

The hit to your pocketbook from higher gasoline prices: $2,000 a year.  American consumers are already struggling with the highest inflation in four decades — a phenomenon that is eating into buying power and eroding wages.  But more economic pain may be in store, with one analyst estimating that the recent surge in gas prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine could add up to $2,000 in annual costs to the typical household budget.

The Crude Hypocrisy And Rot Of Green Politics.  That gasoline prices are becoming unaffordable to many Americans is becoming old news.  What got us here, though, is a story unheard by much of the public.  It starts and ends with green politics.  As gasoline reaches prices that made it a luxury good during President Joe Biden's year in office, the White House is considering asking the Saudis to produce more oil.  At the same time, the administration apparently wants more oil from Venezuela, which is languishing under a dictatorship that's squarely aligned with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Iran, a member in good standing with the axis of evil.  "Joe Biden is frantically searching the globe to see if anyone but Texas might have some spare oil," says a tweet from Bryan Dean Wright, a former CIA officer and Oregon Democrat, that sums up well the comical blundering as well as the corrupt decision-making of the current White House.

Why are gas prices so high?  We had high demand and a strong economy throughout Trump's first three years, before the virus, and we did not have high oil prices because we achieved energy independence.  On day one of Biden's presidency, he blocked a pipeline and sent a message that one of his main goals was to destroy the fossil fuel industry in America.  That sent a message to OPEC, Russia, and oil traders that the U.S would not be a major competitor and that sent prices soaring.  OPEC and Russia are very pleased and much richer, more powerful, and more dangerous because of Biden's and other Democrat's policies which most journalists support.  That is clearly why we rarely see supposed reporters blame Biden for the high prices.  They are complicit.

Gas spikes to nearly $7 a gallon in LA County as average national price tops $4 for first time since 2008.  Gas prices spiked to nearly $7 a gallon at at least one Los Angeles station on Sunday — as the national average topped $4 for the first time since the 2008 fiscal crisis.  The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in Los Angeles County was $5.288 on Sunday, according to AAA, while a gallon of diesel cost $5.598.  That is up 9.7 percent from just last week and 13 percent over last month.  And when compared to the same time last year, the average gasoline price on Sunday was 57.5 percent higher.

Which Greedy Execs Make All That Money From $7 Gas?  AAA announced that the U.S. average gas price is now slightly more than $4 per gallon.  Gas is at its highest since 2008.  But before gas prices took a jump due to the first Green New Deal War, being hosted this year by Ukraine and Russia, there was Bidenflation, supply chain fiascos, COVID-19 lockdowns, and Joe Biden's turn toward windmills and Chinese solar panels to fuel cars and planes.  And because he took America away from making most of its own energy, we suckers in the provinces are staring down the barrel of $7-per-gallon gas. [...] The federal government takes 18.4 cents on every gallon of gas sold.  Then comes the house of mirrors at the state and local level.  The Tax Foundation says Alaska has the cheapest taxes at 14.98 cents per gallon.  But California skims 66.98 cents per gallon, the highest in the nation.

Gas prices top $4 a gallon nationwide, all-time record could be broken this week.  The national average price for gas has topped $4 a gallon for the first time in over a decade as gas costs continue to soar in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.  As of Sunday afternoon [3/6/2022], the national average of a regular gallon of gas was $4.009, according to AAA.  That's up 8 cents from Saturday and up 40 cents from last week.  The U.S. hit the $4 national average a day earlier than analysts expected.  The record high for the national average is $4.11, set on July 17, 2008, according to AAA.

Mainland America doesn't rely heavily on Russian oil, but Hawaii does.  Hawaiians, more than residents of any other state, will likely see higher gasoline and energy costs due to Russia's Ukraine war and the resulting soaring oil prices.  "Isolated by the Pacific Ocean, Hawaii is the most petroleum-dependent U.S. state," notes the U.S. Energy Information Administration.  Overall, the U.S. consumes very little Russian oil.  In 2021, oil from that country represented just 3 percent of total U.S. crude imports and just 1% of the oil processed by U.S. refineries, according to the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) trade association.  But Hawaii is an anomaly among U.S. states.  It imports several million barrels of Russian crude oil annually, accounting for 10% to 25% of Russian crude shipments to the U.S. depending on the year.

Biden and Democrats' 'Let Them Eat Cake' Moment in Face of Exploding Gas Prices.  While supporters on social media desperately try to paper over Joe Biden's disastrous energy policies, which are causing near $7.00-per-gallon gas prices, Democrats in his administration are doing the opposite.  And for once, they're telling the truth.  High prices are by design, and they don't care if it hurts your family, your job, your food supply, or your ability to move freely about the country as long as their windmills and Chinese-made solar panels operate your cars and planes.  Don't ask questions.  The timing is spectacularly bad.  Democrat authoritarians have begun removing mandates and lockdowns because the political science has changed and Leftist politicians are being hurt in public opinion polls.  But these autocrats have re-imposed another kind of lockdown.  They're making gas so expensive you won't be able to go anywhere.

California Gas Sets All-Time Record.  As inflation caused by President Biden's policies continues to drive fuel prices higher, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the international instability that's followed has resulted in a new record-setting highs at the pump beginning on Thursday [3/3/2022]: $5.067 per gallon on average in San Francisco — the first time a U.S. city passed the $5 mark.

House Democrats Block Bill to Approve Keystone XL Pipeline, Promote 'American Energy Independence From Russia'.  Legislation promoting U.S. energy independence from Russia has been blocked by House Democrats.  House Republicans introduced the "American Independence from Russian Energy Act" on Feb. 28, a measure meant to authorize the Keystone XL pipeline, boost domestic oil and gas production, and prevent President Joe Biden's executive branch agencies from halting energy leasing on federal land and water, among other provisions.  Yet on March 1, the legislation was shot down in a 221-202 vote, almost entirely along partisan lines.  "Getting our pipelines expanded is huge," Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee and a co-sponsor of the measure, told The Epoch Times.  "We're having to import Russian energy to the New England states because we don't have pipelines that can carry Pennsylvania natural gas up there."

$7 Gas Is Coming and a Poll Shows That Americans Blame Joe Biden for It.  Gas prices have been going up since Joe Biden began cutting off energy sources in the name of global warming Leftism on his first day of office.  Now, a year later, Bidenflation has taken hold, Russia has attacked Ukraine, and the price of a barrel of oil on Wednesday stood at a gasp-inducing $112/barrel.  We're looking at gas prices close to $7.00/gallon. [...] A Fox News poll released a few days ago shows that 73% of Americans say high gas prices "have caused hardship" and 63% blamed Joe Biden.  The poll was taken before Russian invaded Ukraine.  Now things are worse.

Oregon gas prices average over $4.  The average price for gas in Oregon reached over $4 a gallon on Wednesday [3/2/2022], according to a report.  Nationally, the average is just over $3.65, according to the American Automobile Association.  It also reports that Oregon gas costs roughly $2.96 a gallon one year ago.

Senator Lisa Murkowski Comes Out in Favor of Even Higher Gas Prices in Order to Adequately Punish Russia.  This DeceptiCon, this specific one, owned by the multinational corporate conglomerates, is one of the worst in office.  Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski tells Politico tonight [3/2/2022] that she is in favor of higher gas prices for Americans if that's what it takes to punish Vladimir Putin. [...] Here we go with the narrative of you being unpatriotic if you are not willing to financially suffer the pain inflicted intentionally by the U.S. government.  Not willing to pay $7/gal for gasoline?  You're selfish.  Not willing to forego a better life for your family, in order to save Ukraine?  You are a horrible person.

The Economic Balloon That May Finally End Progressive Leftism.  Based on the progressive left's detrimental influence on President Biden's energy policies, the resulting accelerated inflation and energy-cost rise are very visible to average Americans.  The administration acts as if there is no causal connection between the two.  But what can we expect from people who work from feelings and not facts? [...] The energy policies of progressives and leftists are aimed at cutting fossil fuel use and driving us to alternative sources.  Even if we believe there are viable solutions, that transition will take decades.  In the meantime, people must drive to work, and trucks still need to stock grocery stores.  Interim replacement energy must come from somewhere, so shortages merely increase prices for no good reason, except perhaps to punish us.

Price of gas jumps to a national average of $3.61 a gallon — up almost a dollar [since] last year — as price of oil spikes.  American drivers are paying more than $100 to fill up their gas tanks in some parts of the country as prices at the pumps spike due to rising oil prices after Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine.  The national average price of regular unleaded gasoline hit $3.61 on Monday, up eight cents from the average of $3.532 a week ago.  It's also 25 cents higher than the average of $3.356 a month ago and nearly 90 cents from the average of $2.717 a year ago, according to the AAA Gas Price Index.

Record High Gas Prices As Crude Oil Rockets Past $100, But Why?  The world's top oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, has repeatedly said it wants to be the producer that will pump the very last barrel of oil.  Until that time comes, the world and its growing economy will still need oil and gas, even as renewable energy capacity soars globally.  The rebound of economies after the 2020 COVID slump has shown that global oil demand is not only not declining, but it is just months away from reaching pre-pandemic levels and exceeding them.  This weekend, Saudi Arabia once again deplored the underinvestment in oil and gas and said that focusing only on renewables while campaigning against oil and gas was a mistake.

GOP Leaders Call on Biden to Lift His Restrictions on U.S. Oil and Gas.  The Russian invasion into Ukraine is expected to have a devastating effect on the economy worldwide, especially on the energy market, where energy prices are reportedly already soaring with oil costing $100 a barrel for the first time since 2014.  "Joe Biden's reckless energy policies have already driven up the price of oil and gas over the last year," said Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) "Even he and his administration are admitting that they don't want to impose oil and gas sanctions on Russia because they are afraid it's going to add to the inflation they've already created."  Cotton had a better idea.  "How about we impose those sanctions, but we lift all those restrictions on the production of American oil and gas so we can start drilling on federal lands again and putting out new leases," the senator proposed.  "Reopen the Keystone Pipeline which would bring more oil to America every day from Canada than we import every day from Russia," he added.

Even as Russian tanks roll toward Kyiv, the US is still buying a lot of Russian oil.  How much exactly?  The most recent figures from the US Energy Information Administration are from last November.  In that month we bought 17,855,000 barrels of oil from Russia, slightly more than we purchased from Saudi Arabia.  Russia is our third biggest supplier after Canada and Mexico.  Those nearly 18 million barrels or oil in November represented about 7% of the total the US imported that month.  As [Secretary of State] Blinken said, the major concern is that cutting off the Russian oil supply could create a significant problem for the US, sending oil and gas prices spiraling upwards at a time when inflation is already doing the same.

Western Leaders Blame Russia-Ukraine Conflict for Energy Prices, Deflecting From G7 Build Back Better and Climate Change Agenda.  Why would the Biden administration announce yesterday they were cancelling new oil and gas leases if they were worried about the Russia-Ukraine impact on oil and gas prices?  The short answer is, they wouldn't.  If the Biden team were worried about gas prices, they would be doing everything possible to lower gas prices as the Russia-Ukraine crisis unfolds... but they are not.  They are doing the exact opposite.  Why?  Because the Biden administration wants high gas prices as part of the Green New Deal as executed within their energy and regulatory policy.  High gas prices and high energy prices are a feature, not a flaw of Biden policy.  The goal is to achieve approximately $10/gal gasoline at which point the economics of the climate change agenda find parity over fossil fuels for the average person.

U.S. Freezes New Oil And Gas Projects Amid GOP Suit Over Social Cost Of Emissions.  The Biden administration said Saturday [2/19/2022] it would suspend any decisions about new oil and gas drilling amid an ongoing legal battle with 10 Republican states over how to calculate the cost of fossil fuel-driven climate change.  The decision comes amid a recent court ruling over a government metric known as the "social cost of carbon," which sets a dollar figure for the climate change-related damage associated with greenhouse gas emissions.  That figure was $51 per ton of carbon dioxide emitted under President Barack Obama, but slashed to just $7 per ton under President Donald Trump.  President Joe Biden reinstated the $51 metric when he took office and said the administration would update it further as climate change continues.  The figure, as The New York Times notes, is used to guide government decisions on pollution-linked industries, and a higher dollar value in the future could make it harder for new oil and gas projects to move forward.

Whose Fault Are High Gas Prices?  The market that may be exerting the most inflationary pressure on the economy is energy.  Oil is a commodity that is produced, bought, and sold in markets globally.  Production and refining of oil are intimately connected.  Oil is pumped from wells into small tanks on production locations and moved by trucks to large tank farms, where it is stored.  From these storage facilities, it is moved via pipeline to refineries, where it is held in tanks until it is refined.  On April 20, 2020, all the tanks and pipes were full.  Futures for West Texas Intermediate were valued at $-37.63 [per] barrel.  This had never happened before.  Oil has always had value.  For a short time in April of 2020, oil producers had no market and nowhere to store their product. [...] If we reflect on negative oil prices in April 2020, we understand why all the oil rigs came to a full stop.  Producers also made another move they rarely make:  they closed the valves on many of their wells.  If you have no market or storage, you have no choice.

Democrats' Gas Tax Gimmick Is Beyond Stupid.  Except in the months preceding a crucial midterm election, today's Democrats would argue that high gas prices are a good thing.  They see gas prices as a Pigouvian tax on fossil fuels that accelerate the shift to renewable "green" energy.  Regulatory and legislative actions such as killing the Keystone Pipeline early last year, and closing off federal lands for oil drilling, were made by the Biden Administration and its congressional cohorts knowing full well such decisions would raise gas prices for consumers.  Democrats were okay with that, until their polling numbers began dipping into the frigid zone.  It appears now to have dawned on them that higher gas pump prices are a ballot box killer; this year in particular with Joe Biden's poll numbers deeper underground than oil shale.  This has left Democrats scrambling to find a way to explain to voters how paying more at the pump is a positive part of their environment masterplan, resulting in one of the dumbest proposals to come out of Congress in decades — which is saying something.

US projected to give up net oil exporter status this year.  The United States is projected to lose its status as a net petroleum exporter this year as refiners and other customers seek out more product from elsewhere amid ballooning demand.  This change in trade dynamics would disrupt what the Energy Information Administration described as the "historic shift" that took place in 2020, when the U.S. became a net exporter of petroleum products due to its strong production output and the effects the COVID-19 pandemic had on oil markets.

Uh-oh.  This means the price of gas will go up ten cents tomorrow morning — in Oklahoma.
Germany Halts Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Certification in Response to Russian Aggression.  German chancellor Olaf Scholz announced on Tuesday that his government will halt the certification process for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in response to Russia's recognition of two separatist Ukrainian enclaves.  Nord Stream 2, which is controlled by a subsidiary of Russia's state-owned energy corporation Gazprom, is completed and filled with gas but has not yet come online.  Germany had expected to double imports of natural gas from Russia via the pipeline.

How fossil fuels have fared under Biden.  Domestic oil and gas production has recovered from the pandemic recession to near all-time highs under President Joe Biden despite his campaign pledges to crack down on fossil fuels.  Biden has taken several high-profile actions against fossil fuels, including blocking the Keystone XL pipeline and placing a moratorium on new leases for drilling for oil and gas on public lands.  The moratorium, though, has gotten tied up in courts.  And Biden's legislative efforts to boost clean energy have stalled, while his plans for implementing agency regulations to limit fossil fuel use have been slow to be realized.  The result so far is that Biden has gotten the worst of both worlds: high oil and gasoline prices that have weakened his standing with voters, and expanded production that has provoked liberal environmentalists.

Biden the Bloodshedder Steals Our Livelihood.  [Scroll down]  One industry has been especially hard hit, and not because of the normal business cycle.  The decline in the oil and gas industry is almost entirely Joe Biden's fault, and instead of apologizing for it, he brags about it.  The long held dream of the left is to force energy prices high enough that consumers will turn to wind and solar.  With gas prices heading toward five dollars a gallon, electric cars may seem more attractive.  There should have been a huge recovery in U.S. oil production, what with oil prices more than quadrupling since their COVID low.  That has not been the case, and that is why gas prices have remained high — as have prices for heating oil, natural gas, and other petroleum products.  The most recent rig count figure is 392, down from 900 or more through most of 2019 and 2020.  Current drilling is not much improved from the lows of 2021, when economic activity stagnated due to Biden's handling of the epidemic.  Drilling is less than expected because Biden has carried out a war on fossil fuels, including his executive orders halting the Keystone XL pipeline, banning new drilling on federal lands including ANWR, and strong-arming banks not to lend to energy producers.

At last, the liberals have found a tax they don't like; at least until after the mid-term election.
Democrats Looking to Suspend Federal Gas Tax For the Rest of 2022.  The voters are exhausted by COVID restrictions, worried about inflation, and uncertain that the president is up to the task of governing.  When politicians get into trouble, the first thing they think about is how to throw money at the voters to distract them from their problems.  Accordingly, Democrats in Congress are looking to ease the high cost of gas at the pump by suspending the 18-cent-a-gallon federal gas tax.  Of course, the $40 billion or so that the gas tax brings in would be lost, adding to the federal deficit.  Some in Congress have mentioned taking money from other line items to maintain the Highway Trust Fund.  But at this point, who cares?  What's $40 billion when Democrats (and Republicans) have been adding trillions of dollars to the federal budget deficit?

Embracing a gas tax gimmick, Biden takes election-year vote-buying to a new low.  President Joe Biden's administration began with attacks on the fossil fuel industry.  Among his first acts in office were the cancellation of a key pipeline and a halt to new federal drilling leases. [...] Biden is an unmitigated embarrassment when it comes to energy.  Since taking office, he has repeatedly and obsequiously prostrated himself, begging every tinpot dictator and theocrat anywhere else in the world to make more oil — just so long as it isn't made by people in the U.S.  He has begged OPEC for more production even as he retards production at home.  Even worse, Biden is now jumping on board with a gimmicky election-year plan for a federal gas tax holiday through the end of 2022.  He thinks 18.4 cents a gallon is enough to buy off swing voters in spite of his administration's appalling performance so far.  Sure, this gas tax gimmick might save you up to $3 every time you fill up your car, but a gas tax holiday cuts into the funding that is supposed to be going toward infrastructure.  Biden could reduce gas prices by even more than that without sacrificing the revenue if he would only let American producers do their thing.

Energy Markets Are Jittery as Russia-Ukraine Tensions Drag On.  [Scroll down]  Oil prices have risen to well over $90 a barrel — their highest levels since 2014 — in recent days as fears of war have grown.  Many energy experts say an invasion would easily propel the price above $100 a barrel.  The average price for regular gasoline in the United States has risen to nearly $3.50, a rise of almost 20 cents over the last month and nearly $1 more than a year ago, according to AAA.  Diesel prices have been rising a penny a gallon every day recently.  Higher fuel prices hurt rural and working-class consumers the most because they spend a larger percentage of their incomes on energy and because they typically drive longer distances in less fuel-efficient cars.  For every penny that a gallon of regular gasoline rises, it costs American consumers $4 million a day, said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis for Oil Price Information Service.

Joe Biden, Alchemist?  Perhaps the greatest Biden catastrophe was turning an energy independent, oil and gas exporting nation into a dependent importer again.  Worse, Biden even begged the once roundly trashed Saudis and the supposedly demonic Vladimir Putin to please pump more oil.  To explain doubling gas prices, we were told initially, of course, that "COVID-19 did it."  Or we were lectured that canceling pipelines, yanking new federal oil and gas leases, making Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge off limits to energy exploration, jawboning banks to restrict loans to energy companies, and scolding frackers were all part of a new "balanced" plan to "address climate change" (e.g., the repackaging of Obama Energy Secretary Steven Chu's ossified plan of getting the cost of gasoline up to proper "European levels").  Then the alchemists tried new formulas of blaming oil companies and corporations (most of whose CEOS are woke) for "price gouging."

Biden's oil nightmare.  If you think the highest overall inflation rate in 40 years of 7% is bad, get ready for a real shock coming to a pump near you.  Oil prices are surging so much that, ironically, even the "Green New Deal" president is begging global and domestic producers alike to ramp up production and pump, pump, pump!  And despite his releasing millions of barrels of crude from the strategic oil reserve and pleading with oil-rich nations to increase their output, prices continue to climb.  In early December, oil was trading at $65 per barrel.  Today, it's over $90, which is more than a 50% increase in little over a couple of months.  This past week, the average price of gasoline in the United States hit a seven-year high at the pump, but there's still much more to come.

Democrats propose federal gas tax holiday ahead of midterm elections.  Two Senate Democrats up for reelection proposed a bill on Wednesday to temporarily suspend the federal gas tax through the end of 2022, as millions of Americans grapple with the economic impacts of surging oil prices.  The Gas Prices Relief Act from Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., would suspend the $18.4 cents per gallon federal gas tax through Jan. 1, 2023, according to a summary of the proposal shared with ABC News.  The senators, who are both on the ballot in November, released the proposal at a time when gas is roughly $3.45 a gallon nationwide, about $1 more expensive than a year ago, according to AAA.

Gas prices climb to highest level in more than 7 years as oil surges above $90.  Gas prices rose to the highest level in more than seven years Friday, on the heels of the U.S. oil benchmark topping $90 per barrel for the first time since 2014.  The national average for a gallon of gas stood at $3.423 on Friday, according to AAA, slightly surpassing the prior high-water mark of $3.422 from Nov. 8.  Friday's price means consumers are now paying the most at the pump since Sept. 10, 2014, AAA data shows.  The national average stood at $2.44 a year ago.  The rapid rise in prices is contributing to inflationary fears across the economy and is creating a headache for the Biden administration.

Biden-Obama Gas Prices Reach Highest Point Since 2014 When Obama-Biden Were in Office.  Gasoline prices have risen, on average, 40% in the past 11 months.  This leads to higher consumer costs across the board.  Oil, currently $90/barrel, is going to go even higher as a merge of Biden economic, regulatory, energy and foreign policies are going to make things worse.  As the Obama-Biden administration previously said when they achieved their last historic increase in gas prices, "U.S. energy prices will necessarily skyrocket", in order to achieve their ideological climate change objectives.

Joe Biden:  The Price of An Illegitimate, Incompetent Ideologue.  It was two years, maybe three, into what I have called the gas wars in New York.  That would have been 2010-2011 and I was very deeply involved.  I remember hearing our President at the time, Barack Obama, state then that, in order to make renewables attractive to the people in the USA, we had to expect electricity prices to skyrocket because we had to make fossil fuels as expensive as possible.  We needed to force up gasoline prices to European levels of, say, ten dollars a gallon to save the planet.  And, who was his Vice President?  The empty husk standing in for President today, Joe Biden, as unseen Obama types direct his moves behind the curtain.  Last night, on the evening news, the speculation was that oil could hit $150 a barrel by June, 2022.  That same barrel of oil today is an already high $85.25 dollars, driving the price of gas as high as $4.71 a gallon in California.  Here in Upstate New York it's at $3.45 a gallon.  This the price of Joe Biden[.]  It doesn't stop at gas.  Home heating fuels such as oil, kerosene, and even wood and wood pellets are way up in prices.

The Editor says...
The irritating thing about four-dollar gas is that it is completely avoidable, as President Trump demonstrated.  With an America-first President in the White House, gas prices could be cut in half.

As Biden doubles down on his War on Energy, prices keep shooting up.  Biden's Environmental Protection Agency is writing new rules that will raise costs for fossil-fuel-based power plants.  And, as Kenneth R. Timmerman noted in The [New York] Post last week, Team Biden has also moved to kill the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Pipeline, which would've brought Israeli and Cypriot natural gas to gas-starved Europe, helping ease shortages there.  The prez is also reviving Obama-era loan guarantees for "clean energy" producers, starting with $1 billion in backing for a Nebraska company that will make "clean" hydrogen.  That guarantee could cost taxpayers; think Solyndra, the solar-panel company Team Obama aided to the tune of $500 million before it went belly-up — only with the stakes now twice as high.  Favoring such companies also puts traditional energy producers at a competitive disadvantage.

Biden: 3 pipelines, 3 disasters.  What is it with the confused Biden and pipelines?  Disaster 1.  [On] day one of his presidency, he signed an executive order closing down the Keystone pipeline, throwing thousands of Americans out of work.  Thereby, American went from being energy independent to the president begging OPEC to increase production, which they refused.  Result?  What's the cost of filling up your vehicles, America?

Gas Prices on the Rise Again, Biden Corporate Media Concerned About Political Impact.  One of the biggest and most frequently stated lies in American media and financial punditry; motivated entirely by their alignment with the hoax of global climate change; is that a United States President can do nothing about gasoline prices.  This is an oft familiar claim by the political left, media pundits, financial media and leftist economists.  It is one of the more transparently false assertions in their arsenal of deceit.  CNN reports that gas prices are rising again as the White House occupant's inflation and supply chain crises persist, during a segment on CNN's "New Day" with John Berman and Brianna Keila.  [Video clip]

U.S. crude oil production fell by 8% in 2020, largest decrease on record.  U.S. crude oil production fell by 8% in 2020, the largest annual decrease on record, the U.S. Energy Information Agency reports.  This plunge occurred one year after the U.S. reached a record annual average high of 12.2 million barrels a day in production in 2019.  In January 2020, U.S. crude oil production reached a peak of 12.8 million b/d.  But with federal and state lockdowns halting travel over coronavirus fears, demand for oil dropped and production became too expensive to maintain.  By March 2020, the oil and gas industry experienced a "bloodbath," and by April, the WTI was negative $40 a barrel for the first time in history.  Prices at the pump also reached historic lows.

Joe Biden's Top 25 Worst Moments of 2021.  [#17] Joe Biden [is] Clueless as He Marvels at $4.50 a Gallon Gas Prices:  In November 2021, Biden marveled at the high cost of gas, without acknowledging his policies that were hurting domestic oil production.  "Did you ever think you'd be paying this much for a gallon of gas?" Biden said.  "In some parts of California, they're paying $4.50 a gallon."  The high cost of gas was a persistent problem throughout 2021, as Biden and his administration failed to enact more regulatory relief and policies that would actually increase domestic oil production and lower prices.  On day one of his presidency, Biden revoked a crucial permit for the Keystone XL pipeline, halting construction of the project.  Biden also ordered a pause on all oil and gas leases on federal lands.

COVID-19 and the Profitability of U.S. Oil.  Donald Trump had to be the most fossil-fuel friendly U.S. president of recent times.  When he became president, Trump quickly reversed Obama's energy policies; the Keystone Pipeline was approved, imports from the Middle East were cut, and the price at the pump came down.  It was claimed that America had become "energy independent" and was again a "net exporter" of oil.  In 2018, the U.S. oil business even surpassed the record petroleum production peak set in 1970.  Inasmuch as American petroleum production had been sliding downward since 1970, how did this come about?  It came about because of "unconventional oil," e.g. shale oil.

Rising gas price projections complicate Biden's horizons.  Analysts expect U.S. gasoline prices to rise as high as $4 per gallon by this summer, putting a pinch on drivers and exacerbating problems for President Biden.  The White House has seen Biden's approval ratings fall due to a mix of problems, including inflation and higher prices at the pump.  In the last several weeks, administration officials have touted a slight drop in prices, claiming the fall is linked to various Biden policies.  But a new forecast from fuel price app GasBuddy released on Wednesday [12/29/2021] said fuel prices this June could climb to anywhere between $3.43 and $4.13 per gallon.  Prices at the higher end in particular would be an unwelcome development for Democrats in a midterm election year where they are already worried about losing their House and Senate majorities.

Gasoline prices poised to hit $4 a gallon in 2022: report.  Gasoline prices are on track to reach a national average of $4 a gallon next year — just in time for the summer driving season, according to a new forecast.  Consumers will get walloped just as school lets out and families take to the road, predicts GasBuddy, an app that tracks fuel prices and energy demand.  "We could see a national average that flirts with, or in a worst-case scenario, potentially exceeds $4 a gallon," Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy's head of petroleum analysis, told CNN, which first reported the eye-popping price.  The forecast runs counter to the current trend in which gasoline prices have been coming down, reaching a national average of $3.29 a gallon on Monday, down 13 cents from the peak of $3.42 on Nov. 8, according to AAA.

Oil may hit $100 in 2022 as US energy independence dwindles.  Energy prices exploded in 2021, and 2022 may bring a repeat unless the Biden administration changes its anti-fossil fuel agenda.  Canceled pipelines and drilling moratoriums have created a toxic environment for U.S. oil and gas investment.  Because of this, the U.S. will be undersupplied in the new year unless the omicron variant shuts us down or if rising costs drive the economy into a recession.  If these shadows of our current energy policy remain unaltered, then oil prices should surge to just shy of $100 a barrel next year.

The madness of King Brandon.  On his first day in office, via executive order, Biden closed the Keystone pipeline for no other reason than a spiteful rebuke of President Trump's energy independence program.  It was a hare-brained sop to his fellow environmentalist lunatics who believed that this gesture would somehow "heal the planet" and reduce the phantom scourge of climate change.  How that was supposed to make a difference is anybody's guess.  It did, however, immediately succeed in reducing the supply of petroleum to our nation and raising the price of consumer gasoline and oil, as well as transporting goods.  Great start there, Joe!

What Gasoline is Called Around the World.  [Infographic]

No one to blame for the oil crisis but Biden's lousy policies.  If you are not Greta Thunberg, but the president of the United States, what's the first thing you do when returning from a global climate conference — especially one where you pledged to reduce emissions by over 50% in eight years?  How about releasing an additional 50 million barrels of oil from your strategic reserves while begging domestic and foreign oil producers to ramp up production? [...] The pledge is to release 50 million barrels from strategic reserves into the market along with similar pledges from ally nations that add up to about that much as well.  That's a total of 100 million barrels.  Ready?  That's one day's worth of global consumption.  One day!  No, this will have zero effect on the market price at all.  It's not even a rounding error.  In fact, spot oil prices are rising in response, and most traders are pricing oil futures a few months out at levels that put sweet light crude around $100 per barrel.  That's 25 bucks more than it trades at now.  What does that mean?  It means more than a buck more per gallon at the pump!

Multi-state carbon tax scheme on gasoline collapses.  A dozen states have been considering a tax on carbon dioxide emissions from gasoline and diesel fuel, starting at about 10 cents a gallon and rising to perhaps 40 cents over time.  The idea was higher prices would discourage driving, and the revenue would be used to promote electric vehicles (EV) and public transportation.  Last December, only three state governors signed onto this project (Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts).  This week, two of the three state governors (Connecticut and Massachusetts) abandoned the project, effectively ending it.

The Biden gas pump is killing the family budget.  Is President Biden capable of changing course and realizing that he is on the road to a bad election day in 2022?  President Biden could start by reversing the executive orders on the Keystone Pipeline and oil exploration.  It would have a massive impact on producers, who would fill the inventory with oil.  So is Biden capable of doing his version of Palin's "drill, baby, drill"?  We are where we are because of decisions made by this administration.  Therefore, they are the only ones who can undo or cancel their orders.  If they do, then maybe those pump prices could come back.  If they don't, then pity any Democrat running in a competitive election in 2022.

'Large Portion' of Oil Tapped from Strategic Reserves by Biden Will Go to China, India.  Supposedly aimed at lowering fuel prices for Americans who continue to struggle under inflation that has accompanied the Biden administration's economic policies, the president announced last week that he would be tapping into the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve.  It turns out, though, that some of the taxpayer-bought oil pulled from America's strategic stockpile won't even find its way to American refineries and eventually down the line to gas pumps in the United States.  As Bloomberg reported, a "large portion" of the 50 million barrels being released would likely go to China and India.  According to traders, that's because the released supplies "consist of sour crude, a type of oil that U.S. refiners are shunning due to its high sulfur content, which makes it more expensive to process."  Foreign buyers, on the other hand, don't mind paying less for lower-quality oil.

Joe Biden's Dirty Little Secret:  He Wants Higher Gasoline Prices.  When he announced last week that he would release more oil from the American Strategic Petroleum Reserve, President Joe Biden told the American people he is doing everything possible to bring down gas prices at the pump.  That's a lie.  This administration and the climate change crazies have declared war on American energy.  They want high oil and gas prices.  The Biden master plan is for American oil and gas production and consumption to go to zero over the next 15 to 20 years.  How do you achieve that goal?  By making oil and gas so expensive and so unavailable that Americans are forced to use alternatives.  In other words, the fact that gasoline is roughly $1.25 more expensive per gallon today under Biden than it was a year ago under former President Donald Trump didn't happen by accident.  This was not a result of a natural disaster, such as a hurricane, that could knock out our oil facilities.  This was by design.

Nobody can make two-dollar gas from $100 oil.
Biden's Blunder Could Send Oil Prices To $100.  When President Biden announced earlier this week that the federal government would be releasing 50 million barrels of crude from the strategic petroleum reserve, perhaps those around him expected prices to go down significantly and stay down.  Instead, prices rose, and OPEC+ gave a heavy hint it might cut supply.  By Friday, oil prices fell sharply, but that was due to a new wave of Covid-19 fears and has little if anything to do with Biden's announcement that oil would be unleashed from emergency stockpiles.  But what comes next could send oil to $100.  Energy analysts warned that a release of SPR may not have the desired effect.

This guy has one solution for everything:
Buttigieg says once families own electric cars, they will 'never have to worry about gas prices again'.  Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said that once families embrace electric cars, they will "never have to worry about gas prices again."  Buttigieg explained to MSNBC's Jonathan Capehart Sunday that the Biden administration's Build Back Better legislation includes incentives for families to switch to electric vehicles.  "Most of the physical infrastructure work was contemplated in the bill that was just signed, but there is more envisioned in the Build Back Better law," Buttigieg explained.  "I'll give you one example:  It contains incentives to make it more affordable to buy an electric vehicle, up to a $12,500 discount in effect for families thinking about getting an EV."

Biden's oil and gas leasing "reform" proposal pleases absolutely no one.  When Debra Haaland snuck through confirmation (with 51 votes) to become the Secretary of the Interior, everyone who had been paying attention knew that she was going to be gunning for the oil and gas industry.  That made her a valuable ally for Joe Biden, who began working to shut down pipeline construction and "pause" energy exploration on public lands within hours of being sworn in.  (Unless the pipeline is owned by Russia, of course, in which case he basically finances it.)  Now, with gas prices spiking dramatically and in the midst of what is quickly becoming the Biden energy crisis, Haaland's Interior Department has released a "review" of the country's oil and gas leasing process, in which she finds "significant shortcomings."  The timing of this was no accident, as Joe Biden had been under pressure from progressive ecowarriors to find ways to stop drilling on public lands.

Biden Administration Calls for Ratcheting Up Oil Drilling Fees Despite Skyrocketing Gas Prices.  The Biden administration on Friday suggested raising the rates for energy companies to drill for oil and natural gas on public lands amid rising fuel prices and after President Joe Biden tapped the country's Strategic Petroleum Reserve just days before.  A report from the U.S. Department of the Interior cited climate concerns when recommending that companies pay more, as the federal government attempts to lower the price of fuel at the pump.  The report was ordered by Biden when he took office in January.

Biden is Concern-trolling high energy prices to voters — and working on the sly to raise them higher.  Joe Biden has repeatedly claimed that high energy prices, including soaring prices at the pump, are some kind of priority for him.  He's made loud noises for the cameras about a couple of piddly measures of his to cut energy costs for consumers, which would at best be temporary and at worst, useless.  But out on the sly, he's stepping up his war on Big Oil, something he doesn't want you to know about, which will raise energy prices.  He's still Creepy Joe.  On camera, he loves to say the things he thinks all those voters who now disapprove of him would like to hear.

Buried lede:  The real reason the Saudis are refusing Joe Biden's beggings to ramp up oil production.  Joe Biden has driven up energy prices by halting leases for drilling on federal lands, shutting down the critical Keystone XL pipeline, and demonizing Big Oil with investigations into skyrocketing energy prices, which are globally set.  What he hasn't been doing is anything constructive to lower energy prices.  He's thrown out shiny baubles such as the release of two days' oil reserves onto the global markets as his claimed 'tool' for driving down energy prices, hoping you don't notice his other acts.  He's pathetically begged the Saudis and OPEC sheiks to raise production in lieu of the local pipelines and production he has shut down.  But now there's another way he's driving energy prices sky-high [...]

President Biden's Latest Oil Directives Lead To Nowhere Very Fast.  In President Biden's America, it seems, oil policy keeps morphing as fast as it can, but with scant achievement.  Indeed, it has proved regressive for the country.  Energy analysts tracking US oil policy since President Biden's inauguration find themselves deeper and deeper into the absurdities of Alice's Wonderland.  The latest in President Biden's approach to soaring fuel prices is to release crude oil from its strategic crude oil reserves.  This marks the first time in decades that a sitting US president has resorted to releasing its emergency oil stockpile to handle market-determined rising fuel prices.

Joe Biden Moves to [Raise Prices] at the Pump.  Just days ago, Joe Biden was insisting that his climate change provisions weren't causing higher gas prices.  You see, according to the White House, canceling Keystone XL and limiting oil and gas leases in the name of fighting global warming doesn't actually have an effect on gas prices.  Of course, most of us realize that's a complete lie because we understand basic economics.  And while Biden may be senile, he's cognizant enough to understand what he's doing.  When you lower the supply and make oil more expensive, you end up with higher prices at the pump.  In fact, the current hike in gas prices tracks with the rise in the price of oil almost perfectly.

Because gas prices aren't high enough yet:
Interior report calls on Biden to raise costs of oil and gas drilling on federal land.  The Interior Department on Friday recommended that the Biden administration consider raising royalty rates for oil and gas drilling leasing on federal lands, a move aimed partly at addressing climate change even as the White House also grapples with high gas prices and inflation.  In an 18-page report, Interior officials said the royalty rates the government charges private drilling companies haven't been raised for 100 years and that the current 12.5% surcharge on profits "shortchanges taxpayers."  "The Interior Department has an obligation to responsibly manage our public lands and waters — providing a fair return to the taxpayer and mitigating worsening climate impacts — while staying steadfast in the pursuit of environmental justice," Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement.

The Editor says...
What "climate impacts" exist today that didn't exist 100 years ago?  What does "environmental justice" mean?

The Biden Administration Hasn't a Clue About Why Gas Prices are Soaring.  It's hard to not find oneself full of contempt with the Biden White House, given its flatfooted response to soaring energy prices.  Nationwide average energy prices have shot up 70.63% since Joe took office back in January, going from $2.40 a gallon on Jan. 25, to $3.40 a gallon today, according to AAA data.  In the eight western-most states in the union, plus Pennsylvania, the average goes as high as $4.71 a gallon.  That comes on top of a record 69% rise in oil prices that occurred in the interim between Joe's "election" and the day Joe took office.  That kind of pricing is known in markets as "anticipatory."  With pile-on price spikes, apparently the markets didn't anticipate enough.

Many environmentalists back Biden's move to tap oil reserve.  Democrats and climate activists generally supported President Joe Biden's decision to release a record 50 million barrels of oil from America's strategic reserve, even as the move appeared to contradict his long-term vision of combating climate change.  The U.S. action, announced Tuesday [11/23/2021] in coordination with countries such as India, the United Kingdom and China, is aimed at global energy markets and helping lower gasoline prices that have risen more than a dollar per gallon since January.

The Editor says...
The Associated Press dodges the obvious:  The price of gas is way up because Joe Biden (or whoever is making his decisions for him) is crippling the production and delivery of oil and gas in any way he can.  Biden (or whoever) has also decided to print billions of dollars and distribute them to everyone, which predictably caused a surge in inflation.  Climate change has nothing to do with it.  The price of gas in India, the U.K., and China may be higher, too; but they have their own reasons, mostly pertaining to increased demand.

The Biden Administration Got Absolutely Played After Release of Oil From the Strategic Reserves.  Over the last few days, the mainstream media have expressed jubilation at Joe Biden's decision to release oil from the strategic reserves.  The largely symbolic, wholly temporary move was made to try to relieve gas prices as people gear up to travel for the holiday season.  After months of the press insisting that Biden had no control over gas prices, they are now praising him for supposedly lowering gas prices.  Except, it looks like that's not actually going to happen, at least not at the level hoped.  Per a new report, Russia and Saudi Arabia are gearing up to undercut Biden's political ploy, which was obviously done in response to his cratering approval numbers.

Oil Reserves Released by Biden Will Go Primarily To Benefit India and China.  The 50 million barrels of oil that Joe Biden has ordered released from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve will largely go to China and India, according to Fox Business News.  About 18 million barrels of that oil have been earmarked for sale by Congress.  The other 32 million barrels will go to the American consumer.  Since the oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is what's known as "sour" crude — oil with large levels of sulfur that makes it more expensive to refine — it's far more attractive to foreign buyers like China because it's relatively inexpensive compared to the "sweet" crude that's easier to turn into gasoline at the refinery.

Do Not Fall for Joe Biden's Slick New Oil Trick.  Joe Biden felt a need to escape the luxury of the White House for the holiday.  So just before burning a few tons of jet fuel and emitting fresh carbon emissions on the four-hour flight to Nantucket, President Climate Change ordered the Energy Department to release 50 million barrels of oil from the nation's precious Strategic Petroleum Reserve.  He says his decisive action will help ease the gasoline price surge.  Yeh, right.  The only thing his PR move will do is get him one, maybe two, news cycles' publicity from sympathetic D.C. media types who Uber everywhere anyway.  That strategic reserve is an immense stash of oil purchased at lower prices by savvy previous presidents, including most recently Donald Trump, and pumped into salt caverns deep underground at four sites in Texas and Louisiana.  Currently, it contains some 612 million barrels of oil of its maximum 714 million.  That can seem like a lot of oil; though it's barely enough to fuel the country for six months.  Then, you compare it to the proven oil reserves beneath just Saudi Arabia's desert, which are 266,578,000,000 barrels.

The Biden Administration Prepares to Make the Oil Crisis Worse (on Purpose).  President Joe Biden is probably the most capable president in recent history, at least when it comes to taking on James Buchanan or Jimmy Carter as the worst president in history.  His handling of just about every crisis thrown at his administration has been so utterly disastrous that it's almost as if they want to make things worse.  Today, the Biden Administration is expected to announce the release of 50 million barrels of oil in an effort to combat the energy crisis happening during one of the busiest travel seasons of the year.  If you check out the government's Energy Information Administration site, you'll see that Americans averaged about 18.16 million barrels per day in 2020.  So, the Biden administration is releasing about three days' worth of oil while Americans are doing all our traveling.  It's not just us.  Several countries appear to be planning to do the same thing.

Biden to release 50M barrels of oil from Strategic Petroleum Reserve amid gas price spike.  President Biden said the Department of Energy will release 50 million barrels of oil held in the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, as Americans pay more for gas now than they have in years.  China, India, Japan the Republic of Korea and the United Kingdom will likewise tap their reserves in a coordinated effort to drive down prices.  Of the 50 million barrels, 32 million will be released but eventually returned to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in the next few years, the White House said.  The remaining 18 million barrels are part of a sale that Congress has already authorized; the White House said it was accelerating the release of that sale.

Biden opens Strategic Petroleum Reserve to blunt gas prices.  The Biden administration announced Tuesday [11/23/2021] that it will release 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in an effort to bring down the cost of gasoline as drivers face the highest prices in years.  The decision ends weeks of speculation that President Joe Biden would resort to the measure as high prices cut into his approval ratings. [...] The decision came in spite of opposition from domestic oil producers, with the Independent Petroleum Association of America deriding opening the SPR in this instance as a way to "manipulate" the market.  Industry groups have demanded Biden ease up on policies restricting fossil fuel exploration and encourage production instead.

Hey, RINOs!  How's all this working for you?  President Trump shifted the whole global energy landscape by opening up access to America's abundant energy resources.  He directed federal agencies to pare down obstructive regulations.  Opened federal lands and waters to energy exploration.  Created thousands of jobs and reduced the burden on low-income families in electricity and fuel costs.  He gave a green light to oil and natural gas development.  Biden?  Well, how does $4 a gallon for gas and higher grab you?  Okay with it?  Joe scrapped the Keystone XL pipeline, suspended oil and natural gas leases in Alaska, and now has embarrassingly begged for help from OPEC to increase their oil production to offset this foolishness.  They refused.  You made your "gas-less" bed; now you can sleep on it!  Democrats will say increased demand and COVID-induced tangled global supply chains have caused the rise in food and energy costs, but did they have to make it worse with their obeisance to the "green goddess"?

Something very peculiar is happening with our Strategic Petroleum Reserve.  It's no secret that Americans are paying record prices at the gas pumps.  Rapidly ascending prices also affect the cost of all the goods and services that are an integral part of the American economy.  Farmers, manufacturers, delivery companies, repair people...you name it: they're paying more to do their jobs, and they're passing those costs to consumers.  So why now, of all times, is the Biden administration selling off America's Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to Asia?  As the name suggests, the SPR is America's emergency backup supply of oil.  The reason we have it is because of the energy crisis in the early 1970s. [...] Fast-forward to 2021.  Upon entering the Oval Office, one of the first things Biden did was to shut down the Keystone XL pipeline.  Henceforth, rather than flowing safely through a pipeline, Canadian oil will come the expensive way, over land, whether in trucks (which are in short supply) or on trains.  At the same time, Biden halted new oil, gas, and coal leases on federal lands, something that's being fought in the courts.  As long as the suit continues, no sane business would start to drill.  Biden's also on the verge of ending all new oil and gas leases around major Native American cultural sites, which will shut down massive amounts of exploration and drilling in New Mexico.  And following initial denials, the administration admitted that it plans to close a major Michigan pipeline.

Barrasso: Russian Oil Tankers Will Deliver in Boston Harbor This Winter as Result of Biden Policies.  Tuesday [11/16/2021] on Fox Business Network's "Varney & Company," Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) warned that because of President Joe Biden's energy policy, Russian oil tankers would be "making delivery in the Boston Harbor this winter."  According to Barrasso, "the American people are paying the price" for the Biden administration being "wrong" on energy.  "John Kerry and Joe Biden, these two merry men who seem to think the United States can power ourselves on windmills and solar panels are just wrong, and the American people are paying the price," Barrasso lamented.  "That is the real problem we have."

Biden asks FTC to investigate 'illegal conduct' by oil, gas companies as prices surge.  President Biden on Wednesday [11/17/2021] called for the Federal Trade Commission to probe whether oil and gas companies are engaging in criminal conduct by profiting from artificially high prices at the pump, even as wholesale fuel costs decline.  Biden — under mounting political pressure with inflation at the highest rate in more than three decades — urged FTC Chair Lina Khan in a letter to investigate potential wrongdoing by the industry, alleging "mounting evidence of anti-consumer behavior" by the companies.  "The bottom line is this: gasoline prices at the pump remain high, even though oil and gas companies' costs are declining," Biden said.  "The Federal Trade Commission has authority to consider whether illegal conduct is costing families at the pump.  I believe you should do so immediately."  A gallon of gas, on average, was $3.41 nationwide on Tuesday, according to AAA — up from $2.11 a year ago.

Joe Biden Blames Record High Energy Prices on Oil Companies, Calls for Investigation.  President Joe Biden on Wednesday dodged responsibility for record-high energy prices and asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate oil companies for "anti-competitive behavior."  With nationwide gas prices reaching historic highs, inflation marking a thirty-year high, and a supply chain that seems permanently broken, President Biden is presumably seeking to escape responsibility for his failed energy agenda by placing blame on oil companies. [...] Just after taking office, Biden revoked the Keystone XL Pipeline.  The pipeline would have transported 35 million gallons of crude oil per day from Nebraska to the Gulf Coast.  Biden has also allowed Russia to access European energy markets by building a pipeline from Russia to Germany.  The project is a direct hit to American producers who sell oil to European nations.  President Biden is also weighing whether to cancel a 78-year-old Line 5 oil Michigan pipeline.  The pipeline may be terminated because 12 federally recognized tribes asked the administration to do so.

With gas prices soaring, Biden calls for probe into possible 'illegal conduct'.  President Joe Biden on Wednesday called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate if "illegal conduct" is to blame for surging gas prices hurting Americans' pocketbooks.  Fuel prices are averaging above $3.40 a gallon, according to the American Automotive Association, which forecasts more than 48 million Americans are likely to hit the road next week to drive to Thanksgiving celebrations. [...] Biden's call for a probe is not likely to lead to any immediate relief at the pump.  The move prompted swift pushback from the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, which argued bad administration policy decisions, coupled with a market shift, have caused spiking prices.  "This is a distraction from the fundamental market shift that is taking place and the ill-advised government decisions that are exacerbating this challenging situation.  Demand has returned as the economy comes back and is outpacing supply," said Frank Macchiarola, API's senior vice president of policy, economics and regulatory affairs.

Gas Prices At The Pump Reach New Heights.  Sticker shock at San Francisco Bay Area gas pumps was beginning to reach panic levels early Monday as prices surged to more than $4.85 a gallon, setting a new record for the state for a second day in a row.  Prices were pushing $5 in some areas, including in Humboldt County, where the average price was $4.97 Monday [11/15/2021].

The White House's Latest Statement on Gas Prices Is So Astonishingly Stupid...  In the ongoing saga that has been the stream of completely delusional propaganda that has been coming out of the Biden White House, nothing has been more astounding than the spin on our current economic downturn. [...] They believe that higher gas prices, which are directly attributable to Biden's policies, are somehow a justification for doubling down on investment (hint: your tax dollars) on "clean energy options" (except the cleanest and most efficient, nuclear) so that we aren't dependent upon foreign oil, which we already weren't when they came to office?  This is either a flat-out stupid understanding of how energy prices are determined or, and much more likely in my opinion, an admission to altering policy to send gas prices soaring as a means to justify insane spending on less effective and more expensive energy sources.  When Biden came to power in January, gas prices were low and stable.  Right off the bat, Biden canceled the Keystone Oil Pipeline, destroying oil futures.  He paused all new oil and gas leases.  His policies have not just been pro-clean-energy, they have been anti-fossil-fuel, which has sent a panic through energy producers as to how to proceed with plans for more US and Canadian production of petroleum and natural gas.  After the unilateral cancelation of Keystone, current pipelines like Enbridge's Line 5 in Michigan, which ships 540,000 barrels of oil a day, are left in limbo wondering if and when the Biden Administration might come for them next.  In the case of Line 5, another enviro-wacko administration, this time, Governor Whitmer's in Michigan, unilaterally ordered the end of the use of the pipeline in May.

Prices Continue to Surge:  Here's What's Becoming More Expensive.  With inflation running hot in October, American consumers paid slightly more for most goods and services compared to the previous month, and far more compared to a year ago.  The Labor Department's consumer price index (CPI), a key inflation gauge that measures how much Americans pay for goods and services, rose 0.9 percent over the month in October and 6.2 percent over the year, with the annual figure reflecting the highest pace of price hikes in nearly 31 years.  The agency's report, released Nov. 10, breaks down how much prices have increased for certain key services and goods, including gas, food prices, electricity, and used cars.  Seasonally adjusted figures are only available for the month-over-month comparison, while seasonally unadjusted data is available in both over-the-year and over-the-month formats.  Gasoline: 49.6 percent year-over-year and 3.7 percent month-over-month seasonally unadjusted; 6.1 percent month-over-month, seasonally adjusted[.]  Fuel oil: 59.1 percent year-over-year and 12.3 percent month-over-month seasonally unadjusted; 12.3 percent month-over-month, seasonally adjusted[.] [...] Propane, kerosene, and firewood: 34.7 percent year-over-year and 7.9 percent month-over-month seasonally unadjusted; 6.2 percent month-over-month, seasonally adjusted[.]

When was the last time Joe Biden pumped gas?  How much did he pay — maybe 50 cents a gallon?
Joe Biden Marvels at $4.50 a Gallon Gas Prices: 'Did You Ever Think You'd Be Paying this Much?'  President Joe Biden marveled at the high cost of gas on Wednesday, without offering any solutions for lowering prices.  "Did you ever think you'd be paying this much for a gallon of gas?" Biden said.  "In some parts of California, they're paying $4.50 a gallon." [...] Biden did not mention his administration's actions to reduce domestic production of oil, such as suspending gas and oil leases on federal land and closing the Keystone XL pipeline.

Treasury Department Nominee Says Biden Administration Purposefully Wants to Bankrupt Oil, Coal and Gas Companies.  Against catastrophic outcomes, we have been pointing out how the people within the Biden administration are not incompetent; they know exactly what they are doing, and they are destroying the U.S. economic system on purpose.  All of their economic damage is by design, it's a feature — not a flaw.  An example today is so demonstrative of that point, it's almost a parody.  Joe Biden's nominee for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), a branch of the Treasury Department that polices some 1,125 banks, is a communist ideologue named Saule Omarova.  She is directly from communist central casting and literally from Kazakhstan in the former Soviet Union.  Ms. Omarova graduated from Moscow State University in 1991, and Joe Biden nominated her for the OCC job in September.

How shutting down a key pipeline could worsen Biden's fuel crisis.  Facing increasing political pressure over the rising cost of fuels, the Biden administration is still considering shutting down a key pipeline in Michigan — a move that has drawn further scrutiny of its energy policies.  The White House this week defended its decision earlier this year to conduct an environmental review on a pipeline, known as Line 5, that runs through Michigan and into Canada.  Although the administration began the review in June, the decision has received renewed attention in light of skyrocketing gas prices and the administration's ineffective attempts to mitigate them.  Michigan Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered Enbridge, the Canadian company that operates Line 5, to shut down the pipeline by May 12, which came and went without action from Enbridge.

Key Biden Nominee On Oil Companies: 'We Want Them To Go Bankrupt If We Want To Tackle Climate Change'.  Saule Omarova, Democrat President Joe Biden's Marxist-friendly nominee to lead the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, said earlier this year that she wants oil and gas companies to go bankrupt, which comes as Americans face surging gas prices.  "Here what I'm thinking about is primarily coal industry and oil and gas industry.  A lot of the smaller players in that industry are going to probably go bankrupt in short order, at least we want them to go bankrupt if we want to tackle climate change," Omarova says in the clip, unearthed by the American Accountability Foundation (AAF).  Omarova, who made the remarks back in March at the Jain Family Institute's 2021 Social Wealth Seminar (SWS) series, later said that the economic fallout and number of job losses that would ensue would be too much for the U.S., saying, "we cannot afford" it.

Controversial Biden bank nominee said 'we want' oil and gas companies to go bankrupt.  President Joe Biden's pick for a top banking regulatory position said "we want" oil and gas companies to go bankrupt, although she acknowledged the country couldn't afford the loss of jobs.  Saule Omarova, a law professor at Cornell University who graduated college in the USSR, has faced pushback over her nomination to be comptroller of the currency from business groups and Republicans, who have said that she is extreme and opposed to the industry as a whole.  A video of her discussing the idea of a National Investment Authority — a new government bureaucracy that would act directly in financial markets to allocate "both public and private capital" to fight social ills — has resurfaced in which she muses about oil and coal companies failing in order to fight climate change.  "A lot of the smaller players in that industry are going to, probably, go bankrupt in short order — at least, we want them to go bankrupt if we want to tackle climate change," Omarova said as part of the Jain Family Institute's "Social Wealth Seminar" series in March.
[Video clip here].

Gas prices are skyrocketing, so Biden is considering shutting down another pipeline in Michigan.  That Biden guy sure doesn't want the average person to be able to drive anywhere for Thanksgiving, does he?

White House admits it is 'studying' closing Michigan's Line 5 oil pipeline after first saying reports were 'inaccurate'.  White House deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre confirmed the administration is considering shutting down a Michigan oil pipeline, as President Biden finds himself caught between an environmental promise and looming gas price hikes.  The administration is exploring the possibility of terminating the Line 5 pipeline — which links Superior, Wisconsin, with Sarnia, Ontario — and gathering data to determine if shutting down the line will cause a surge in fuel pricing.  'Yes, we are,' Jean-Pierre said, asked in a news briefing if the administration is 'studying' the impacts of a potential shutdown.

The Editor says...
How much study does it take?  Maybe ten seconds.  If you choke off energy sources by blocking pipelines, as demand steadily increases, and make it more difficult to move fuel around, the price of gas will inevitably increase.  Choose ye this day, Mr. Biden:  Either appease the far-left lunatics who want gas prices to increase, in order to "save the earth," or do what most sensible people want, which is to get out of the way, and stop impeding the petroleum industry in every imaginable way.

Trickle-Down Bidenism.  Out in the California foothills and Central Valley, relatively "cheap" propane now has more than doubled to a rate of $3.91 a gallon.  At about the same time that I got the propane bill, I filled up the truck with diesel fuel.  It was $4.87 a gallon with a credit card, up in price almost $2 a gallon from over a year ago.  I thought myself lucky since the week prior in Palo Alto it was about $5.29 a gallon.  I spoke not long ago in Bakersfield to an oil man.  He described impending California new rules on the horizon concerning almost every aspect of horizontal drilling and fracking — as part of his own larger fears that the entire industry is shrinking even as demands and profits soar, and consumers need more natural gas and gasoline than ever.  Has anyone ever heard of liberal Americans deliberately not pumping oil and gas, but still needing so much more output that they beg the illiberal Saudis and Russians to bail us out?  At other times in our history, we have suffered plenty of fossil fuel scarcities due to war, embargoes, and declining reserves.  But never has America deliberately created shortages amid a sea of our own gas and oil.

Granholm's 'Shock' Aside, US Energy Dominance Is Exactly Where Biden Wants It — Weakened.  When U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was asked a direct question about skyrocketing gas prices, her response was as telling as it was disappointing.  Instead of offering middle-class Americans an explanation or an apology or a sliver of hope, she let out a hearty laugh.  "Oh my... that is hilarious!  As you know, oil is a global market.  It is controlled by a cartel, that cartel is called OPEC, and they made a decision yesterday that they were not going to increase [production] beyond what they were already planning."  How did America fall so far, so fast on the topic of energy?  How, in less than a calendar year, did we go from energy independence to begging foreign cartels like OPEC for more supply?  We went from net-exporting our oil to hoping that someone will help fill gaps in our energy supply.

Fake Laughter Is Not The Best Medicine.  Does anyone recall the good old days of 2020, before the price of gasoline rose some 50 percent?  We were maximizing the production of energy in the United States as a matter of national policy.  Something happened in January 2021.  Biden Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm addressed the rising cost of gasoline yesterday in a Bloomberg interview.  Is there anything to be done?  "That is hilarious," she said and showed just how funny she found it.  She seems to have taken a lesson or two from Kamala Harris in the department of fake laughter.  [Video clip]

Energy Secretary Erupts in Laughter When Asked if Biden Administration Will Start Increasing U.S. Oil Production.  Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was asked what the Biden administration plan was to increase U.S. oil production.  Her response is exactly what you might believe it would be from a thoroughly incompetent ideological administration.  [Video clip]

Jennifer Granholm's hilarity about rising fuel prices is worse than you thought.  A short video is circulating showing Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm's response to being asked about rising gas prices.  Granholm starts giggling and says "That is hilarious."  Most thought she was laughing at people's suffering but, in a way, her response was worse than that because she was really laughing about the fact that she and Biden do not plan to improve the situation for ordinary Americans.  Rising gas prices are a huge problem.  Not only do they make travel significantly more expensive, but they also make everything more expensive because there's nothing in America that isn't in some way dependent on gasoline.  The mechanized farming that feeds America requires gasoline.  The same is true for the few remaining factories that make our goods.  And getting all those foods and other goods to market requires gasoline, too.  Every home, store, and office in America relies on fossil fuels in one way or another — and on Biden's watch, prices have gone up and up.

Energy Sec Laughs Her Head off When Asked About Rising Gas Prices.  How much do Joe Biden and the Democrats care about the problems that Americans are facing with Biden inflation, in particular rising food and gas prices?  Biden previously said that he didn't see any "near term" solution for the rising gas prices.  He went overseas, begged Russia and Saudi Arabia to pump more saying it was "not right," looking incredibly weak with such pleading.  Meanwhile, he's been lobbying against fossil fuels in America and doing in our energy production with moves like cutting the Keystone XL pipeline and the Willow Project for more drilling in Alaska.  When even MSNBC is asking why don't the Democrats get it, Democrats have to know they're in trouble.

Energy Secretary Granholm laughs off notion of boosting US oil production: 'That is hilarious'.  Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm laughed off the notion of encouraging more domestic oil production to blunt high gasoline prices and said matters are exclusively in OPEC's hands. [...] Republicans have been especially critical of the administration for leaning on OPEC to boost global oil supply while seeking to undo Trump administration policies favoring production and pursuing policies to limit fossil fuel production and use, such as through President Joe Biden's early orders revoking the Keystone XL pipeline and pausing new oil and gas leases on federal lands.  "We will not ask OPEC to solve our problems," House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy said in an energy roundtable with fellow GOP lawmakers last week.  "We can solve them here in America."

Are rising gas prices funny?  Republicans knocked Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on Friday for laughing when asked about the 'Granholm plan to increase oil production' in response to rising gas prices.  'That is hilarious,' Granholm told Bloomberg's Tom Keene.  'Would that I had the magic wand on this.'  Granholm went on to explain that the higher gas prices are thanks to OPEC.  [Video clip]  Republicans have hammered President Joe Biden's administration for not increasing domestic oil production to deal with the pain at the pump.  In August, 24 GOP senators signed on to a letter chiding Biden for calling on OPEC to increase gas production, while jeopardizing the domestic oil and gas agenda with his green climate agenda.

Biden Admin Weighing Shutting Down Oil Pipeline In Michigan As Gas Prices Skyrocket Across U.S.: Report.  Democrat President Joe Biden's administration is reportedly gathering data on an oil pipeline in Michigan to determine if shutting it down would further increase fuel prices in the region.  "Revoking the permits for the [Line 5] pipeline that delivers oil from western Canada across Wisconsin, the Great Lakes and Michigan and into Ontario, would please environmentalists who have urged the White House to block fossil fuel infrastructure, but it would aggravate a rift with Canada and could exacerbate a spike in energy prices that Republicans are already using as a political weapon," Politico Pro reported.  "Killing a pipeline while U.S. gasoline prices are the highest in years could be political poison for Biden, who has seen his approval rating crash in recent months."  The administration has not yet made a decision about the pipeline, which comes after the Canadian government invoked an old international treaty to stop the state of Michigan from shutting down the pipeline.

Bank Of America Issues Dire Warning About Where Gas Prices Are Likely Headed.  Bank of America is warning that gas prices could go significantly higher than they currently are as Americans are currently paying approximately $3.41 per gallon across the U.S. for regular and just over $4 per gallon for premium.  "Bank of America is now predicting that Brent crude oil, which drives gas prices, will zoom to $120 a barrel by June 2022," CNN reported.  "That's 45% higher than current levels."  Francisco Blanch, Bank of America's head of global commodities, spoke with CNN about the prediction, noting that back in June he predicted that the price of crude oil would shoot to $100 a barrel.  "It's very easy for prices to shoot up when demand conditions are tight like they are now," Blanch said.

Bidenflation: Gas Pump Prices Hit 7 Year High.  As world leaders gather in Scotland for the United Nations climate conference, Americans are facing the highest prices for gasoline since 2014.  The national average price of gas rose two cents over the past week to $3.402, according to the American Automobile Association.  One month ago, the national average was $3.192.  One year ago, it was $2.131.  Silver lining:  the two-cent gain was the slowest weekly increase in over a month, according to AAA.

This Can't Be True.  Just when you think it couldn't get any worse, that they can't be serious, that it seems as if the "Biden" administration's sole goal is to make each person's life as wretchedly painful as possible, BAM! — another incredible misery warhead detonates on our reality. [...] After pipeline cancelations and the widespread rescinding of oil exploration leases, the administration has accomplished its mission:  it's sent the world's oil market the unmistakable, intentional message that America is no longer interested in being a top-tier oil-producer.  Predictably, the price of crude oil has risen from the $40s/bbl to the mid-$80s/bbl.  Gasoline and heating oil are more expensive now than we ever thought they'd be again.

The Biden Administration Makes an Idiotic Move on Gas Prices That Is Sure to Fail.  The gas price crisis in the United States continues to spiral out of control. [...] There's a lot of stupidity involved in this, but let's focus on the fact that we all live on the same planet.  What I mean by that is that if the American left is concerned about climate change, they aren't fighting it by blocking cleaner energy production (including natural gas) domestically.  Having OPEC pump more oil out in the desert actually exacerbates the issue.  Given that, why not increase production at home, which will result in fewer emissions if a lot of that production includes natural gas and building more next-gen nuclear power plants?  That would also provide jobs for Americans in a time of out-of-control inflation and a stagnating economy.  But there's too much common sense involved in that proposition, and the administration is not operating based on logic.  Rather, the entire war on domestic energy production is one big self-defeating virtue signal.  It does not make sense on a rational level, even if one's goal is to lower emissions.  Yet, Biden blew up Keystone XL anyway because he wanted to make pink-haired lefties who block highways feel like they are saving the planet.

Biden and his nitwit advisors urge foreign producers to pump more oil.  Joe Biden, his spokeswoman Jen Psaki[,] and others in their orbit want foreign producers to drill more fossil fuels because for some reason we don't have enough energy over here. [...] It's as if Biden didn't shut down drilling and pipelines over here.  That couldn't have caused the problems.  It is probably Trump's fault.  That is who they always blame.  It's as if Democrats aren't shooting for carbon zero by 2030 and trying to destroy anyone who produces and uses oil, natural gas, and coal.  It's as if the Democrats didn't have a theatrical hearing to destroy and bankrupt the oil producers, with no evidence, that they cause temperatures to rise and climate change.

Biden Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy Pours Gasoline on Rising Gas Prices With Ridiculous Announcement.  Amid soaring gas prices, White House National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy on Thursday [10/28/2021] announced that the Biden administration is going to increase regulations on the oil industry:  "There's a place for" regulation and "We're going to use it," McCarthy said during an appearance on MSNBC's "Hallie Jackson Reports."

W.H.'s McCarthy On Regulation Increasing Oil and Gas Prices: 'We're Going To Use' Regulation.  On Thursday's broadcast of MSNBC's "Hallie Jackson Reports," White House National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy responded to concerns that increased regulations will cause increased gas and oil prices by stating "There's a place for" regulation and "We're going to use it." McCarthy also touted hearings with oil executives on Capitol Hill as "a day of reckoning" for the oil and gas industry.  Host Hallie Jackson asked, "[T]hat big oil hearing on Capitol Hill, significant, frankly, historic that they're all coming together.  There's this sort of — argument that you've heard some Republicans make that more regulations could lead to higher gas and oil prices, etc.  I wonder how you respond to that and your reaction to what you have been able to see so far related to this hearing that is still ongoing, by the way."

Nine months that shook the world:  A list of Biden's failures.  [For example,] Gasoline prices.  Liberals hate relatively cheap gas prices.  On his first day in office Biden cancelled construction of the Keystone XL pipeline.  In doing so, to borrow the words used in the Biden-Harris sign pictured here, he killed thousands of "good union jobs."  Gas prices immediately jumped.  Also that day Biden signed an executive order blocking oil and natural gas drilling at the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  The next day Biden imposed a suspension of new natural gas and oil drilling leases on federal lands — which fortunately was overruled by a judge in June.  It's all part of the plan is what I believe.  Leftists — excluding themselves of course — want as many people as possible to ditch their cars and trucks and take buses and trains everywhere.  In 2012 Steven Chu, the Obama-Biden administration's secretary of Energy, was asked by a Republican member of Congress if it was the goal of the White House to have lower gasoline prices.  He replied to the contrary, adding "somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."

Higher prices are the cost of Biden's war on fossil fuels.  On the 2020 campaign trail, Joe Biden promised to create for America a green economy.  And he specifically mentioned that the way to do this is to denigrate fossil fuels.  And now that this mentally addled man has been installed as president, he and his like-minded administration of leftists have been focused towards this objective.  And behold what they've accomplished just on the energy front in just nine short months.  In January of this year until the end of September, the price of crude oil has jumped from $49.73/bbl to $70.15.  This is a 41 percent increase, and this trend is not stopping.  The current price of oil as of this writing is more than $80 a barrel.  Oil is, of course, the main driver of gasoline prices.  Accordingly the average retail price of gasoline year-to-date has risen from $2.42 to $3.27 — a 35 percent rise.  It's a simple calculation to figure out how much extra that costs you based on how many vehicles your household drives, their fuel efficiencies (mpg), and the number of miles driven.

Gas Prices in One California Town Top $7.59 Per Gallon.  A price for a regular gallon of gasoline in Gorda, California topped $7.59 per gallon this week as the country's economy continues to struggle with high inflation and supply chain problems.  "Gas keeps getting more and more expensive, especially in California.  But perhaps nowhere is it pricier than the remote central coast community of Gorda.  The town's only gas station is offering regular unleaded for $7.59.  Premium is nearly $8.50," reports ABC Los Angeles.  The town is well known for high-gas prices.  The station is the only available option for dozens of miles along the Big Sur coast.

$6 a Gallon Gas Coming Our Way in Time for Winter.  Glenn Beck believes $6 a gallon gas is coming to America if Biden keeps destroying the oil and gas industry.  We say he is underestimating it.  It's another hidden tax on the middle class.  I'm old enough to remember when Donald Trump made us energy independent.  We were selling fuel to other countries.  Saudi Arabia isn't selling oil to us, even after Biden begged.  Democrats will run into trouble over this come election time.  But they will cheat, and Zuckerberg, Soros, others will pour hundreds of millions into politicians who will destroy this country. [...] Biden is going to next vilify businesses that sell energy.  The administration is already convincing investors to not invest in oil and gas.  This is Hugo Chavez in the USA.

Psaki Falsely Claims Gas Prices Aren't Rising Across The Country; Here's The Truth.  On Wednesday [10/13/2021], White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki claimed gas prices aren't surging "in all parts" of the country.  This, like everything else she says, is fake news.  "The American people are of course impacted by rising prices of gas, in some parts of the country, not all!" she said.  Fact check:  Gas prices are up 41%.  Maybe SHE doesn't feel the pain because of her high salary and her personal chauffeur, but every day Americans are struggling with the price increase.

Biden team asks oil industry for help to tame gas prices.  The White House has been consulting with the oil industry to seek a remedy for rising gasoline prices as surging inflation threatens to tarnish the economic recovery, according to three people familiar with the discussions.  The latest outreach to the oil industry is an awkward shift for the Biden administration, which has pledged to move the country away from fossil fuels and has drawn criticism from the industry and Republicans for pausing lease sales of federal land for oil and gas development.

Media Cover for Joe Biden as Gas Prices Surge to Levels Not Seen Since Joe Biden Was VP.  In January, as Joe Biden Corp. moved into the White House, the gallon price was $2.33.  On his first day in the Oval Office, Joe Biden killed the Keystone XL Pipeline, along with the jobs of 40,000 union members who were likely sucker enough to vote for him.  Just four weeks later, the price of gasoline had jumped 26 cents to $2.59.  A week after that up another 13 cents.  It didn't matter if Joe Biden was in his basement, at the beach, or Camp David, the prices just kept going up and drivers' bank balances going down.  Onward and onward — March $2.94, June $3.18, September $3.26.  There seems to be something of a connection here that the mainstream media misses, a connection with Joe Biden threatening future oil supplies with a plethora of moves — canceling drilling leases, barring drilling in vast offshore areas, jawing up the idea of our grandchildren someday maybe driving only electric vehicles, inexplicably helping foreign countries with competitive energy projects.  Markets react to perceived declining supplies with very real price hikes.

Thanks to Biden's policies, prepare for a cold, expensive winter.  Upon entering the Oval Office, Biden immediately shut down the Keystone Pipeline and ended new drilling on federal lands.  While Trump had brought America to energy independence and affordable energy, Biden reduced America to a vassal of oil-producing countries.  Thanks to this policy, gasoline prices keep climbing.  In my neighborhood, they've increased by almost 78% in just nine months.  The same is true everywhere.  Like all Biden policies, this is devastating for the middle and working classes, for it doesn't just make commuting more expensive; it increases the price of every single item in America.  Fuel is needed for farming, manufacturing, shipping, wholesaling, and retailing.  Every aspect of life becomes more expensive when fuel prices rise, with the middle and working classes bearing the ultimate burden.  All of this is in the name of fighting alleged climate change.  That is a faith, not a science.  We humans can pollute, and I believe we have a moral obligation to keep our environment clean and healthy, but the whole climate change theory is a joke and a bad one at that.

Gas prices hit a seven-year high, and Biden remains as clueless as ever.  Under former President Donald Trump, the United States achieved effective energy independence.  It became a net exporter of petroleum products and, for a brief moment in time, crude oil.  In terms of geopolitics, the U.S. easily achieved what had been referred to as North American energy independence.  This meant U.S. policy was no longer subject to the vagaries of Middle Eastern politics — a big factor in Trump's achievement of reconciling Israel with key Arab neighbors.  It also meant that Russia, another world-leading fossil fuel producer, had been limited in its use of hydraulic despotism in the service of its malign agenda.  Over a 10-year period, the shale revolution also created a vibrant and prosperous industry in the U.S. reviving rural areas and bringing top-paying jobs to those involved.  Two consecutive presidents had the good sense to stay mostly out of its way.

Gas prices at 7-year high and rising as Biden wages offensive against domestic energy producers.  [Scroll down]  There isn't enough oil and gas supply to meet U.S. demand, due to a combination of factors, including the Biden administration halting new leases on federal land, halting the Keystone Pipeline, increasing regulatory burdens, and other measures that will take years to correct, those in the industry argue.  In one of his first acts in office, President Joe Biden, through executive order, halted the issuance of new oil and gas leases on federal lands, effectively stopping much production for existing operations.  He also eliminated low-cost Canadian crude from being processed by mid-continent and Gulf Coast and U.S. refiners by prohibiting the Keystone pipeline from opening.  If Biden had not severely hampered domestic production, the U.S. would have an ample supply of oil and gas and commensurately lower costs at the pump, industry experts argue.  The $6 billion in additional costs imposed on the industry included in the budget reconciliation bill include new methane fees, inspection fees, severance fees, and bonding requirements, as well as additional requirements for operating on federal lands.

Average U.S. Gas Price $3.44 A Gallon, The Highest Since 2014.  U.S. Rep. Debbie Lasko (R-Ariz.) criticized Joe Biden for allowing gas prices to reach record highs.  On Friday, the Arizona Republican noted the average gas price currently stands at $3.44 a gallon, which is the highest since 2014 when Barack Obama was president.  In certain regions, such as California, gas is averaging over $4.30.  Lasko pointed out the U.S. achieved energy independence under 45th President Donald Trump.  She said abandoning those polices prove Biden stands for America last and is keeping the U.S. reliant on foreign oil.

Report: Gas Prices Rise to 7-Year High.  A recent report from CNBC indicated Americans are paying the highest prices for gas in the last seven years, and some cities have gas prices as high as $5 per gallon.  CNBC noted that Americans are paying the highest at the pump due to the steady climb the nation has been seeing over the past year.  According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), a federation of motor clubs throughout North America, the national average price on Wednesday for a gallon of gas was $3.22.

White House whoppers:  Summer of misleading claims continues with border crisis.  As Biden administration officials scramble to contain the political fallout over a surge in migration at the border, they have made a series of false or misleading claims, capping off a summer of bending the truth to avoid controversies. [...] With people paying more at the pump in recent months, Biden attempted earlier this month to cast the blame for higher gas prices on "pandemic profiteers."  "We're also going after the bad actors and pandemic profiteers in our economy.  There's a lot of evidence gas prices should be going down, but they haven't," Biden said during an economic speech on Sept. 16.  "We're taking a close look at that."  Experts quickly debunked Biden's suggestion that malign activity is behind the high gas prices in the U.S.  Instead, those experts attribute the pump price increase to supply chain disruptions, a shortage of tanker drivers, and robust demand from an increase in travel that has seen more people hit the road in recent months than even before the pandemic.

Gas Prices to Rise as Hurricane Ida Shuts Down 95 Percent of Gulf's Oil Production.  Hurricane Ida shut down more than 95 percent of the Gulf of Mexico's oil production, said regulators, suggesting the Category 4 storm will have a significant impact on energy supply and gas prices.  The federal Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement confirmed the stop in oil production, with firms suspending 1.74 million barrels per day in oil production in the Gulf.  Colonial Pipeline confirmed Sunday it is temporarily shutting down two pipelines between Houston, Texas, and Greensboro, North Carolina, as a precaution due to the storm.  They were shuttered "as a precautionary and routine safety measure," the firm said a statement.  Ida made landfall on Sunday [8/29/2021] near Port Fourchon, near the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, which is the largest privately-owned crude terminal in the United States.

The Editor says...
I've heard of a lot of government agencies, but I've never heard of the "Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement."  If they're doing environmental enforcement, what does the EPA do?  If they're in charge of "safety," what would that not include?  It sounds like a great way to spend money and gain nothing.

New Jersey to Lower Gas Tax Rate by 8.3 Cents, First Time Since Inception in 2016.  New Jersey Department of Treasury announced on Tuesday that the gas tax rate in the state will decrease by 8.3 cents per gallon beginning Oct. 1.  It is the first gas tax reduction since its inception in 2016.  The law enacted in 2016 in New Jersey imposed a tax on gasoline and diesel fuel purchases by motorists to generate funding for maintenance and improvement of the state's roadways and bridges.  The tax has been expected to provide $16 billion over eight years.  The law dictates that the gas tax rate must be adjusted each year in order to generate roughly $2 billion per year, according to a statement by the state department of treasury.  The rate adjustment is made annually by the state government upon reviewing the actual gas tax revenue collection and the projection of fuel consumption for the current fiscal year.

Gas prices are much higher than they were a year ago.  People like this are to blame.
Line 3 pipeline protesters gather at Minnesota Capitol.  Wednesday [8/25/2021], more than 2,000 protesters gathered amid a four-day event calling on state and federal leaders to stop the progress of Enbridge Energy's Line 3 oil pipeline.  The number of people in attendance was approximated by the organizers of the event.  Protesters were gathering for the "Treaties not Tar Sands Rally to Stop Line 3" at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul.  "I think my whole life and my whole history is defined by water," Karen Goulet, a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe who is helping to lead the rally, said in a statement.  "We are here for healing and prayer, and to shift the paradigm.  We want to make a difference for the land, and for the water."

The Editor says...
How do you know you're "making a difference for the land," by preventing the pipeline from existing?  The only difference you're making is the steady increase in the price of gas.

The Drossy Touch of Joe Biden.  Almost everything Joe Biden has touched since entering office has turned to dross.  None of his blame-gaming, none of his distortions, none of his fantasies and unreality can mask that truth. [...] Biden did his best in just seven months to explode the idea of American self-sufficiency in natural gas and oil.  He canceled the Keystone Pipeline, froze new federal energy leases, put the Anwar oil field off limits, and warned frackers their end days were near.  So, what drove Biden?  Did he object that motorists were saving too many billions of dollars per year in decreased commuting costs?  Or was the rub that we had slashed too many imports of oil from the volatile Middle East and no longer would launch preemptive wars?  Or perhaps the transition to clean natural gas instead of coal as a fuel for power generation had too radically curtailed carbon emissions?  Did Biden feel that Middle East producers, the Russians, or the Venezuelans could better protect the planet while extracting oil and gas than could American drillers?

Are We in a Revolution and Don't Even Know It?  [Scroll down]  Another revolutionary crackpot idea was ending nuclear power and fossil fuels and replacing them with wind and solar generation that would power our homes and our new envisioned national fleet of electric cars.  No one quite believed the revolutionary Left would be so suicidal as to spike the energy costs of the middle class, make the United States dependent again on imported oil from the autocratic Middle East and Russia, and strangle the oil and gas industry that had enriched America.  But without much debate, Joe Biden has cancelled the huge ANWR oil and gas project in Alaska.  He shut down the Keystone Pipeline and destroyed Alberta's export of oil to the United States.  He nixed all new fossil fuel leases on federal lands.  He discouraged frackers from using their full inventory of rigs.  As gasoline heads to $5 a gallon, Joe Biden, in the months before the next midterm elections, asks OPEC to send us its hated carbon fuel to help our addicted, but suddenly furious, commuter-voters.

High Gasoline Prices and Biden's Confusing OPEC Request on Oil Production.  In the face of persistently high U.S. gasoline prices this summer, national security adviser Jake Sullivan announced last week that the Biden administration was "engaging with relevant OPEC+ members" to increase oil production.  Not only is this confusing because OPEC+ is a cartel of nations competing against private American companies and includes political adversaries of the United States.  It's also embarrassing because the U.S. has billions of barrels of proved oil reserves and is the No. 1 producer in the world. [...] Crude oil accounts for 55% of the price of a gallon of gasoline.  Refining accounts for 16%, taxes 16%, and distribution and marketing 13%.  Local prices vary, since states tax gasoline at different rates and federal policies such as the Renewable Fuel Standard increase the costs for refineries (which turn crude oil into gasoline and other products).

Alaska Governor Blasts Biden For Devastating America's Poor With Bans On American Oil.  In just its first eight months, the Biden administration has halted logging plans in the state's southeast Tongass National Forest, barred federal land releases to Native veterans, and shut down oil and gas operations on the North Slope of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) as it shops overseas for fuel.  All without consulting with the governor who runs the largest state in the nation by land mass, home to 60 percent of federal lands.

Biden administration appeals ruling blocking oil and gas leasing pause.  The Biden administration is appealing a ruling from a Louisiana-based federal judge blocking its indefinite pause on oil and natural gas leasing in federal lands and waters.  The Department of Justice is appealing the decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the Interior Department said in a statement Monday [8/16/2021].  The agency also said that, during the appeals process, it would comply with the preliminary nationwide injunction against its leasing pause granted in June to more than a dozen oil and gas producing states.

How Did We Go From Energy Dominance To Energy Begging In Just 8 Months?  [U]nlike Jimmy Carter, who blundered his way into gasoline shortages, Biden is intentionally creating the current situation to pay homage to climate "crisis" environmentalists.  During his presidential campaign, Biden promised to "get rid of fossil fuels."  Since taking office, he's been busy trying to carry out that pledge.  One of the first things he did in office was to call a halt on oil and gas leases on federal lands and off our coastlines, and has yet to resume allowing them even after a federal judge ordered the administration to do so.  He shut down construction of the Keystone Pipeline.  He blocked energy development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  He directed federal agencies to "eliminate fossil fuel subsidies as consistent with applicable law."  He's promised to add some $90 billion to the industry's tax burden by eliminating what he calls tax "subsidies."

I Am Glad I Was Alive to See It.  I am old enough to remember the 1970s, the "fuel shortages" and "oil crisis," sky-high gasoline prices, gas lines, higher home heating oil prices (you may also remember, and you get the picture).  OPEC made it clear then its member nations were not our friends.  America's energy sector also got a punch in the gut from OPEC in 2014 when, in response to America's rising oil production and potential market dominance, OPEC boosted production to drive down oil prices, and prepared to endure what they expected to be a short-term loss.  Meanwhile, oil prices were below what American companies needed to be profitable.  It was quite the bust, and many of the folks I know here in Texas were severely impacted.  Thankfully, that turned around in 2017 and a leaner, smarter U.S. oil sector bounced back and made America energy independent for the first time in over 70 years.  Today, that has all been thrown away.  Flushed.  Gone, at least for the foreseeable future.  The current American government installed (*) as it were on January 20, 2021, immediately hamstrung our domestic oil production and halted pipeline construction, all of which affects our allies as well as each and every American.

The Four Horsemen of the Biden Apocalypse.  In the waning days of the Trump administration, the country was showing signs of economic improvement, people were feeling more confident about battling COVID, and the border was relatively secure as the wall was finally being constructed. [...] Upon entering office, Biden should have continued Trump-era economic policies that were working.  Instead, he stopped construction of the Keystone XL pipeline and displacing thousands of workers from their jobs.  Biden also placed a moratorium on the issuance of new oil and gas drilling leases on federal territory, both onshore and offshore.  As a result, America is transitioning from being energy independent for the first time in decades, under President Trump, to being energy dependent once again.  Ironically, Biden is now asking OPEC members to increase their oil production.

Gas Buyers React to Steep Prices in Virginia: 'It's Killing Me'.  Gas customers voiced their disappointment and frustration regarding soaring prices in Arlington, Virginia, on Thursday [8/12/2021].  "It's killing me.  It takes 60 bucks to fill up the 2020 Camaro and it takes $52 to fill up my 2016 Chevy Malibu," a man named Tony, who is a Shell customer, told a reporter with Fox News, adding, "It's crazy."  Consumer prices grew 5.4 percent in July compared to one year ago, mirroring the prior month's increase as the fastest since 2008, a recent Department of Labor report said, according to the outlet.

For Six Months Biden Has Shut Down U.S. Oil Production, Today Biden Asks OPEC to Pump More Oil.  There's hypocrisy, there's double speak, there's stupid decisions based on politics, and then there's this level of Biden hypocrisy and stupidity that cannot be adequately encapsulated.  President Trump's energy production policy made the U.S.A. energy independent.  We were actually exporting oil and gas to other nations.  However, in the previous six months Joe Biden has:  (1) Shut down oil and energy development in ANWAR which would increase use of the Alaska pipeline[,]  (2) Blocked the Keystone Pipeline from completion[,]  (3) Banned energy development on federal lands[,]  (4) Shut down the sale of energy leases in the Gulf of Mexico[,] and (5) Blocked energy development in Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico and Alabama.  As a direct and immediate consequence, gas and fuel prices have skyrocketed.  The price of Unleaded Regular Gasoline is now up over 60% from 2020.

White House Calls on OPEC+ to Boost Production as Gasoline Prices Soar.  Worried about rising gas prices, the Biden administration has called on oil-producing countries including Saudi Arabia and Russia to raise their oil production.  Strong recovery in global demand and slow growth in supplies have been pushing crude oil prices higher in recent months.  National security adviser Jake Sullivan issued a statement on Aug. 11 asking the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia (OPEC+) to address rising gasoline costs.  "Higher gasoline costs, if left unchecked, risk harming the ongoing global recovery," Sullivan warned.  In July, OPEC+ ministers agreed to boost oil production by 0.4 million barrels per day (bpd) on a monthly basis from August until year-end.  The decision came amid a strong rebound in global demand.  But this increase isn't enough, according to the White House, to ensure "reliable and stable global energy markets."

Biden demands OPEC boost oil production amid rising gas prices.  The White House is pressuring OPEC and its allies to boost oil production in a bid to tackle rising gasoline prices — despite imposing tighter restrictions on US oil companies last year.  Biden's National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan issued a statement on Wednesday urging OPEC — the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries — to move faster to restore global supply of gasoline to pre-pandemic levels.

Does Biden think American oil and gas pollute but OPEC oil and gas don't?  A decade ago, the EPA determined the Keystone Pipeline would produce "no adverse environmental" effects.  But Joe "Follow-the-Science" Biden (does anyone seriously think Biden knows anything about science or bothers to follow it?) killed the pipeline hours after being sworn in last January.  Since then, Biden has waged war on the American oil and gas industry. [...] Biden wants to end oil and gas production in America, but is fine with oil and gas production in Russia and in the OPEC countries.  Regarding Russia, Biden has reversed longstanding U.S. opposition to a Russian gas pipeline to Germany, and is tamping down geopolitical objections in Ukraine.  Regarding OPEC, the illogic is even worse.  While decrying American oil and gas production, Biden's people are jawboning OPEC to increase their production.  What gives?  How can American oil and gas production contribute to global warming, but Russian and OPEC production not?

Gas Prices Surge to Fresh 7-Year High.  Gas prices have surged to a new seven-year high and while some experts predict they'll come down soon, others expect more pain at the pump if crude oil prices rise.  For the week of Aug. 2, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline rose by a little over two cents compared to the prior week to $3.159, a seven-year high, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.  The American Automobile Association said it expects gas prices to remain elevated at least through the beginning of August.

CNN Mercilessly Mocked for Biased Story Protecting Biden from Rising Gas Prices.  CNN's knee-jerk reaction to spiking gas prices was to protect President Joe Biden, and Twitter users jumped all over the outlet for it.  CNN Business published a ridiculous story headlined, "Gas prices are above $3.  Biden doesn't have a magic wand to fix that."  CNN Business Lead Writer Matt Egan patronized readers by saying, "President Joe Biden is being attacked for $3 gasoline.  But the truth is the White House isn't to blame for high gas prices — and has few options to lower them."  The CNN Business tweet of Egan's pro-Biden propaganda was heavily ratioed.  Did Egan forget that GasBuddy Head of Petroleum Analysis Patrick De Haan recently argued in April that Biden's energy plan was contributing to rising gas prices?  Also, Egan's employer previously published a story in April headlined, "All that stimulus is sending inflation higher."  CNN said in the April story that the "biggest driver" behind the spike in the U.S. Producer Price Index — "which measures sale prices for goods and services" — was "a sharp 8.8% jump in gasoline prices."

Average US Price of Gas Rises 5 Cents Per Gallon to $3.21.  The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline rose a nickel over the past two weeks, to $3.21 per gallon.  Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey said Sunday [7/11/2021] that gas prices will likely hold steady now that crude oil costs have stopped rising.  The price at the pump is 97 cents higher than it was a year ago.

What happened in January?  Joe Biden killed the Keystone XL pipeline.
U.S. gas prices highest in 7 years, up 40% since January.  American motorists can expect to pay more to fill up their tanks at least through the end of August, according to AAA.  The average price of gas nationwide has climbed to $3.13, a high for the year and up 40% since January 1.  And fuel costs aren't expected to drop anytime soon.  "We believe it'll rise another 10 to 20 cents at the pump between now and the end of August," Jeanette McGee, a spokesperson for AAA, told CBS MoneyWatch.  The main factors behind the steep climb in gas prices:  rising global oil prices, businesses reopening as COVID-19 eases across most of the U.S. and pent-up demand for travel, she added.

The Editor says...
Two years ago, when Trump was president, the Keystone pipeline was under construction (despite the efforts of Barack H. Obama), nobody had heard of Covid, businesses were all open, and the price of US crude oil dropped to negative 40 dollars per barrel.  The high price of gasoline is entirely the fault of the socialist Democrats, who used Covid-19 as an excuse to hobble the Trump economic boom, and then stole the 2020 presidential election.

LA County Gas Prices Highest Since 2012.  According to AAA, the average price of a gallon of regular Tuesday in Los Angeles metropolitan area is $4.33, the highest since October of 2012.  The average price has increased over $1 a gallon since the start of the year because of a sharp increase in the oil price and increased demand due to more people driving to work, according to Jeffrey Spring, spokesman for AAA of Southern California.

Gas Prices in Southern California Reach TEN YEAR High.  Americans in southern California are now paying more for a gallon of gasoline than any point in the last decade; raising new questions over how high the cost of fuel can go under the Biden administration.  "The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Los Angeles County is $4.33, $4.29 in Orange County, $4.28 in Ventura County, $4.27 in San Bernardino County and $4.25 in Riverside County," reports ABC Los Angeles.

No End In Sight For Gas Above $3.00, Say Executive.  One executive sees no end in sight for gas above $3.00 per gallon.  Patrick de Hann — the Head of Petroleum Analysis for GasBuddy — said on FOX Business' "Cavuto:  Coast to Coast" that gas prices may remain high through the summer.  "Traditionally we see gas prices start declining in mid-to-late August as we start to see things [going] back to normal, kids going back to school, vacations basically ending," de Hann remarked.  "This year, though, I think the concern is that... the normal seasonal down-turning could be mitigated by the fact that offices are starting to see returns by fall and so commutes could start to increase."  De Hann noted that a decrease in prices below $3.00 per gallon may not occur until October:  "Keep in mind, too, with the prime of hurricane season now around the corner, there's so many potential disruptions that could take gas prices even higher."

California's Gas Prices Highest in the US Before Independence Day.  As Independence Day approaches, California's gas prices have hit a record-high since 2014.  According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), the national average gas price on July 1 is $3.123 per gallon but California's average price for regular gas was $4.284, which was $1.535 higher than in Mississippi.  The Golden state's average price of a gallon of premium gas was $4.595. [...] California had an automatic gas tax hike on July 1 that means drivers now have to pay 51.1 cents per gallon in state taxes — the highest gas tax in the country.

U.S. Gas Prices Surge to Highest Level in 7 Years Ahead of July 4 Break.  Gas prices across the United States are at their highest level since late 2014 with shortages predicted in the run up to the Fourth of July holiday weekend.  According to AAA, the national average on Tuesday is about $3.11 per gallon and by this weekend, that figure may rise another nickel.  UPI reports further strains will come when as many as 43.6 million Americans hit the road for Independence Day weekend, which runs from Thursday to Monday, extending a trend that became evident earlier this month as prices ticked upwards.

Gas prices rise again, no sign of letting up this summer.  After a brief dip, gas prices in the U.S. are on the rise again.  The U.S. average price for a gallon of gasoline rose 2 1/2 cents from last week to $3.09 per gallon on Monday [6/28/2021], according to the travel and fuel price tracking app GasBuddy.

Gas prices hit 7-year high as stations run low on fuel ahead of July 4.  Gas stations across the country are facing fuel shortages, driving prices to a seven-year high as more than 40 million Americans prepare to hit the road for the Fourth of July weekend.  The nationwide average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas hit $3.09 on Monday [6/28/2021], the highest price Americans have been asked to shell out ahead of the holiday weekend since 2014, according to data from the American Automobile Association.  AAA forecasts that 43.6 million Americans will travel by car this weekend — the most so far this year.  "Today, 89 percent of US gas stations are selling regular unleaded for $2.75 or more.  That is a stark increase over last July 4 when only a quarter of stations were selling gas for more than $2.25," said Jeanette McGee, a AAA spokesperson.  "Road trippers will pay the most to fill up for the holiday since 2014."

The Editor says...
Hmmm... Who was the President in 2014, when gas prices were so high?  It was the previous Democrat president!

Gas stations run low on fuel ahead of July 4th weekend and prices rise to their highest in seven years.  Gas stations across the country are running out of gasoline just as 43 million Americans are preparing to hit the road for the July 4th holiday weekend.  Those that do manage to find gas are likely to find some of the highest prices in almost seven years, with gas now averaging $3.10 a gallon across the US — the highest since October 2014.  Demand has rocked since last summer as COVID-weary Americans hit the road again, although the current shortages are being caused by a lack of available truckers to deliver fuel.

New Polling Shows Majority of Americans Know Exactly Why Inflation Is Rising.  Inflation is on the run at rates the United States hasn't seen since 1992, and consumer prices in May 2021 were up five percent over May 2020.  Americans are paying attention as they experience price surges on basic and essential goods.  [Tweets]  Now, new polling from Echelon Insights shows the federal government is being held responsible for the problem as politicians in Washington, D.C., keep printing money for excessive spending.  [More tweets]

Jen Psaki 'Fact Checks' Republican on Gas Prices Under Joe Biden, Gets Busted in Egregious Lie.  Jen Psaki not only has difficulty telling the truth at her press conferences, the White House Press Secretary is also honesty-challenged on Twitter, as well.  On Monday [6/21/2021], Psaki tried to dispel the widespread public perception that it is Joe Biden's fault that gas prices are going through the roof on Twitter.  It all started when Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) accurately pointed out that gas prices have risen under Joe Biden.

Crude oil climbs to highest price in nearly 3 years, pushing up gas prices.  Crude oil has climbed to its highest price in nearly three years as the pandemic recedes and global demand soars.  U.S. crude oil was $71.50 a barrel on Monday [6/14/2021] — its highest price since October 2018 — and Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, topped $73 a barrel.  Crude oil prices have risen steadily since the start of the year as businesses reopen and demand for air and auto travel bounces back.  As of Monday, U.S. crude oil is about $23 a barrel more expensive than it was in January.

Everything was better with President Trump in the White House.  Incredibly, only four months have passed since Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr. was installed as president and in that brief time, he has done more damage than anyone could have thought possible.  On day one Biden stopped work on the Keystone pipeline, now truly defunct, which cost thousands of jobs. [...] President Trump made us energy independent.  Now we are again importing oil, even from Iran.  He removed sanctions that prevented Russia from completing their Nordstream pipeline that will enrich that country fabulously.  He has stopped drilling on federal lands including ANWR and put an end to nearly all drilling for our own oil on federal lands.  He is intentionally strangling the US oil industry without regard for the hardships this will bring to all Americans.

Colonial Pipeline attack:  How did the FBI recover the ransom money?  The FBI claimed it recovered millions of dollars in Bitcoin paid as ransom during the attack against the Colonial Pipeline — a feat that is now generating more questions than answers.  The Justice Department and the FBI announced Monday [6/7/2021] it had seized 63.7 bitcoins (worth about $2.3 million at the time) from a Bitcoin wallet thought to be controlled by cybercriminals tied to a Russia-based collective called DarkSide, which operates off a "ransom as service" model.  Recovery of the cryptocurrency ransom from its presumably savvy holders, especially in such a short time, left many experts stunned.  While many details about the operation to recover the funds remain unclear, perhaps the biggest mystery, and the one that has so many people scratching their heads, is how the FBI managed to get the "private key" used to unlock and pull assets from the criminals' specific Bitcoin address.

The Colonial Pipeline Hack, The 'Russians', & The FBI's Ransom-Grab - What Really Happened?  Speculation has been running rampant over today's FBI press conference revealing the recovery of most of the ransom paid to "Russian" hackers by Colonial Pipeline. [...] In order for the computers that maintained the pipeline to get back to full operation, Colonial agreed to pay a ransom in the form of 75 bitcoin, which was worth about $5 million at the time.  Now, here's where things get weird:  In their triumphant statements this morning, the DOJ claimed to have seized the funds from the group that reportedly paid DarkSide for their Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) attack on Colonial.  Notably, they did not secure the funds from DarkSide, which took a fee from the ransom in bitcoin that remains in the possession of the shadowy operation. [...] The DOJ has historically been extremely hostile to bitcoin, labeling it as a preferred monetary system for cyber criminals, despite bitcoin transactions being publicly available to anyone with access to the internet.

Exactly what Barack H. Obama would do:
Biden to Cancel Oil and Gas Leases in Alaska's Arctic Refuge Amid Rising Gas Prices.  The Biden Administration will suspend all oil and gas contracts in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge amid rising gas prices.  The national average price of gas per gallon in the US is $3.045 as of Tuesday, June 1.  Gas prices have spiked in Southern California to $6 per gallon.  Joe Biden is now freezing all oil and gas contracts in Alaska's Arctic Refuge after canceling the Keystone X [sic] pipeline.

Gas Is Going To $5 Per Gallon:  First In California, Then Across The Country.  Get ready for $5 per gallon gasoline — especially if you live in California.  At least, that was the contention of a new WSJ op-ed that claims higher taxes and environmental regulations are both driving up the price of gas.  Author Allysia Finley notes that the average cost at the pump in California is now $4.18 a gallon, pointing out that in 2017, Democrats in the state's legislature raised a tax on each gallon by 20.8 cents over three years.  California drivers are now paying an astonishing average of 63 cents a gallon in state and local taxes, compared an average of 36.8 cents elsewhere in the country.  The reasoning for the price hike was to repair the state's infrastructure, but instead the proceeds have been "directed toward projects aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, such as bike lanes and mass transit," the op-ed notes.  The California Air Resources Board is also responsible for imposing a tax through its cap and trade program, which has added about 14 cents per gallon to the state's average gas price.

Fact-Checkers Say Biden Not to Blame for Gas Price Hikes.  Oh, Really?  The Associated Press attempts to fact-check Republican claims that Joe Biden's energy policies are leading to higher prices at the gas pump.  This should be entertaining.  The AP evidently doesn't have anyone on staff with energy policy experience.  If it did, it would not have beclowned itself with this ham-handed attempt to run interference for Biden as pain at the gas pump is being noticed by Americans, just as millions are returning to offices for work.  Prices shot up after Biden took office.  Is there a cause and effect here?  There isn't always; events and policies overseas do impact fuel prices here.  But sometimes policy here does make a difference on what things cost, including energy.  [Paywall]

Deception Wearing the Mask of Truth.  Where is "working class/lunch bucket union guy" Joe, whose executive orders and indifference have destroyed thousands of union jobs from pipelines to rare earth mining, induced Weimar Republic-style inflation on food, building supplies, and gasoline — all taxes on regular Joes and Marys?  While Joe's Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm tells motorists facing 1979-like gas shortages, "well if you drove an electric car gas shortages wouldn't matter," and his Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg touts riding a bicycle to work, accompanied by two black GMC Tahoe SUVs.  Working class Joe is seeing gas prices at the pump from less than $2.00 a gallon to over $3.00 a gallon in 100 days.  Nice job, Joe, in knee-capping your favorite constituents.

Jen Psaki Claims You're Not Seeing What You Think You Are With Those Rising Gas Prices.  If you've been checking the gas pump and noticing the rising prices as we hit Memorial Day weekend, don't worry.  According to Jen Psaki, you're really not seeing what you think you're seeing.  Pay no attention to the evidence of your own eyes.  According to Psaki, those rising prices you're seeing really aren't so bad — and certainly not Joe Biden's fault.

Trump laments 7-year-high gas prices as Americans prep for Memorial Day.  Former President Donald Trump expressed concern Thursday [5/27/2021] for Americans forced to pay sky-high gas prices as millions hit the road for the Memorial Day holiday.  "With Memorial Day Weekend coming up, tomorrow people start driving in the biggest automobile days of the year," Trump said in an emailed statement.  "I'm sorry to say the gasoline prices that you will be confronted with are far higher than they were just a short number of months ago where we had gasoline under $2 a gallon."  According to AAA, travelers will face the highest prices at the pump this weekend since 2014, when the agency's national average gas price sat at $3.65 cents per gallon.  As of Thursday, the national average was $3.04 per gallon.

Tech audit of Colonial Pipeline found 'glaring' problems.  An outside audit three years ago of the major East Coast pipeline company hit by a cyberattack found "atrocious" information management practices and "a patchwork of poorly connected and secured systems," its author told The Associated Press.  "We found glaring deficiencies and big problems," said Robert F. Smallwood, whose consulting firm delivered an 89-page report in January 2018 after a six-month audit.  "I mean an eighth-grader could have hacked into that system."

'Extreme Reaction' By Colonial Pipeline Baffles Energy Experts (Arlington VA Patch).  The major East Coast pipeline behind the gasoline shortages in the Southeast and mid-Atlantic is coming under scrutiny for its information technology and cybersecurity practices.  Colonial Pipeline revealed Friday that it had been the target of a cyberattack on its information technology system.  The company said the hackers stole nearly 100 gigabytes of data and encrypted at least a portion of the company's information technology network.  The hackers, however, did not obtain access to the operational technology side of the pipeline company's system.  But Colonial Pipeline still decided to shut down the entire pipeline system, which provides nearly 50 percent of the gasoline and jet fuel to East Coast markets.

California's highest-in-the-nation gas taxes are rising.  But promised repairs are lagging.  Four years after the Legislature boosted the gas tax in order to fix California's crumbling roads and bridges, the state has spent billions and made some progress in repairs, but officials now say the funding is sufficient only to complete less than half of the work needed.  The gas tax has been a political hot potato since it was passed in 2017, resulting in the recall of a Democratic state senator who voted for the legislation and an unsuccessful attempt by Republicans in 2018 to ask voters to repeal the higher charges.

The Biden Honeymoon is Definitely Over.  This isn't the normal grumbling of citizens embarrassed by a President's Texas accent or his mean tweets.  This is the seething anger that one gets when cheated by a con artist.  We were promised a return to normalcy.  What we got was a doddering old fool with the most radical agenda in history. [...] When Joe declared war on the fossil fuel industry it was apparent that his policies would eventually drive-up prices at the pump (and the electric meter).  But gasoline has gone up each week for 17 consecutive weeks — something that hasn't happened since 1994.  That represents a 50% increase in some places.  How many Americans do you suppose live 50% below their means?  Because if they don't, every time they fill up their tank, they have to think about what they'll give up to pay for it.

Newsmax Reporter:  "Colonial Pipeline "Hacker" Story Doesn't Add Up".  When this "Russsian Hacker" pipeline story first broke, I did a piece on how MANY people online didn't buy it.  They felt like there was a deeper plot afoot.  And now, more folks are saying this — even reporters over at Newsmax.  The reason being is because since this so-called "hack" happened, Biden has now caved to Russia in a big way — as a matter of fact, it's so big, that if Trump ever pulled off a move like this, he'd likely be impeached.  But suddenly, the party of "Russia boogiemen" no longer cares about "Russia boogiemen."

Colonial Pipeline CEO Tells Why He Paid Hackers a $4.4 Million Ransom.  The operator of the Colonial Pipeline learned it was in trouble at daybreak on May 7, when an employee found a ransom note from hackers on a control-room computer.  By that night, the company's chief executive came to a difficult conclusion:  He had to pay.  Joseph Blount, CEO of Colonial Pipeline Co., told The Wall Street Journal that he authorized the ransom payment of $4.4 million because executives were unsure how badly the cyberattack had breached its systems or how long it would take to bring the pipeline back.

Hackers behind Colonial Pipeline attack reportedly received $90 million in bitcoin before shutting down.  DarkSide, the hacker group behind the recent Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack, received a total of $90 million in bitcoin ransom payments before shutting down last week, according to new research.  Colonial Pipeline was hit with a devastating cyberattack earlier this month that forced the company to shut down approximately 5,500 miles of pipeline in the United States, crippling gas delivery systems in Southeastern states.  The FBI blamed the attack on DarkSide, a cybercriminal gang believed to be based in Eastern Europe, and Colonial reportedly paid a $5 million ransom to the group.  DarkSide operates what's known as a "ransomware as a service" business model, meaning the hackers develop and market ransomware tools and sell them to other criminals who then carry out attacks.  Ransomware is a type of malicious software that's designed to block access to a computer system.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer Orders Shutdown Of Oil Pipeline During Gas Crisis.  States throughout the American southeast are in a full-blown gas crisis.  Some gas stations are raising prices to ridiculous levels while many of them don't even have any gas.  As all of this is unfolding, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has decided that now is the perfect time to shut down an oil pipeline from Canada.  Why?

Media in Full Spin Mode to Cover for Biden's Failures.  Joe Biden's presidency is spiraling out of control.  By any reasonable metric he has failed as a commander in chief.  He has failed on immigration, he has failed on the economy, he has failed to create jobs, he has failed on foreign policy, he has failed on handling the pandemic, he has failed to unite the country, and he has failed as a leader.  But that's not what the mainstream media would have us believe. [...] As if that was not bad enough, a Russian cyberattack on a U.S. pipeline that provides gasoline, jet fuel, and diesel to nearly half of the East Coast was recently forced to turn off its spigot, resulting in a gas shortage, long waits at the pump, and soaring fuel prices.  Last Wednesday, 74 percent of North Carolina's stations ran out of gas, and the price of gas spiked by 12 cents in Kentucky.  Colonial Pipeline, the company that was targeted, then paid the hackers a $5 million ransom.  But don't worry; it was a "private sector decision," as Biden's Deputy National Security Adviser for Cyber & Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger said last week.

Biden beset by crises following reversals of Trump policies.  In an unexpected turn of events reminiscent of scenes from the 1970s, much of the East Coast is now looking at fuel shortages.  Following the Russian hacking group DarkSide's attack on the Colonial Pipeline, several states declared a state of emergency in the face of shortages at gas stations, as the pipeline struggled to come back online.  Members of the administration and some governors are encouraging Americans to refrain from panic-buying gas, but others have suspended gasoline taxes and fuel regulations in response.  Colonial announced Wednesday evening [5/12/2021] that it had begun the process of restarting pipeline operations after paying the hackers nearly $5 million.  It could still be days, however, before the pipeline is fully operational, meaning gas outages will continue for the near term.

Lines at gas stations are a feature, not a bug, of Biden's green future.  Biden ran for president advocating, or at least paying lip service to, long-standing environmentalist plans designed to create gasoline shortages.  They never put it that way, of course, but that has always been their goal in shutting down pipelines and banning new fracking and oil exploration.  The whole point has been to stop fossil fuels from being extracted from the ground and burnt to run our economy, in the naive hope that this will cause global temperature patterns to change.  This plan, however, has just been preempted by a criminal plot to do much the same thing by other means.  The DarkSide hacking group's ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline put gasoline pipelines out of commission all up and down the East Coast.  This has not only sent the price of gasoline skyrocketing but has actually caused gas stations on the Eastern Seaboard to run dry.  This simply never happens under normal circumstances.  And — surprise, surprise — the public does not like it.

Five telltale signs that inflation is upon us.  [#2]  Energy costs increased 25% in the past year, with gasoline rising almost 50%, fuel oil increasing 37%, and utility gas going up 12%, while electricity rose 3.6% over the same period, according to the Consumer Price Index.  Gas prices went from $1.86 per gallon to $3.02 over the past year, according to GasBuddy, a website that tracks gas stations and their prices around the country.  This week, drivers throughout the Southeast faced shortages as well, thanks to the cyberattack suffered by the Colonial Pipeline.  While demand for energy in the commercial sector fell due to coronavirus restrictions, demand in residential properties skyrocketed as people stayed home for much of the past year.

Report: U.S. Capital Nearly Out of Gas While North Carolina, Virginia Also Endure Steep Outages.  The United State's capital is nearly dry of gasoline Friday morning [5/14/2021] while states such as North Carolina and Virginia are also struggling, according to recent data.  According to GasBuddy data posted at 9:33 a.m. ET, D.C. is experiencing an 88 percent outage, with North Carolina at 67 percent, and Virginia at 50 percent.  The Colonial Pipeline's recent ransomware attack and ensuing concerns about gas prices have contributed to a fuel shortage on the East Coast, Breitbart News reported Tuesday.

The Editor says...
If The District of Columbia is out of gas, that is good news.  It may cause a lot of bureaucrats to re-think the need for pipelines and question the wisdom of the so-called Green New Deal.  The politicians don't pump their own gas, of course.  But their staffers do.

Virginia BP Gas Station Charges $6.99 per Gallon amid Fuel Shortage.  A gas station in Richmond, Virginia, charged customers $6.99 a gallon Tuesday [5/11/2021] not long after the governor declared a state of emergency because of the Colonial Pipeline ransomware cyberattack that caused gasoline shortages.  According to WTVR, Lether Kerney, who pulled up to the BP gas station on Williamsburg Road, said, "It was a lot of people there, no one looked at the price."  "I had half a tank of gas, so when it got to $25 I started looking to see what was going on. [...] I spent $35.45 to fill up my tank.  Six gallons of gas for $35.  That's absolutely ridiculous,'" she continued.  Kerney said when she arrived and began filling up, she did not realize the station was charging $5.99 a gallon.

Gas hits $7 in Virginia.  Drivers were shocked when they got to the pump at a gas station in Virginia.  The price on the pump was $6.999 at a Richmond BP station earlier this week.  There have been gas shortages across the Southeast after a pipeline operation was forced to closed down for days after a cyberattack.

Secretary Alfred E Newman Outlines Federal Response to Gas Crisis.  Transportation Secretary Alfred E Newman took center stage today [5/12/2021] to outline the White House response to the gas crisis as people up and down the East coast are unable to find fuel.  We are so screwed with these professional political idiots, who have never held a real private sector job, in charge of U.S. policy.  Secretary Newman is skilled in the use of parseltongue:  ["]We understand the concerns that need to be understood in order to evaluate the concerns that have been expressed.  Our understanding has led to a larger discussion about the concerns and we understand the need to coordinate with our partner agencies toward the common goal of understanding.  Now that we have the analysis to understand the greater concern, we are evaluating the fastest way to express the understanding of the analysis to a more broad network of partners.  As soon as that network understanding is in place, then we will have a better understanding for the American people about their concern["] ... or something.  Yes, these are the words of wisdom from the Secretary of Transportation.

GasBuddy: 55% of Virginia gas stations are out of gas.  The DMV has been hit particularly hard by the ongoing gas shortage concerns, following a cyberattack over the weekend on the Colonial Pipeline.  New data released by GasBuddy Thursday morning showed that more than 50% of Virginia's gas stations were out of gas, while the District neared 50% as well.  Patrick De Haan, a senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy, is tracking outages up and down the East Coast.  Virginia has 55% of stations reporting gas shortages, while 47% of D.C. stations and 34% of Maryland stations are out of gas.  Those numbers climbed from 44%, 10% and 11%, respectively, less than 24 hours prior.  North Carolina, Georgia and South Carolina have also been significantly affected with 71%, 49% and 54% of stations reporting no gas, respectively, Thursday morning [5/13/2021].

Over 15,000 Gas Stations [are] Out of Fuel Nationwide.  Gas shortages eased slightly overnight in some states but worsened in others as Colonial Pipeline works to bring one of the nation's major fuel conduits back online.  More stations were out of gas in Florida, Maryland, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Mississippi early on May 13 compared to the night of May 12, according to GasBuddy.  In Florida, 30 percent of 7,564 stations were out of fuel as of 6 a.m.  Central Time.  In Maryland, 34 percent of the state's 1,869 stations could no longer serve customers.  More than half of South Carolina's 3,084 stations ran out of gas, along with 34 percent of Tennessee's stations.  Seven percent of Mississippi's stations are out of gas compared to 6 percent the night prior.  At the same time, shortages eased in several of the states most impacted by the current situations, including by 3 percent in North Carolina.  About 7 in 10 stations in the worst-hit state, which has 5,373 stations, remain out of gas, according to GasBuddy, an app that tracks prices and availability.

Colonial Pipeline Paid Hackers $5 Million Ransom:  Report.  Colonial Pipeline Co. paid the group that hacked its pipeline a nearly $5 million ransom in untraceable cryptocurrency within hours of the cyberattack, two people familiar with the payment told Bloomberg on Thursday [5/13/2021].  The report contradicts Colonial's public assertion that it did not pay the hacking group DarkSide ransom following the cyberattack.  A third person familiar with the ransom said the U.S. government is aware Colonial paid DarkSide, which is believed to be based in Russia or Eastern Europe.

Jen Psaki Gives Insulting Answer When Asked Why White House Has 'Shifted Tone' on Gas Crisis.  We reported yesterday on how President Biden's Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told some flat-out whoppers about the gas shortages during Tuesday's White House press briefing, and at times almost appeared to be gleeful over the crisis. [...] Earlier in the briefing, Granholm proclaimed that "It's not that we have a gasoline shortage, it's that we have this supply crunch."  Oh, okay.  As it turns out, Granholm is not the only member of this administration who is straight-up gaslighting the American people on the so-called "supply crunch."  During today's back and forth with reporters, White House press secretary Jen Psaki was asked about the administration's previous comments on how there wasn't a gas shortage.

Colonial Pipeline Announces it Has Begun the Restart of Operations.  Colonial Pipeline Wednesday afternoon [5/12/2021] announced it restarted its operations at 5 PM ET.  "Following this restart, it will take several days for the product delivery supply chain to return to normal.  Some markets served by Colonial Pipeline may experience, or continue to experience, intermittent service interruptions during the start-up period.  Colonial will move as much gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel as is safely possible and will continue to do so until markets return to normal," Colonial Pipeline said in a statement.

New York Times Says No Gas Shortage, "No Long Lines or Major Price Hikes" — Nothing to See Here, Ignore The Reality.  In a PRAVDA-esque display of regime defense on behalf of JoeBama the New York Times (state run media) attempted to deny the reality of what many Americans are experiencing.  However, after immediate backlash... the proverbial stealth edit, as people started pointing out the absurdity of their claims:  [Tweet]  Obviously this narrative runs in the exact opposite of reality.

Gov. DeSantis demands Biden 'steps up' on Russia's pipeline cyberattack as 65% of N. Carolina gas stations run dry and prices top $3.  Fuel will start flowing through the Colonial Pipeline again, the company announced on Wednesday — six days after America's largest pipeline closed down due to a ransomware attack.  Swaths of Florida, North Carolina, Virginia and Georgia are struggling with fuel shortages, and more than 10,000 gas stations have run dry as of Wednesday [5/12/2021].  Sections of the pipeline, which runs from Texas to New Jersey, were re-opened manually on Monday, but the main lines were closed until now, causing significant disruption.

Biden Administration Suspends Environmental Rules as Democrats Panic Over Empty Gasoline Stations.  The Biden Administration announced on Tuesday [5/11/2021] that it was temporarily waiving EPA restrictions on the sale of the "winter-time" gasoline formulation in major metropolitan areas of three states, and the District of Columbia, as part of an effort to add to the available inventories that can be used to address the gas shortage.  The states are Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maryland, along with DC.  Normally, each April and May, the EPA requires gasoline manufacturers to begin delivering different formulations of gasoline in certain metropolitan areas because the "summertime" formulation produces fewer emissions from automobile engines.  When that change happens, refiners and distributors are sometimes left with excess inventory of the winter formulation which cannot be sold again until the fall.

Energy Secretary Granholm just can't suppress her smiles over the gasoline shortages from the Colonial Pipeline shutdown.  Jennifer Granholm sure doesn't look too upset over the impact of the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline on gasoline and other energy supplies. [...] Don't you realize it's good for you to learn to get along without fossil fuels?  Did you realize that if you drive an electric car, this wouldn't be a problem?  Watch as a reporter's question on whether the shutdown would "speed up" the transition to green energy yields utterly` inappropriate (and chilling, if you think about it) smiles from Granholm:  [Photo]  [Tweet]  Sacrifices are going to have to be made, and it's the little people who must make them.  Don't expect Granholm to take the bus to work or swear off private jets.  And don't call what's going on a "gasoline shortage"!  That's too reminiscent of Jimmy Carter.  Call it a "supply crunch"!

Cyberattack on US pipeline brings lines to East Coast gas stations, signs of panic buying.  Motorists along the southern East Coast on Tuesday [5/11/2021] began forming lines at gas station, following the recent cyber attack on the major U.S. pipeline that apparently sparked fear of a petroleum shortage in the region.  Lines former in states including Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina following the ransomware attack Friday by Russia-based criminal group DarkSide.  Several gas stations in North Carolina's Triangle region were out of fuel by sunrise, according to WRAL-TV, as gas-hunters along the coast flocked to Twitter with reports and pictures of long line.

US gas prices surge to seven-year high on fifth day of DarkSide cyber shutdown of Colonial Pipeline.  Gas prices have spiked to a seven-year high after Colonial Pipeline was forced to shut off the nation's biggest fuel pipeline in the wake of a cyberattack as some fuel distributors warned of 'catastrophic' shortages across the South and Northeast.  The national average for retail gasoline prices was at $2.985 as of Tuesday, according to the American Automobile Association.  The last time the average gas prices were above $2.99 was back in November 2014.  Colonial Pipeline has said it is trying to 'substantially' restore operations by the end of the week but reports of gas shortages and panic buying are already emerging with motorists lining up from Florida to Virginia for fuel.

White House Said There Was No Gas Shortage Before Acknowledging Problems Hours Later.  The White House repeatedly reassured Americans on Monday [5/10/2021] there was no gas shortage in the United States after the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack before acknowledging supply problems hours later.  White House press secretary Jen Psaki brought Homeland Security advisor Dr.  Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall and Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technologies Anne Neuberger to reassure Americans the Biden administration was on top of the crisis, urging Americans to remain calm.

CEO of pipeline company crippled by cyberattack warns of potential fuel shortages: report.  The CEO of the company whose pipeline was crippled by a cyberattack warned Monday of potential supply shortages in the Southeastern U.S., even as it works to reopen the line and remove the ransomware.  While Colonial Pipeline Co. is working out a complex plan to restart operations, CEO Joseph Blount said in a private meeting Monday, they needed to remove the ransomware before resuming shipments, reported Bloomberg News.

US Gas Stations Run Out of Fuel After Colonial Pipeline Cyberattack.  Gas stations in multiple U.S. states ran out of gas on Monday after hackers attacked a pipeline that runs from Texas to New Jersey.  Stations in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia were out of fuel after customers rushed to fill vehicles following the hack of Colonial Pipeline.  Approximately seven percent of stations in Virginia had run out of gas as of 11 p.m. Central Time on Monday, Patrick De Haan, an analyst with GasBuddy, which lists prices and availability at U.S., Canadian, and Australian stations, said on Twitter.

White House Occupant Reads Teleprompter, Desperately Attempting to Spin Horrific Policy Outcomes.  The White House occupant appeared today [5/10/2021] to deliver remarks on some key issues that are catastrophic to the long-term goals of the leftist administration.  First, let's be clear; there's no-way the Chicago control agents would allow the installed occupant to speak on any issue, publicly, that was not a direct and measurable threat to their long-term goals.  The remarks today by Joe Biden are carefully scripted to diffuse political damage that is pending as a direct outcome of the executed policies. [...] The JoeBama energy policy is "necessarily" making fuel prices at the pump jump dramatically.  The teleprompter is loaded with disinformation to place the blame for higher gas prices upon a pipeline hack, which JoeBama intentionally points out is a private sector issue — that now needs government intervention as part of his infrastructure program.  This nuanced shift is clearly part of the Chicago maneuver toward socialist control of all levels of energy development and distribution.

The Fossil Fuels Must Go Through.  There is something surrealistically ironic about Joe Biden's Emergency Order to mobilize tanker trucks — anything — to keep the fossil fuels going.  On the one hand it is a backhanded admission of how vital the products transported by the Colonial Pipeline are.  On the other it is a reminder of how policy errors can progressively cascade through the system, one mistake compounding the others.  Why is there a shortage of tanker truck drivers?  One reason is the Covid-19 lockdown.  "We've been dealing with a driver shortage for a while, but the pandemic took that issue and metastasized it," said Ryan Streblow, the executive vice president of the National Tank Truck Carriers.  "It certainly has grown exponentially."  More fundamentally truck driving has become an unattractive lifestyle choice for young people.

The Editor says...
Any kind of work that requires leaving the apartment (or Mom's basement) is unattractive to lazy millennials.

Fuel Stations Run Dry Amid Hacked Pipeline.  And just like that, the Southeast of the US is heading down a dark path similar to one of the 1970s gas shortages from Virginia to Florida to Alabama following the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack.  Even with Colonial set to restore systems by the weekend, shortages have already materialized as people panic hoard.  The real panic has yet to begin as millions of Americans are waking up for work, hopping into their vehicle across the Southeast, and are hearing fuel shortages on the radio or reading push notifications on their phone.  Driving down the street, they see rising fuel prices, signs at pumps that either read shortage or pump restrictions, or even see some gas stations closed.

Biden is the New Carter, and we Now Have the Gas Lines to Prove it.  Candidate Biden tried to do a song and dance about ending energy production in the United States, but no one wanted to believe that he actually would.  After President Biden's Day One executive order killing the Keystone XL Pipeline, then others that put a moratorium on fracking and domestic gas production, I think it's apparent that he meant what he said the first time.  It is now around Day 130 [sic - it's Day 112] of the Biden administration, and we have had the privilege horror of seeing the result of his bad policy decisions in real-time.  Gas prices have increased.  Quite a lot, in fact.  After the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack this weekend, we are now seeing a full-on fuel shortage, to a degree we have not seen since... oh, 1978?  The end result of this is increased prices that you pay at the pump.

Gas price begins to soar as 'Kremlin-backed cyber gangsters DarkSide' keep America's biggest fuel pipe offline for fourth day.  The Russian criminal gang known as DarkSide that is behind the attack that shut down Colonial Pipeline have claimed their only goal is to 'make money' and not cause chaos — as experts warn gas prices could surge past $3 a gallon if America's largest fuel pipeline remains down.  The FBI confirmed on Monday [5/10/2021] that DarkSide, the Russian hacking outfit made up of ransomware veterans, was responsible for the attack on Colonial Pipeline, which runs from Texas to New Jersey and transports 45 percent of the East Coast's fuel supply.  DarkSide, which cultivates a Robin Hood image of stealing from corporations and giving a cut to charity, said in a statement posted on the dark web on Monday that their only goal was to 'make money' and not create problems for society.

Gingrich: When You Pay More for Gas at the Pump, That's a Biden Hidden Tax.  Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich weighed-in this weekend on Joe Biden's disastrous economic policies; saying every time Americans pay more for gasoline they should think of the payment as a "Biden hidden tax."  "This is a basic rule of economic history.  It goes all the way back to the Romans.  If you can't raise taxes, and you have to keep raising spending, the only way you can make up the difference is through inflation," said Gingrich.

Fears of gas price surge after 'DarkSide' cyber attack shuts Colonial Pipeline between Texas and NJ that carries 45% of East Coast fuel:  Experts call it 'most significant assault on infrastructure to date in the US'.  The largest gasoline pipeline in the country was shut down on Friday [5/7/2021] after a sophisticated ransomware attack, which experts are calling the most dramatic cyberattack on U.S. soil to date.  In a Saturday statement, Colonial Pipeline said that it 'proactively took certain systems offline to contain the threat, which has temporarily halted all pipeline operations, and affected some of our IT systems.'  The hackers are likely a professional cybercriminal group, and a group dubbed 'DarkSide' was among the potential suspects, two U.S. government officials told Reuters.

Hold onto your hats:  Gas prices may be going up even more.  Considering how hard President Trump fought to accomplish anything despite nonstop opposition from Democrats and unusually high opposition from the RINOs in his own party, it seems tacky to complain about one of his failures.  Nevertheless, with news breaking late Friday night that a cyber-attack disabled the largest gas and diesel pipeline in America, we must regret the fact that he did not get the chance to harden America's infrastructure against attack.  This major ransomware attack reminds us how vulnerable we are, not just to blackmail, but to our infrastructure's destruction.

'Three-dollar gas will be the norm by Memorial Day'.  Americans who have been cooped up at home over the past year during the COVID-19 pandemic will likely pay $3 a gallon for gasoline when they emerge from lockdowns this summer and resume traveling, economists say.  Motorists in the United States have not paid an average of $3 per gallon since 2014.  As of Tuesday [3/23/2021], drivers in California, Hawaii, Washington State, Nevada, Utah, Oregon, Alaska, Arizona, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia were paying an average of more than $3 per gallon.

As gas prices soar, Americans can blame Joe Biden.  President Biden is already boosting oil prices, and he's barely gotten started.  Biden is frantic to help Americans hard-hit by COVID-19, or so he says.  But while his $1.9 trillion "American Rescue Plan" would send cash to millions, much of that windfall may go to pay for higher gasoline and home heating prices.  Americans should blame Biden, but not for the reason you might think.  Biden's attack on U.S. energy producers, starting with his freeze on federal oil and gas leases, will assuredly take a toll on output down the road and cause prices at the pump to rise.

Gas prices [are] expected to continue to climb.  The national average price of a gallon of gas recently climbed nine cents to $2.72.  That's according to AAA Auto Club.  Colorado, Nevada, Michigan, and Oklahoma saw some of the largest weekly increases at +13 cents per gallon, while Arizona topped the list at +25 cents for the week, according to AAA.  The least expensive gas is found in mostly southern states.

CNN is worried about OPEC and Russia, while ignoring the obvious:  Alaska and Texas.
$3 gasoline could be around the corner, unless OPEC and Russia start pumping more oil.  OPEC and Russia's unprecedented production cuts last spring lifted oil prices out of a death spiral.  Nearly a year later, the group is under pressure to cool off the red-hot market.  US crude has raced back above $60 a barrel.  That's a far cry from the depths it reached last April when oil crashed below zero (negative $40.32 a barrel, to be exact) for the first time in history.  Prices at the pump are starting to creep higher, too.  The national average hit $2.70 a gallon Friday, according to AAA.  That's well above the April low of $1.76 per gallon.  Investors are betting the pandemic will soon be under control — and that in turn will unleash pent-up demand for road trips, cruises, flights and other oil-consuming activities.

Gas Prices Have Already Spiked Under Biden (And They Could Go Much Higher).  After four years of stable gas prices under President Donald J. Trump, Americans may have to get used to some pain at the pump.  Former Vice President Joe Biden hasn't even been in the White House for a month and gas prices are already up a whopping 18 percent with at least one analyst predicting that they could hit $4 per gallon in the near future.  Biden's ideologically-driven decision to cancel the Keystone XL pipeline and the expectation that his Green New Deal policies will place onerous regulatory burdens on domestic energy producers in the fossil fuel industry is already hitting Americans in their pocketbooks.  Sadly, the worst may be yet to come.

The Editor says...
Of course the worst is yet to come.  With Biden cutting off oil exploration anywhere he can, blocking pipeline projects, and dreaming of a world without carbon dioxide, the price of gasoline will only increase.  Biden and his minions, who oppose every practical source of energy, are responsible for this mess.

Elections Have Consequences — Gas Prices Expected to Top $4/gal Next Year.  When President Obama was in office gas prices soared to more than $5/gal.  When President Trump took office he unleashed the energy sector and we became energy independent for the first time driving gas prices down.  Now reports of the current JoeBama policy impact show gas prices likely to top $4.00/gal next year. [...] Higher fuel prices disproportionately hits the working class.  In addition to higher cost to fill-up your tank, transportation costs increase and raw material costs increase.  The downstream impact of increased oil prices are significant.

Liberals Still Think Obama Was the 'Best President Ever,' Here Are 14 Reasons Why That's Ridiculous.  [#12] Gas prices were ridiculously high.  The national average gas price has yet to reach $3/gallon under Trump, but under Obama, we had gas prices between $3.50 and $4 per gallon for three years straight!  Seriously, who doesn't miss those times where it cost an arm and a leg to fill up your gas tank?  I certainly don't.  Meanwhile, that green economy he promised never materialized, and his wasting of taxpayer dollars to fund green energy companies become a huge scandal after more than fifty clean energy companies backed by the Obama administration went bankrupt or found themselves in major financial trouble.  The most well-known example of one of these companies that went belly-up was Solyndra.  Solyndra received more than a half-billion-dollar loan despite the fact the Department of Energy (DOE) knew it was on the verge of bankruptcy.

'Mystery surcharge' and gas taxes boost California gasoline prices by about $1.26 per gallon.  With Southern California gas prices topping $4 for the first time since 2015, many have been quick to place the blame on refinery problems and a switch to the summer blend of gas.  Both clearly figure into the mix.  But the Golden State's broad array of gas taxes and a "mystery surcharge" no one can quite explain placed California motorists at a disadvantage to begin with.  Here's a breakdown of what we pay in gasoline taxes, according to the California Energy Commission.  All numbers except the final category have been rounded to the nearest penny and were effective as of March.  The combined Cap & Trade and low Carbon Fuels Standard costs were effective April 12.

The Gasoline Price Shell Game.  The Chinese coronavirus has put a huge damper on business activity, consumer spending and transportation, especially recreational/discretionary spending and activity.  With the lockdown and stay-at-home orders widespread in the U.S. and many other major countries, personal driving and regular passenger car/bus/train/air travel have all declined precipitously.  This has dropped the demand for crude oil by millions of barrels per day.  The upside is that retail gasoline pricing has fallen and the average driver is quite happy about the new lower prices.  He shouldn't be.  He's getting a raw deal.

The Editor says...
The Editor filled up his car yesterday [4/15/2020] in Cedar Hill for just under $1.20 per gallon.

Gas prices could soon drop to 99 cents a gallon in parts of the Midwest.  Even as many Americans are increasingly seeing gas prices at the pump under $2 a gallon, the drop could soon steepen.  That's particularly true in the Great Lakes region, where prices could soon be 99 cents a gallon at hundreds of gas stations.  Here's how Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, figures that:  The Chicago spot price, the reference point for prices in surrounding states, has plummeted to 34 cents a gallon.  It's a nickel to a dime higher in other regions and 52 cents on the West Coast.  Add on gas taxes, he says, and you're getting close to where retail prices could soon be.  Prices are particularly soft around the Great Lakes, he says, because there's no easy way to unload extra supply.  "The only real way is to offer discounts, and that's the state we're in today," he said.

The Editor says...
The Editor filled up his little car yesterday [3/23/2020] for just under $1.57 per gallon.  In Santa Clara, California, it's $4.79 per gallon.

US could see lowest gas prices in history:  Analyst.  The U.S. could see the lowest gasoline prices in history when adjusted for inflation, according to one oil analyst, as the Saudi-Russian oil price war and coronavirus pandemic upset crude prices.  As of Thursday, the national average price of regular gasoline was around $2.19, according to AAA, which is about 39 cents cheaper than the average a year ago.

Virginia Dems to Raise Gas Tax by 10 Cents a Gallon.  Virginia Democrats agreed to a deal raising gas taxes in the state by a total of 10 cents over the next two years, a move party leadership said would give people "more time with their families."  With Democrats also expanding a regional gas tax, overall gas taxes will more than double in some areas of the state from 16 cents to 34 cents, according to NBC Washington.  Democratic lawmakers said the increases would help reduce traffic on busy roadways in the state.

The Editor says...
It is ironic that the Abortion Party wants people to spend "more time with their families."  Some people don't have families because the Democrats have made abortion widely available.

Gas prices drop 4 cents per gallon.  The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has dipped 4 cents per gallon to $2.61 over the past two weeks, according to the latest Lundberg survey.  Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg said Sunday that this could be the last relief that drivers see for a while as retailers around the country face higher costs.  The price at the pump is 18 cents higher than it was a year ago.

The Editor says...
The Editor filled up his car this morning at a station that offered regular unleaded for about $2.07 per gallon.  Since prices are down, I opted for the 89-Octane grade, since the engine was pinging a little.  Perhaps for Christmas I'll purchase a tank of super unleaded.

Is California Becoming Premodern?  Taxpayers in California, whose basket of sales, gasoline and income taxes is the highest in the nation, quietly seethe while immobile on antiquated freeways that are crowded, dangerous and under nonstop makeshift repair.  Gas prices of $4 to $5 a gallon — the result of high taxes, hyper-regulation and green mandates — add insult to the injury of stalled commuters.  Gas tax increases ostensibly intended to fund freeway expansion and repair continue to be diverted to the state's failing high-speed rail project.

Rising California gasoline prices highlight growing divide in US.  The price at the pump was more than $4 a gallon in Vista, Calif., when Scott Hissem recently embarked on a trip to Texas celebrate his 40th birthday.  When the delivery associate for Amazon.com Inc. arrived in the Lone Star state, he got an unexpected present:  Gasoline cost just $2 and change.  The gap has Mr. Hissem considering a move to escape California's high cost of living.  "It makes life hard," Mr. Hissem said of California, which is the most populous U.S. state and the one with the highest gasoline prices.

Newsom's Gas-Tax Switcheroo.  The gas tax was sold as a means to fix and expand freeways, but S.B. 1's fine print gave state officials much latitude to spend the money in other ways.  Voters should have known better but, hey, this is California.  Voters' own culpability didn't stop them from getting angry after Gov. Gavin Newsom last month signed an executive order diverting road funds to his pet rail projects.

Democrats [are] turning California into a third-world hellhole.  Democrats are trying to keep people from having cars, just like the people of the Third World.  After all, a car gives people the freedom to move, and freedom is a bad thing in the minds of Democrats since it limits the power the government has over citizens.  Recently, Gavin Newsom, the Democrat governor, transferred millions of dollars that the voters had been ensured would go to improve the state's failing road infrastructure to a fund designed to convince Californians to give up their cars.  Democrats are also working to make cars unaffordable for any but the richest Californians.  Californians pay $1.53 more for a gallon for gasoline than the rest of America.

Labor Day gas prices [are] back to record lows:  Here's how that compares to the last decade of pump prices.  Nationwide gasoline prices are cheaper on average than it has been in the last three years, according to American Automobile Association (AAA).  This includes the holiday weekend, which is seeing a current average at around $2.58 give or take.

Illinois tax hikes could kill small businesses, expert warns.  As of Monday [7/1/2019], Illinois drivers face a much higher fuel tax, which could spell bad news not only for drivers — but also for small businesses in the area.  The state doubled its gas tax to 38 cents per gallon, up from 19 cents per gallon — which had been the rate since 1990.

Illinois Gasoline Tax Doubles Today.  The state's tax on gasoline today [7/1/2019] will spike to 38 cents per gallon — doubling from the 19-cents-per-gallon state tax Illinois drivers have paid to fuel up since 1990.  Just in the first year, the gas tax will take $1.2 billion more from Illinois drivers, or an average of $100 more per driver.  Illinois' doubled state gas tax comes as part of a $45 billion capital plan Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law June 28, on top of 20 more tax and fee hikes to pay for required infrastructure spending as well as for the state's record $40.6 billion fiscal year 2020 budget, which also starts today.  Despite all the new taxes, this will mark the 19th year Illinois will end up spending more than it collected in revenue — as much as $1.3 billion more.

California [will] have [the] highest gas prices in [the] nation when [their] new gas tax kicks in [on] July 1.  When the new gas tax kicks in July 1, California will have the highest gas tax in the country.  The new gas tax will add an additional 5.6 cents per gallon of gas.  Consumer Watchdog President Jaime Court argues even though the new gas tax is expected to generate more than $50 billion over the next decade for much-needed road repairs, road infrastructure and transit upgrades, consumers shouldn't be stuck with the bill.

Michigan Governor Proposes Raising Gas Tax to the Nation's Highest.  Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's proposal to increase the gas tax by 45 cents, which would give Michiganders the highest fuel tax of any state, is overwhelmingly opposed by small business owners, according to a recent poll by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).  Ninety-three percent of NFIB members surveyed said the state legislature should not adopt the tax hike.  Less than one-third supported an alternative one-cent increase in the state sales tax to 7 cents to pay for roads.

The Editor says...
How did the roads get built 50 years ago?

Sacramento's Biggest Gasbags.  Don't be alarmed by soaring California gasoline prices, which have topped $4 a gallon at most gas stations around the state.  Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic legislative leaders are on the job, as they sniff out the culprit behind rising prices.  They are pretty sure it has something to do with bad corporate behavior, based on their latest public statements.  Stay tuned — but you might not want to buy that giant gas-sucking SUV just yet.  The cause of the high prices is obvious to those of us familiar with the state's gasoline-related policies.  In 2017, then-Gov. Jerry Brown pushed through his signature increase in gas taxes to fund the road-infrastructure improvements that his administration had neglected as it ramped up social spending.  The law adds 12 cents to each gallon of gasoline and 20 cents to each gallon of diesel and could add far more to the price in coming decades.

Overview:
Enjoying Record Low Gas Prices?  Thank a Fracker!  Consumers are always the ultimate beneficiaries of improved technologies, as producers are motivated to bring costs down to improve their profitability.  But competition forces those producers to continue their quest, with their consumers enjoying the fruits of their technological improvements.  It's a concept with which that vanishing cartel called the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) isn't familiar.  There was a time when the cartel had enough influence through its monopolistic advantage to influence gas prices in America.  That was the time of the "double nickel" (federally mandated 55 mph speed limits on the country's superhighways), long lines of frustrated consumers waiting at the gas station to fill up, odd/even days (based on the last digit of their license plate numbers) on when they could fill up, the so-called "daylight savings time" scam sold as a way to cut energy costs, and so on.  Those days are long gone, and the only ones hurting now are members of OPEC, who are running out of patience waiting for the latest "production cut agreement" to take hold in order to force prices higher.

California Governor Wonders Why Gas Prices Are So High In State With High Gas Taxes.  California Governor Gavin Newsom has noticed something amiss in his home state and [...] he wants some answers.  What is that's put a bee under his bonnet?  Gas prices in the Golden State are too high and people are grousing about it.  People who vote.  So the Governor is swooping into action, determined to solve this vexing mystery.

California Politicians Hiked Gas Tax, Now Demand Investigation Into State's $4 Per Gallon Gas Prices.  As lieutenant governor, Gavin Newsom supported a 2017 bill increasing the state's gas taxes.  When running for governor in 2018, he opposed a ballot initiative that would have repealed that same increase.  It's 2019, and Newson, now the state's governor, is demanding an investigation into why the state's gas prices are so high.  On Tuesday [4/23/2019], the governor sent a letter to the California Energy Commission (CEC) asking that the state agency investigate the Golden State's roughly $4.03 per gallon gas prices, currently the highest in the country (and well above the national average of $2.86 per gallon).

California gas prices surge to five-year high; what's causing the spike?  "California's unique gasoline standard means replacements for the shortfall in production aren't easily found and ... explains why drivers there have seen gasoline prices spike nearly 68 cents a gallon in just a month," McTeague told FOX Business.  Drivers in Los Angeles have seen prices rise 71 cents per gallon in a month, while the increase was 72 cents in San Francisco. [...] California also has among the highest gas taxes in the country.

California Gas Tax Goes UP 5.6 Cents on July 1.  Gasoline prices at the pump have climbed for eight weeks in a row, and California is expected to soon pay an average of more than $4 a gallon for the first time in almost five years, according to GasBuddy.  "The national average gas price has now risen for 2 months straight, tacking on a total of 50 cents per gallon in the last 90 days," said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for fuel-price tracker GasBuddy.  That's the longest run of consecutive weekly gains since 2015.  It also means Americans will pay nearly $200 million more at the pump today than back in early January, he said.  The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded stood at $2.745 early Monday afternoon [4/8/2019], according to GasBuddy.  That's up 27.3 cents a gallon from last month's average of $2.472.

Gas prices up, poised to go even higher as US mulls Iran oil waiver extensions.  Gas prices that have already risen for seven weeks in a row, with the national average now near $2.70 per gallon according to AAA, are poised to go even higher in the next few weeks.  While refinery mishaps, the switch to summer blends, and rising demand are part of the story, the real reason may have to do with Iran, the fourth-largest producer in OPEC.  The Trump administration is coming under increasing pressure to ratchet up sanctions on Iran and make good on President Trump's promise to get Iranian oil exports down to zero.

What's the opposite of "price gouging?"
Prices are too low?  The first Buc-ee's outside Texas is being sued.  The first Buc-ee's outside of Texas has only been open a few weeks and already they are facing some big legal troubles.  Oasis Travel Center of Robertsdale is suing Buc-ee's in Alabama for having gas prices that are so low, they're being described as "predatory pricing," that is doing irreparable damage to its competition in the area, according to a report by an NBC affiliate in Alabama.  When the Alabama Buc-ee's opened, they reportedly sold gas for less than $1.80 per gallon, which was the lowest price for gas in the county.

Alabama competitor sues Texas' Buc-ees for allegedly pricing gas too low.  Less than a month after the first Buc-ee's outside of Texas opened in Alabama, the convenience store is facing a lawsuit claiming gas prices at the new location are unfairly low, according to the petition filed in federal court last week[.]  Oasis Travel Center, LLC, claims in the lawsuit that the Alabama store's gas prices are "predatory" and harmful toward its business.  The travel center appears to be located about four miles east of the new Buc-ee's location in Baldwin County, along Interstate 10 and Country Road 64.

If Illinois Hikes Gas Tax, Expect More Drivers to Buy Across State Lines.  For any Illinois state lawmakers thinking about raising gasoline taxes as much as 30 cents a gallon, southwestern Illinois drivers have a simple message:  Don't.  They said they are already overtaxed, and already fill up in nearby St. Louis when possible. [...] In addition to Missouri, Illinois already charges more in gas taxes than neighboring Wisconsin, Iowa and Kentucky.  Meanwhile, drivers in Indiana and Michigan see average gas taxes that are about 5 cents and 7 cents per gallon higher than in Illinois, respectively.  Both states rank in the top 10 nationally for average state and local gas taxes.

$3.33 per liter.
Zimbabwe now has the most expensive gasoline in the world.  Zimbabwe is on a three-day nationwide strike and protests are erupting in the streets after the government of the southern African country doubled fuel prices, making gasoline sold in Zimbabwe the most expensive in the world.  Zimbabwe is in the midst of an economic crisis and a shortage of foreign exchange, which has led to fuel and bread shortages, and many companies have stopped working because they can't import raw materials.  Following hyperinflation in 2009, Zimbabwe abolished its own currency and has been using the US dollar and South African rand instead.  But the economic crisis and foreign currency shortages has prompted the government to say over the weekend that it would introduce a new currency of its own in the next 12 months.

U.S. fuel prices fall as demand hits 22-month low.  Gasoline prices in the United States have now fallen for 12 straight weeks, with the national average as of Monday at $2.24 per gallon, alongside reports indicating the weakest demand since February 2017.

Wealth, Poverty, and Flight:  The Same Old State of California.  The top California income-tax rate is 13.3 percent (the nation's highest).  The state's average sales tax is (conservatively) about 8.5 percent (ninth in the nation).  California's bewildering combined array of gasoline taxes are about 55 cents per gallon and rising (second-highest in the nation).  In exchange, California public-school test scores rank between 44th and 46th in the nation.  Its roads and infrastructure are rated in various surveys between 42nd and 45th.

The Miracle of $2 Gas Prices.  What seemed like an impossibility just a few years ago is now a reality for many across the country: gasoline that costs less than $2 a gallon. [...] Let's put that in some context.  First, there was a time not too long ago when President Obama insisted that $2-a-gallon gas was a thing of the past.  "We can't just drill our way to lower gas prices," was his constant refrain.  Earlier this year, Democrats made hay when gas prices neared $3 a gallon.  Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer blamed "President Trump's reckless decision to pull out of the Iran deal."  He said it caused "soaring gas prices, something we know disproportionately hurts middle- and lower-income people."

Gas-tax hike of up to 30 cents a gallon needed, Emanuel and suburban mayors say.  Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined forces with suburban mayors on Tuesday to call for a 20- to 30-cents-a-gallon increase in the state's gasoline tax to bankroll sorely needed mass transit and road improvements.  After that, the mayors argued that the gas tax should be increased every year to match the inflation rate.  At a City Hall news conference Tuesday, Emanuel argued that 24 states have raised their gas tax since 2012 alone.  Meanwhile, Illinois is "stuck in neutral" with a state gas tax of 19 cents a gallon that's been frozen since 1990 — even though federal taxes and local and state sales taxes and other fees push the overall tax rate far higher.

Gas prices to drop this fall, here's how much.  Drivers could be in for a little reprieve this fall, as experts forecast gas prices could drop meaningfully from current levels.  According to AAA, the national average will decrease to $2.70 in the coming months, which is 14 cents less than the current average price and more than 25 cents less than the recorded high of the year — $2.97, set in May.

Gas Prices Are Still Low.  Gasoline is getting more expensive, but it's not as bad as it could be.  Now that the world's economy is in full recovery mode, with the Trump economy leading the way, the world's demand for oil is rising strongly once again.  With oil pricing governed in large part by the age-old fundamental of supply and demand, crude oil has recovered from its historic crash of 2014-2017 and has risen in line with the increased demand and strengthening economic activity.

These states have the highest gas prices.  The national average this July 4 is $2.86 per gallon, according to AAA.  However, travelers on the West Coast could see prices well above that.  In California, drivers will pay $3.66 per gallon on Wednesday [7/4/2018].  In Washington, prices are only slightly lower, at $3.43 per gallon.  Meanwhile, gas in Oregon is averaging $3.32 per gallon.

No, Gasoline Prices Are Not 'Too High'.  Based on all the stories about "surging" gasoline prices, you might think the country was about to relive the energy crisis of the late 1970s.  The truth is, the cost of filling up today is nowhere near where it was during most of the past decade.

California Primary:  Voters Recall Democrat Josh Newman over Gas Tax Vote.  Voters in California's 29th State Senate district recalled freshman Democrat Josh Newman in Tuesady's California primary over his vote for Governor Jerry Brown's 12-cent-per-gallon gas tax hike, replacing him with Republican Ling Ling Chang and definitively denying Democrats a supermajority in the upper house.  Election results showed Newman being recalled by a margin of 59.5% to 40.5%, despite the fact that saving his seat was the top priority of California Democrats on Tuesday [6/5/2018].  Newman was, of course, not the only state senator to vote for the gas tax hike.  He was, however, the most vulnerable, and Republicans targeted him in an effort to undo the Democrats' supermajority.

Americans expect gas prices to spike this summer.  As schools empty and Americans map summer vacation plans, the same families are glum — but realistic — about the likelihood of spiking gasoline prices.  Perhaps it's a dependable history of higher summer fuel costs that tipped them off.  Nearly half say they will be driving less as a result.

Chuck Schumer calls on EPA to lower gas prices.  Sen. Chuck Schumer called on the Environmental Protection Agency on Sunday not to follow through with plans to rollback mile-per-gallon standards to lessen the pain at the pump for motorists as gas prices hit their highest rates in four years.  "If prices stay as high as they are, this summer the average motorist will pay $200 to $300 more out of their pockets than they would have otherwise," the New York Democrat said during a news conference at a Mobil gas station in Manhattan where the price is $4.15 a gallon.  "Now with the price the way it is, the better mileage the motorist gets, the better everyone does."  The EPA announced last week that it has submitted plans to weaken an Obama administration rule for automakers to increase their cars' fuel economy by 50 mpg by 2025.

Liberal Lawmakers Are to Blame for High Gas Prices.  "These higher oil prices are translating directly to soaring gas prices," declared Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, "something we know disproportionately hurts middle- and lower-income people."  If this is true, then why have Democrats spent the past two decades advocating policies that artificially spike fossil fuel prices?  If higher energy costs hurt Americans — and thank you, senator, for conceding this point — why have liberals favored increasing gas taxes, inhibiting exploration for fossil fuels (including a ban on fracking for less environmentally damaging gas in a number of places), and capping imports?  If higher gas prices disproportionately impact the working class and poor, then why do Democrats push for national schemes designed to create false demand through a fabricated marketplace?

Schumer's Hypocrisy Soars to New Heights Over Gasoline Prices.  Displays of political hypocrisy just don't get any more brazen than the recent press conference by four Senate Democrats criticizing President Trump for soaring gasoline prices.  The Democratic Senate leader, Charles Schumer, claimed that the price increases were "directly" related to "President Trump's reckless decision to pull out of the Iran deal."  What Schumer didn't mention was that he had voted against the Iran deal.  Senator Robert Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, also voted against the Iran nuclear deal, and he, too, was at the Capitol Hill press conference denouncing the high gas prices.

Why gas prices are so high — and what Americans may have to risk to make them lower.  Five-buck-a-gallon gasoline in the city — and $3 gas in the burbs.  And going higher.  That's the news motorists are facing this Memorial Day weekend.  And pretty soon, those rising prices will put Americans' appetite for offshore oil drilling to the test.  The Trump administration has already proposed drilling off virtually the entire US coast — except Florida, where, perhaps coincidentally, President Trump owns some real estate.  Some states, including New Jersey, are asking not to have off-shore derricks, saying its beaches are too precious to risk the possibility of a spill.

Democrats Blast Trump For High Gas Prices, After They Spent Years Trying To Force Them Up.  Democrats hope they've found an issue that will re-energize the fading "Blue Wave" with the recent spike in gas prices.  Never mind that the increase is temporary.  Or that Democrats have for years tried to force gas prices up — permanently — through various tax hikes.

Americans face highest pump prices in years.  Americans are spending more at the pump than they have in years. [...] Crude prices have jumped thanks to continuing production cuts by major exporters.  As a result, gasoline is also becoming more expensive.

Republicans consider the unthinkable:  A gas tax increase to pay for infrastructure.  Republicans are weighing whether to raise the federal gas tax.  It's an idea they are prone to hate, but they may need it to pay for President Trump's infrastructure investment plan.  Supporters of the idea note that the tax hasn't been raised since 1993 and have plenty of evidence that resistance to a hike is wearing down.  The U.S. Chamber of Commerce recently called for the Trump administration and Congress to raise the gas tax by 25 cents per gallon to help pay for an infrastructure package, projecting it would generate more than $375 billion over a decade.  For 25 years, the federal tax on gasoline has held steady at 18.4 cents per gallon and 24.4 cents per gallon for diesel.  It is not indexed to inflation.

Just Say No To A Gas-Tax Hike.  A new report says the White House and GOP members of Congress are discussing raising the federal gas tax to help pay for infrastructure rebuilding.  It's a very bad idea, one that will erase much of the goodwill that came from cutting Americans' taxes.

Chamber of Commerce wants 25 cent increase in gas tax to pay for infrastructure.  The U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans to soon announce a proposal for the Trump administration and Congress to raise the federal gas tax by 25 cents per gallon to help pay for an infrastructure package.  Chamber President Thomas Donohue told the Washington Post Tuesday [1/16/2018] that the nation's biggest business lobby wants "to put our oar in the water" but acknowledged it would be "a tough vote" to raise the gasoline tax for the first time since 1993.  "I've been pushing this for a long, long time, but now gangs of people are pushing it," Donohue said.  The increase would raise more than $375 bilion over a decade, the Chamber says.  The Trump administration is expected to introduce a plan soon to revitalize the nation's roads, bridges, highways, and other infrastructure.

Does your gas and electricity cost too much?  You can thank liberals for that.  Every year, Americans spend about $750 billion dollars for gasoline and electricity — about 4 percent of the economy — with roughly equal amounts spent to fuel vehicles vs. keeping the lights on and running our factories.  Where you live significantly affects how much you pay for these basic energy commodities.  Excepting Alaska and Hawaii due to their unique supply challenges, the highest gasoline prices in the nation this week were found in California — $3.23 per gallon.  California also has the nation's highest gas tax at $0.53 per gallon.  The least expensive gasoline in the nation is found in Alabama at $2.27 per gallon.  Alabama's gas tax ranks 38th in the nation at $0.21 per gallon.

The Editor says...
Yeah, but then you have to buy gas in Alabama!

Mass. AG Wants 'Climate Change' Warning Labels At Gas Stations.  Do you know what would be great?  If fossil fuels companies threatened to pull out of areas run by climate change (scam) fanatics.  Perhaps they could develop a plan where they'd shut the gas off for a week (while making sure that gas station owners didn't lose money), and see how many climate change fanatics freak out.  Or, hey, they could refuse to sell their product to those governments.  Or, hey, how about this:  they could have a list of people they do not sell to, much like they use to for those who pass bad checks.

Does your gas and electricity cost too much?  You can thank liberals for that.  Excepting Alaska and Hawaii due to their unique supply challenges, the highest gasoline prices in the nation this week were found in California — $3.23 per gallon.  California also has the nation's highest gas tax at $0.53 per gallon.  The least expensive gasoline in the nation is found in Alabama at $2.27 per gallon.  Alabama's gas tax ranks 38th in the nation at $0.21 per gallon.  However, gasoline prices are more than the sum of supply and demand and fuel taxes.  Regulations and corporate taxes also play a big role in determining refinery operating costs as well as expenses throughout the entire supply chain.  This manifests itself in the final price to consumers.

Average price per gallon up 17 cents in Los Angeles since gas tax took effect.  The average price for a gallon of gas in Los Angeles County is up 17 cents compared to last week after a new 12-cent gas tax was tacked on at the pump.  In Orange County, the average price-per-gallon is 18 cents more than it was one week ago.

Gary Cohn Floats Idea of Gas Tax Hike for Infrastructure.  President Donald Trump's chief economic adviser raised the possibility of increasing the federal gasoline tax next year to help pay for the administration's $1 trillion infrastructure plan, U.S. Representative Tom Reed said. [...] There have been proposals over the years to raise the gas tax, which hasn't been increased since 1993, but they have faced stiff opposition from congressional Republicans and others loath to raise taxes.

Chuck Schumer Claims Gas Prices 'Never Go Down' as Gas Prices Hit Lowest Point in 12 Years.  Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer claims that the price of gas "never goes down" as gas prices hit record lows under the Trump administration.  Schumer told George Stephanopoulos on ABC's This Week Sunday morning [7/23/2017] that gas prices can only go up, citing "huge companies buying up other big companies" as the cause of rising gas prices.

California Dems panic over their tax hike.  Democrats control both houses of the California State Legislature with 2/3 majorities, allowing them to pass any bills they wish, with no possibility of obstruction from the powerless GOP.  As Democrats will when they feel empowered, they recently passed a major hike in gasoline taxes that will take over $5 billion a year more from the pockets of motorists.

Cheap gas for the summer months.  [AAA Spokesperson Robert] Sinclair said nationwide, the average price for a gallon of regular gas is now $2.24, which is the lowest June average in about 12 years.

July 4th travelers will see cheapest gas prices in 12 years, GasBuddy says.  Drivers on the road this Fourth of July holiday will see the cheapest gas prices since 2005, according to a GasBuddy report on Tuesday [6/27/2017].  U.S. consumers will pay an average of $2.21 per gallon at the pump, well under the 10-year average of $3.14, according to GasBuddy, an app that helps its 65 million users find the cheapest gasoline prices in the United States, Canada and Australia.  The prices are also expected to be lower than prices seen on New Year's Day by 12 cents.

Enraged Californians rebel against Gov. Brown's massive tax hike on cars and gas.  In California, a state known for its love of driving, high-priced gasoline and history of tax revolts, a rebellion is brewing against Gov. Jerry Brown's massive gas-and-car tax increase.  In the two weeks since the Democrat signed Senate Bill 1, opponents have launched an initiative drive to repeal the $52.4 billion transportation package as well as a recall campaign to eject a vulnerable Democratic state senator who is seen as the deciding vote for the law.

California gas tax hike prompts fierce backlash from the right.  A 12-cent gas tax hike recently approved by California's Democratic leaders has prompted a huge backlash on the right, with a grassroots coalition vowing to ensure it never takes effect.  A combination of AM-radio talk show hosts, a consumer advocacy group and a GOP assemblywoman have joined forces to battle the measure — set to kick in this November — that would give California the dubious honor of the second-highest gas tax in the nation at 73.2 cents per gallon.  Only Pennsylvania residents will pay more, with a 77.7-cent tax.

Apocalyptic Progressivism.  During the 2008 campaign, gas prices at one point averaged over $4 a gallon.  Then-candidate Obama reacted by pushing a green agenda — as if the cash-strapped but skeptical public could be pushed into alternative energy agendas.  Obama mocked then-Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's prescient advice to "drill, baby, drill" — as if Palin's endorsement of new technologies such as fracking and horizontal drilling could never ensure consumers plentiful fuel.  Instead, in September 2008, Steven Chu, who would go on to become Obama's secretary of energy, told the Wall Street Journal that, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."

California Prepares to Enact the Highest Gas Tax in the Country.  The California Senate Democrats has approved a multi-billion-dollar increase in the state's gas tax to pay for road and infrastructure projects.  The so-called Road Repair and Accountability Act would ratchet up the state's gas tax by 12 cents a gallon, and raise the tax on diesel fuel by 20 cents a gallon.  It also etches out an additional charge to annual vehicle license fees ranging from $25 to $175 depending on the car's value.  The Senate passed the bill, 27-11 on Thursday [4/6/2017].  Republicans did not support the measure.

Taxifornia Does It Again.  California's far-left government has done it again.  Not realizing its real problems are excessive spending on misplaced priorities, excessive taxes, too much debt and a far-too generous welfare state, its legislature working in cahoots with Gov. Jerry "tax-and-spend" Brown has pushed through the largest tax hike in state history.

Consumer Prices See Marginal Rise as Gas Drops.  U.S. consumer prices barely rose in February as the cost of gasoline recorded its biggest drop in seven months, but the underlying trend remained consistent with rising inflation.

Has Anybody Noticed the Price Of Gas Lately?  I mean, usually after an election the price goes up but since President Trump announced the end of deregulation [sic] on the energy industry, the resumption of fossil fuel exploration, mining and 'fracking' and the OK for the Keystone Pipeline.  Have ya' noticed what has happened to gas prices?

Something Wicked This Way Comes.  The Fed narrative of no inflation, supported by the sliced, diced, manipulated, massaged, hedonically and seasonally adjusted drivel produced by the government drones at the BLS, has benefited from the almost two year decline in gas and oil prices.  That is now reversing itself, as gasoline prices have risen at an annualized rate of 20% over the last three months.  It is poised to rise by 30% to 40% year over year in the next few months.  Even the Deep State government bureaucrats are having trouble disguising raging inflation in expenses affecting average Americans on a daily basis.

Alabama Pipeline Blast Sparks Worries About South Gas Prices.  A deadly explosion that sparked a geyser of fire has shut down a vital pipeline supplying gasoline to millions of people across the Southeast, raising fears of another round of gas shortages and price increases after the pipeline's second accident and shutdown in two months.

Alabama declares emergency over pipeline explosion.  On Monday [10/31/2016], construction crews working on the Colonial Pipeline in the area just south of Birmingham accidentally hit a transmission pipe, causing an explosion in which seven workers were injured, one of them fatally.  The explosion also started a fire.  The contractors were attempting to repair the pipeline segment that was damaged in September, spilling gas into the countryside.

Fuel prices up and down East Coast spike after Ala. pipeline explosion.  Just before 3 p.m. Monday [10/31/2016], a track hoe used for excavation struck Colonial Pipeline's Line No. 1 in Shelby County, Ala., breaking the 53-year-old steel pipe and igniting the gasoline inside.  One worker was killed and five severely injured.  The fire sent flames and black smoke billowing high into the sky and was still burning Tuesday afternoon.  The accident took place just a few miles from the site of a Sept. 9 leak from the same pipeline.  The leak closed down the pipeline for 12 days, sparking long lines for gasoline in Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama.

Cheap gas in N.J. about to end as tax rises from 49th to 6th-highest in U.S..  The days of cheap gas in New Jersey are coming to an end.  A major increase in the gas tax in the Garden State will go into effect Tuesday, raising the tax from 14.5 cents per gallon to 37.5 cents.  Republican Gov. Chris Christie and the Democratic-controlled Legislature agreed to the hike because the state had run out of cash to pay for transportation projects.  The 23-cent jump is the first increase in New Jersey's gas tax since 1988.  It had the second lowest fuel tax in the nation after Alaska, but will now have the sixth-highest.

Cheap gas coming to a sad end in New Jersey.  Cheap gas has long been the siren that lured drivers in neighboring states to New Jersey.  And since residents there pay the highest property taxes in the nation, drivers have always seen the low fuel prices as one of the ways to keep down the cost of living in the nation's most densely populated state.

When is the New Jersey gas tax going up 23 cents?  The huge tax increase is supposed to help fund transportation projects after the original fund was drained.  It's the first time since 1988 that New Jersey's gas tax is being raised.  The change means the state will have the sixth-highest gas tax in the nation, up from 49th before.  It would remain lower than neighboring New York and Pennsylvania.

Gas Prices Continue to Climb Despite Seasonal Drop in Demand.  The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline has increased for 12 of the past 14 days, reaching today's price of $2.26 per gallon.  Today's average price is 3 cents more than one week ago, 8 cents more than one month ago and 6 cents less than one year ago.

Volatility at the pump as the price of oil goes on the rise.  During the past seven days, state averages declined 4 cents in Georgia and 2 cents in Tennessee.  The state average in Florida remained the same.  "Volatility continues in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions where gasoline prices remained high as a result of the Colonial Pipeline disruption," said Mark Jenkins, spokesman for AAA. "Even though the Colonial Pipeline successfully restarted line 1 more than a week ago, the effect of the disruption is still being felt in those regions and will take some time to get fully resupplied."

N.J. Legislature passes 23-cent gas tax hike, road funding plan.  New Jersey is poised to lose its claim to the second-lowest gas taxes in the nation.  The state Legislature on Friday passed legislation raising the tax on gasoline sold in New Jersey by 23 cents a gallon, the centerpiece of a controversial tax package that also includes $1.4 billion in tax cuts.  As part of the deal, lawmakers voted to give a tax break for people with pension and retirement income, low-income workers and veterans.  In addition, they voted to eliminate the estate tax over the next 15 months and roll back the sales tax slightly.

New Jersey Assembly OKs Christie-backed gas tax raise:  NBC 4 New York.  New Jersey's Assembly passed legislation early Tuesday [6/28/2016] to raise the state's gasoline tax by 23 cents per gallon and cut the sales tax from 7 percent to 6 percent.

Report: Obama's oil tax would mean huge tax hike for gasoline.  The Obama administration's proposed $10.25 tax on each barrel of crude oil produced in the United States would be one of the biggest tax increases on gasoline in history, a report released Thursday [6/9/2016] showed.  Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, chairwoman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, released a Congressional Research Service report showing historical increases in the federal gasoline tax in an attempt to put the oil tax in perspective.  While the tax would be levied on oil companies, economists assume that oil companies would pass on the tax to consumers.  The tax could add between 20-25 cents per gallon, and the report shows that one-time increase would be the largest increase in the gas tax since it was passed in 1932.

Tax increase runs out of gas in Mississippi Legislature.  SB 2921 was merely a placeholder that contained code sections for the gasoline tax, diesel tax, the income tax, the corporate franchise tax and fees on license plates and rental cars.  Mississippians now pay 18.79 cents in state taxes on every gallon of gasoline, about 11 cents a gallon less than the national average.  State Rep. Charles Busby, R-Pascagoula, who chairs the House Transportation Committee, told the Associated Press his proposal is dead this session.  That plan would have increased the state's sales tax from 7 to 9 percent on everything except groceries, and transformed the state's gasoline tax from a current flat tax into a 10 percent sales tax.  That tax would have a floor of 20 cents per gallon and a ceiling of 30 cents, depending on the cost of gasoline.

EPA rules forcing more expensive fuel on drivers.  The Environmental Protection Agency's fuel-efficiency rules are forcing drivers to buy higher-priced gasoline, despite decade-low fuel prices, the federal government said Wednesday [4/6/2016].  The Energy Department's independent analysis arm, the Energy Information Administration, revealed the trend in data showing that the use of higher-priced premium gasoline reached its highest share in a decade last year.  It turns out that the EPA is to blame.

Obama's $65B 'tax on oil' is really on you.  This week, tucked in his budget, the president proposed a $65 billion a year tax that would raise the cost of gasoline by, on average, 25 cents for every gallon you buy.  You'll hear them call this a tax on oil.  But even the White House admits that this new tax would be passed directly on to hard-working families.  It gets worse.  Analysts say this tax would increase the cost of basic household goods.  Everything from heating oil to the food you buy at the grocery store.  The bottom line is this:  you would be taking home less, so that President Obama can spend more.

California pushes for warning labels at the pump: Drivers, you're hurting the planet!.  Can you guess where such an idea sprouted from?  Because I can.  The city of Berkeley, with San Francisco possibly soon to follow, has voted to push forward with a plan to affix warning labels to gas pumps.  Their purpose?  To subtly shame drivers for contributing to climate change.

Obama to seek $10-a-barrel oil tax.  President Obama plans to seek a $10-a-barrel oil tax to overhaul the nation's transportation system toward reducing carbon emissions.  In a statement from the White House Thursday [2/4/2016], the administration expressed plans to spend more than $300 billion over the next decade, expanding rail and mass transit networks, modernizing freight transportation and expanding research into self-driving cars.

The Editor says...
As usual, Mr. Obama is proposing to spend the taxpayers' money on projects that are not authorized by the Constitution. Railroads will expand and freight lines will modernize when the demand materializes and competition requires such improvements. The demand for self-driving cars will probably never be much more than about a hundred vehicles per year, and even so, the research and development for such products is not the proper role of government.  Moreover, the President does not have the authority to levy taxes.

Obama proposes carbon tax on oil.  The White House on Thursday [2/4/2016] announced its latest plan to address climate change by levying a $10 per-barrel tax on crude oil.  The Obama administration announced its plans while rolling out a comprehensive transportation strategy that will be the focus of the Department of Transportation's budget request to Congress when it is issued next week.  "For too long, bipartisan support for innovative and expansive transportation investment has not been accompanied by a long-term plan for paying for it," a White House fact sheet reads.  "We need a sustainable funding solution that takes into account the integrated, interdependent nature of our transportation system.

Obama to call for $10-per-barrel oil tax to fund clean transport.  President Obama will propose a $10 fee for every barrel of oil to be paid by oil companies in order to fund clean energy transport system, the White House announced Thursday [2/4/2016] — although Republicans were quick to declare the plan "dead on arrival" in Congress.  The fee would be phased in over five years and would provide $20 billion per year for traffic reduction, investment in transit systems and other modes of transport such as high-speed rail, the White House said.  It would also offer $10 billion to encourage investment in clean transport at the regional level.

The Editor says...
What is clean transport?  And what do you suppose the price of gas will do when Obama's $10/barrel tax is applied?

Obama to propose $10-a-barrel oil tax.  Obama aides told POLITICO that when he releases his final budget request next week, the president will propose more than $300 billion worth of investments over the next decade in mass transit, high-speed rail, self-driving cars, and other transportation approaches designed to reduce carbon emissions and congestion.  To pay for it all, Obama will call for a $10 "fee" on every barrel of oil, a surcharge that would be paid by oil companies but would presumably be passed along to consumers. [...] But by raising the specter of new taxes on fossil fuels, it could create a political quandary for Democrats.  The fee could add as much as 25 cents a gallon to the cost of gasoline, and even with petroleum prices at historic lows, the proposal could be particularly awkward for Hillary Clinton, who has embraced most of Obama's policies but has also vowed to oppose any tax hikes on families earning less than $250,000 a year.

Obama Brags About Low Energy Prices, Then Proposes To Raise Them.  We did, in fact, "drill our way" to lower gas prices.  Thanks to fracking, oil companies are now able to produce vast amounts of previously unrecoverable oil.  In the past seven years, domestic oil production shot up a stunning 77%, according to the Energy Information Administration, making the U.S. the biggest oil producer in the world.  That's why gas prices are low today.  And why oil imports have dropped so sharply.  And none of it had anything to do with Obama, who tried to hamper oil production whenever he could — blocking Keystone, restrictions on federal lands, EPA attempts to hinder fracking.

Gas prices could drop toward $1 a gallon.  In some gas stations around the country, the price of a gallon of regular has dropped below $1.42.  AAA and GasBuddy, two organizations that follow gasoline prices, say that gasoline prices below $2 will not be unusual in most of the United States.  As oil prices fall, and refinery capacity stays strong, the price of gas could reach $1 a gallon in some areas, a level last reached in 1999.  As a matter of fact, the entire states of Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and South Caroline have gas prices that average at or below $1.75.

Speeding Towards Disaster.  Refilling the Highway Trust Fund with more revenue — as Congress has done time and again through a series of bailouts — does not provide a solution to the structure and method of spending that have perpetuated its bankruptcy.  Centralized transportation spending allows federal lawmakers to dip into the fund to support a variety of projects that have nothing to do with the Interstate Highway System.  President Eisenhower originally signed the gas tax into law under the assumption its revenue would be used exclusively for interstate highway projects.  As the gas tax rate increased, however, so too did Congress' appetite for funding other projects.

Millennials ease off the gas (making it harder to pay for roads).  In a new report, Wall Street rating agency Standard & Poor's said millennials nationwide are driving far less than older motorists did when they came of age — and when they do get behind the wheel, they are generally in smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.  So what's bad about that?  Less gas being used means sharply reduced gasoline tax revenues, not only in New Jersey but nationwide, cutting available funding for the Federal Highway Trust Fund and making far less money available to pave roads, fix bridges and maintain highways.

For third time in 40 years, no Social Security increase coming.  By law, the annual cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, is based on a government measure of inflation, which is being dragged down by lower prices at the pump.

More Gas Stations Join the $2 Club, But Will it Last?  The U.S. average for a gallon of regular gasoline was approximately $2.30 on Friday [9/18/2015], close to a six-cent discount compared to a week ago and down $1.06 since the same day last year.  According to GasBuddy.com, 29 states have at least one gas station where consumers will pay $1.99 a gallon or less.  In mid-August, gas stations were charging under $2 a gallon in just five states.

Everything Wrong with California in One Photo.  Nationwide gasoline prices are below $3 a gallon.  But here in California it is not unusual to see prices still over $4 a gallon.  So what do liberals here want to do?  Pass a law that mandates reducing gasoline consumption by 50 percent by the year 2030 — just 15 years from now.  This proved too much even for some Democrats — the ones who represent actual poor and (previously) working people in the Central Valley, unlike the West LA and Silicon Valley and San Francisco Democrats who represent smug rich people who drive Teslas.  These old-style Democrats said they would not vote for the bill.

Labor Day Weekend Gas Prices at Lowest Since 2004.  Labor Day celebrations across the nation may include the lowest gas prices since 2004.  This is creating a $1 billion windfall for U.S. consumers.

Rep. Ellison: 'Call It a Tax or Call it a Fee' — 'We Just Need to Raise It'.  Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) says it's time to raise the gas tax, "In my opinion, I, Keith Ellison, you know, me.  I think we just need to raise it."  Ellison made the comments while discussing federal transportation funding during an appearance on Minnesota Public Radio last week. [...] The federal gas tax is 18.4 cents a gallon.  It hasn't increased since 1993.  The last time it decreased was 1934.

GOP chairman pronounces gas tax hike dead.  House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chairman Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) said Wednesday that Congress does not have the stomach for increasing the federal gas tax to help pay for a new transportation bill.  The idea of asking drivers to pay more at the pump than the current 18.4 cents-per-gallon gas tax has been floated by infrastructure advocates as lawmakers are scrambling to come up with a way to pay for an extension of the transportation funding bill that is currently set to expire in May.

Lifting This Ban Could Reduce Gas Prices.  Yet again, the push is on to lift the 40-year-old ban on exporting crude oil.  Yet again, opponents claim this would be a disaster ... that prices would climb, availability would be threatened and the strategic advantages of holding onto our oil would be discarded.  But what Americans need to understand is that lifting the ban probably would reduce prices at the pump, that American refineries — set up for the heavier crudes we import from Venezuela, Mexico, Canada and the Middle East — are ill-suited to process the lighter, sweeter crudes produced by America's fracking and horizontal drilling explosion, and that government retains its dismal record for picking economic winners and losers.

Gas prices soar in California as supply shrinks.  Gas prices are soaring in California in a classic example of supply and demand after an explosion stopped gasoline production at an Exxon Mobil refinery while another remains offline due to labor unrest.

The President's Exploitation.  It is hard to miss the glee in the media and political establishment at the rise of the President's popularity rating to a minus (3.4) percent.  Buoyed by the uptick the President is encouraged to ignore the shellacking taken in a hard fought election, in which, by his own words, his policies were on the ballot.  Politicians taking credit for positive developments of which they are not responsible is a given.  Although dated, the chart below demonstrates outside the period from 1986 to 2000, when real gasoline prices were stable, Presidential approval ratings closely follow gas prices.  For some of the public the correlation is simple: gasoline prices low=good, Obama=President, therefore Obama=good.

U.S. Consumers Aren't Convinced Cheap Gas Prices Will Last.  When something seems too good to be true, it probably is, and Americans are viewing the drop in gas prices no differently.  While many have embraced the plunge by splurging on vacations and retail, others may be socking away their savings, wary that prices will rise in the months ahead.

The Stunningly Beautiful Price of Gasoline.  If all you followed were the policies and the headlines, you would think prices would be ten times what they are.  The low price comes about despite a vast and unrelenting barrage of policies and attempts to raise the price.  And it was only some 10 years ago that "peak oil" theorists were explaining to us how oil was running out and prices were going to soar.  The gas price seems to have a mind of its own.  People are notoriously ignorant about this fact.  They imagine that there must be someone, some powerful cabal, behind the scenes that is setting it.

Highway Taxes vs. Road Expenditure (Diversion) by State.  [Scroll down]  [I]t's not enough to know how much states collect in taxes from highway users; it's also important to know how they spend it.  So, based on table SDF from the 2012 Highway Statistics, the Antiplanner made [a] map showing the share of gas taxes states spent on highways in 2012.  Once again, the range is quite wide, from 28 percent in Rhode Island to 100 percent in Nevada.  This time, the geographic trends aren't as clear, with several states in the Sunbelt, including Oklahoma and New Mexico, spending well under 70 percent of gas taxes on highways.  One clear trend, however, is that several states on the north Atlantic seaboard spend only 28 to 51 percent of gas taxes on roads.

Gas tax hike: Let's abolish it instead.  It's not even two full weeks since Congress came under Republican control, and already the faucets are flowing with fresh cynicism.  Here midterm voters thought they were electing a conservative majority dedicated to — at least! — holding the line on spending and taxes, and among the earliest priorities expressed by its leadership is a boost in the federal fuel gouge.

History of the gas tax.  The federal gasoline tax has been used to reduce the deficit, fund the Korean War, and pay for mass transit projects.  The Highway Trust Fund was created in 1951.

Gas Tax History.  [Chart]

When did the Federal Government begin collecting the gas tax?  From the start, the Federal gas tax has been under attack, initially from the highway lobby.  The opponents remained opposed to the excise tax on gasoline and other automotive products through the early 1950s, but the allure of the Interstate System quieted the critics.  In recent years, the Federal gas tax has been attacked by Governors and Members of Congress who wanted to "devolve" the tax, along with the Federal-aid highway program, to the States.

Federal Highway Trust Fund Pays for Bike Paths in Wisconsin.  A looming shortfall in the federal highway trust fund threatens to dramatically cut the amount of money states get from the federal government for road and highway maintenance.  But even as some policymakers examine the possibility of raising taxes to boost revenues, a review of federally-funded transportation projects in Wisconsin finds that federal money has been spent on things like bicycle paths, archeological research, and beautification projects, among other things.  Two Republican lawmakers from Wisconsin, Congressman Reid Ribble and Sen. Ron Johnson are co-sponsoring the Transportation Empowerment Act, a plan that would reduce the federal gas tax and give states more authority in transportation spending.

Spare a dime for the Highway Trust Fund?  From the outset, Congress tapped into these ostensible highway and road maintenance funds for other budget shortfalls, including the costs of two wars.  The Federal Highway Act sought to remedy this, and for a number of years, the revenue was dedicated to the stated purpose.  Increases in the federal fuel tax followed the passage of more laws and in 1990, America saw a tax rate of 14 cents per gallon with the Omnibus Budget Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1990 (OBRA90).  At that time, the law allowed Congress to siphon a percentage of revenues for deficit reduction.  Eventually, the tax crept up to 18.4 cents.

Highway Trust Fund: Not Just For Highways, Out Of Money So Not A Fund, And Can't Be Trusted.  It's not a bankruptcy because there are no legal liabilities, but beyond that, this is a planned crisis.  Gas taxes are fairly stable and predictable revenue sources, so are tolls.  If the money runs out early, it's no accident, it's a crisis designed to make the case for higher taxes. [...] It has become a congressional slush fund, in which almost half the money is ladled out through the corrupt system of congressional earmarks.  The next time you drive on a highway which is named after a politician, think corruption.

Republicans weren't elected to raise the gas tax.  This should really go without saying, but some Republicans are already discussing this as a real possibility.  Senate Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., and Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., have all been quoted discussing a gas tax hike as a serious possibility.  In their defense, this tax is not like most others.  The government collects a fixed amount rather than a percentage of sales, so that over time the tax declines with inflation.  The 18.4 cents per gallon imposed does not go as far today as it did when it was set at that level more than two decades ago.  Even so, members of Congress would still be wrong to take the recent plunge in oil prices as an invitation to put a hand in drivers' pockets.

Momentum builds in Congress for raising the federal gas tax.  Record-low gas prices across the U.S. have given rise to fresh talk in Washington of raising the federal gas tax for the first time in over 20 years, with leading Republicans now saying a hike must not be ruled out.  The GOP has long resisted calls from business leaders and others to boost the 18.4 cent-per-gallon tax as a way to pay for upgrades to the nation's crumbling roads and bridges.  Yet in recent days, senior Senate Republicans have said they want to keep options open and that "nothing is off the table" when weighing the best mechanisms to pay to finance infrastructure projects.

Republican Commerce Committee Chair Won't Rule Out Gas-Tax Hike.  Incoming Republican Senate Commerce Chairman John Thune (R-S.D.) will not rule out a gas-tax hike as a means to replenish the Highway Trust Fund, according to his press office and his own comments on Fox News.

Congress should raise gas tax: Sen. Corker.  It's time for Congress to hike the federal gas tax and actually solve a fiscal problem instead of "kicking the can down the road," Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., told CNBC on Monday.  The tax, or user fee, funds infrastructure repairs and improvements and hasn't been raised since 1993.  Instead, Congress has been dipping into the general treasury to keep the dwindling Highway Trust Fund solvent.

The real reason gas prices are falling.  There are many global reasons why gas prices are falling, but the major one isn't being widely reported.  America has become in the last several years an energy-producing powerhouse.

The real reason gas prices are falling.  Oil prices are falling because of changes in world supply and world demand. Demand has slowed because Europe is an economic wreck.  But since 2008 the U.S. has increased our domestic supply by a gigantic 50 percent.  This is a result of the astounding shale oil and gas revolution made possible by made-in-America technologies like hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling.  Already thanks to these inventions, the US has become the number one producer of natural gas.  But oil production in states like Oklahoma, Texas and North Dakota has doubled in just six years.

Pa. gas taxes to rise after big drop in 2014 price.  Wholesale taxes on gasoline and diesel in Pennsylvania are set to take another step higher, the second of three increases that a sweeping 2013 law imposes over three years to boost funding for highway, road and bridge construction.

Are low gas prices good or bad?  Falling oil prices have been called shocking, unprecedented, and (most incredibly) a highly regrettable development that will end the rise of American stock market and create unrest and uncertainty around the world.  However, what we are experiencing is the eighth oil price decline of more than 30 percent during the past 30 years.

Falling gas prices driven by plunging oil prices.  The low oil prices that are causing your gasoline prices to drop are causing some companies developing in shale areas to reconsider their future in the region.  Some drilling may never happen, and tax revenue some communities are banking on could disappear.  The price of oil continues to fall and currently is priced around $50 per barrel instead of its usual $80 per barrel.  That's driving down the cost of gas.

Oil export ban repeal would lower gas prices, studies show.  The U.S. government has banned oil exports since the energy crisis of the 1970s, but that could change next year as Republicans take control of Congress and are backed by new studies showing that repeal of the ban would actually lower gasoline prices and be a surprising boon to consumers.

Gov't Tells US Drivers to Get Used to Cheap Gas.  In a dramatic shift from previous forecasts, the Energy Department predicted Wednesday [11/12/2014] that the average price of gasoline in the U.S. will be $2.94 a gallon in 2015.

N.J. gas tax would rise nearly $300 a year for average driver under bill to fix roads, rails and bridges.  The sorry state of the New Jersey's roads, rails and bridges will be the focus of a hearing in Camden this morning by the state Assembly Transportation, Public Works and Independent Authorities Committee, which is meeting for the first time since its chairman proposed hiking the state gas tax by nearly $300 a year for the average motorist.

$3 A Gallon Gasoline Won't Help Dems At The Polls.  Gasoline prices hit $3 a gallon for the first time in several years thanks to booming U.S. oil production, but this may not be good news for Democrats facing tough re-elections Tuesday [11/4/2014].  Political experts argue that low gas prices won't help Democrats at the polls.  A likely reason: Democrats have spent positioning themselves as anti-fossil fuels, they're not getting credit (or even taking credit) for low gas prices.

Why Oil Is Plunging: The Other Part Of The "Secret Deal" Between The US And Saudi Arabia.  Today's Brent closing price:  $90.  Russia's oil price budget for the period 2015-2017?  $100.  Which means much more "forced Brent liquidation" is in the cards in the coming weeks as America's suddenly once again very strategic ally, Saudi Arabia, does everything in its power to break Putin.

The clean fuels' program is a hidden tax on gas.  Many politicians on the West Coast have fallen in love with untested policies and programs they say will help solve global warming.  Many of these policies are mind-bogglingly complicated.  What, after all, is a low carbon fuel standard (LCFS), or clean fuels program?  And how exactly do programs like "cap and trade" work?  And, perhaps most importantly, how do these policies impact you, the consumer?  Here's the dirty little secret the politicians don't want to talk about:  All of these policies are going to make it more costly to produce gasoline and diesel.

Officials eye gas tax hike to fix N.J. roads and bridges.  The state badly needs to improve its roads and bridges, and a hike in the state gasoline tax is likely to be at least part of how that gets done, lawmakers said today at a hearing on transportation funding.  "New Jersey's transportation infrastructure in New Jersey is in horrible shape and there's essentially no money left to pay for any improvements," said Assemblyman John Wisniewski, chairman of the Assembly Transportation, Public Works and Independent Authorities Committee.

Why Aren't Gas Prices Lower?  Happily, [Clifford] Krause got the rest of it right when he noted that these are the lowest gasoline prices of any Labor Day weekend since 2010 and, without the development of fracking and horizontal drilling, gasoline prices would probably be twice what they currently are.  The combined oil production of the three largest oil fields in the United States — Bakken, Eagle Ford, and Permian Basin — is nearly 4.5 million barrels per day, up from just one million barrels per day as recently as 2008.  In July of that year, the average price per gallon of regular gasoline in the United States was $4.11.  So, with all of that increased production, why haven't gasoline prices dropped even further?

Oil Companies: The Last People to Blame for High Gas Prices.  If you don't like paying so much for gasoline, don't curse the energy companies who provide you with an opportunity to buy it.  Exxon, for example, has a skimpy profit margin of 5.5¢ per gallon.  In stark contrast, the federal government helps itself to 18.4¢ per gallon, despite the fact that it is the oil companies, not bureaucrats, who provide us with the gasoline.  But it gets worse.  This map demonstrates how many cents per gallon states add on top of the federal tax.

California drivers brace for costly new gas tax.  Californians already pay the nation's second highest gas tax at 68 cents a gallon — and now it will go up again in January to pay for a first-in-the-nation climate change law. [...] Estimates of the cost of the tax vary.  The California Air Resources Board, the Golden State's premier anti-pollution agency, predicts the new tax will raise gasoline prices from 20 cents to $1.30 per gallon.  A prominent state senator who helped author the bill estimated the cost at 40 cents a gallon.

The Editor says...
By the way, the climate isn't changing any more than it always has, so you are paying for absolutely nothing.

California's Cap-and-Trade Scam to Spike Gas Prices as Much as $.70 a Gallon.  Thanks to their religion of global warming, Democrat politicians will cause gas prices in California to rise as much as $0.70 a gallon next year.

Map of State Gasoline Tax Rates in 2014.  California is in 1st place with the highest rate of 52.89 cents per gallon, and is followed closely by New York (49.86 cents/gallon), Connecticut (49.3 cents/gallon), and Hawaii (48.05 cents/gallon).

More Fuel Efficient Cars Causing Highway Trust Fund to Go Broke.  The problem, you see, is that the Highway Trust Fund is "going broke," by the Beltway's curious definition of the phrase.  It is sort of the way that after a round of painful "cuts," spending somehow still goes up.  The Highway Trust Fund takes in more than 18 cents on every gallon of gasoline sold in this country, so there is plenty of revenue.  Just not enough to meet Washington's needs and desires.  People are driving more fuel efficient cars and with gas already around $4 a gallon, not taking the trips they might otherwise take.  So instead of having the $50 billion that Congress budgeted, the trust fund is looking at $34 billion.

The Editor says...
Fuel efficient cars are not the problem.  The problem, as you can read below, is that the government spends money from the Highway Trust Fund on projects that have nothing to do with highways.

Federal Highway Trust Fund Pays for Bike Paths in Wisconsin.  A looming shortfall in the federal highway trust fund threatens to dramatically cut the amount of money states get from the federal government for road and highway maintenance.  But even as some policymakers examine the possibility of raising taxes to boost revenues, a review of federally-funded transportation projects in Wisconsin finds that federal money has been spent on things like bicycle paths, archeological research, and beautification projects, among other things.

Why is the HTF out of money?  The current law governing the federal highway and transit programs, set in effect by the last highway bill, is called MAP-21: Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century.  MAP-21 authorizes annual spending well above the revenue the HTF will collect and funds a host of parochial projects that have no business being handled at the federal level.  This practice has allowed HTF expenditures to far eclipse the amount of revenue collected from fuel taxes.

Highway Trust Fund Nearly Out of Money.  Chris Edwards, director of tax policy studies at the Cato Institute, raised similar concerns in testimony in May to the Senate Finance Committee.  "There is no reason to raise the federal gas tax," Edwards said.  "You send the money to Washington, a lot of it gets lost in paper work and bureaucracy and pork-barrel politics."  In his testimony, Edwards noted, since the 1970s, "fuel taxes have been siphoned off for non-highway purposes, particularly with the creation of the transit program in 1982.  About one-quarter of HTF spending today is for non-highway purposes."

Tax keeps hacks living large.  Soon your TV screen will be full of apocalyptic images of crumbling bridges, giant potholes and assorted wheelchair-bound grannies plunging over cliffs — the hacks' vision of a bleak future without automatic annual increases in the gasoline tax.  Vote No on Question 1 ... or you die.  That's the hackerama's pitch on this referendum question, and of course it's very believable.  The tax-fattened hyenas simply don't have enough money.  But if you'd like to know the truth about how the transportation hacks are spending your dough, check out the new report from the state Inspector General, "Massachusetts Department of Transportation's Fleet Vehicle Operations."

Gas Prices Ease as U.S. Oil Production Soars.  Despite predictions to the contrary, the price of gas over the July 4 weekend dropped by two cents per gallon, confounding seers who were looking at gas approaching $4 a gallon.  Those prognosticators were guilty of "straight-line thinking in a curvilinear world" — meaning that since gas this year was 20 cents a gallon more than a year ago, they believed it would continue to go up steadily for the foreseeable future.  With political disruptions in Iraq and Syria seriously reducing their contributions to the world's oil supplies, one would think that prices would have to go straight up.  One would be wrong.

What's behind Chicago's carnage.  The media ignored the serial $1 trillion deficits, the chronic high unemployment and low growth, the nonexistence of the long-promised "summer of recovery," and the nonappearance of "millions of shovel-ready and green jobs."  The fact that electrical-power rates, gasoline prices, and food costs have soared under Obama as wages have stagnated has never really been noticed.  Nor have the record numbers of Americans on food stamps and disability insurance.

Gas Prices Extend Painful Record: July 4 Marks 1,290 Days above $3-a-Gallon.  The still high gas prices would extend the record number of days the national average for gasoline has remained above $3-a-gallon.  Unless prices drop nearly 70 cents a gallon, July 4th will be the 1,290th day above that mark.

July Fourth gas prices to be highest since 2008.  The recent spike in gas prices will make the July 4 holiday weekend the most expensive for drivers since 2008.  According to USA Today, prices will average $3.68 a gallon for regular-grade gas, up 17 cents from last year.  That is still below the record price of $4.11 at the pump just after July 4, 2008.

The Myriad Contradictions of Barack H. Obama.  Railing about the cost of gasoline was a good vote-getter in 2008, and candidate Obama got after it with gusto.  Giving a prepared speech (does he give any other kind?), the candidate spoke in front of a backdrop of gas pumps and declared that high gas prices constitute a "huge problem, bordering on a crisis" for most of America.  What were those crisis-level prices?  He elaborated, "Here in Indiana, gas costs $3.60 a gallon.  Across the country gas costs more than at any time in almost 30 years."  Today, with every twenty-four hours that passes, we extend our record for number of days above $3.00 per gallon (national average) gas prices and see virtually no action from the president in terms of attempts to curb this historic price run.  In fact, we see quite the opposite.

Senators propose 12-cent gas tax increase.  Two senators unveiled a bipartisan plan Wednesday [6/18/2014] to raise federal gasoline and diesel taxes for the first time in more than two decades, pitching the proposal as a solution to Congress' struggle to pay for highway and transit programs.

Don't Raise the Gas Tax.  The federal Highway Trust Fund, historically, is a fund that the government can't be trusted to spend on federal highways.  Unfortunately, Senator Bob Corker (R., Tenn.) is proposing to put more money in it by raising the federal gasoline tax, a proposal he's concocted with Senator Chris Murphy (D., Conn.).  Corker's idea is bad policy and bad politics.  The politics:  Gas prices are rising rapidly, taxes on fuel are regressive, and Americans, rightly, really don't like when you raise any kind of tax at all.

How Will the Crisis in Iraq Affect U.S. Gas Prices?  As the situation in Iraq continues to escalate as Islamic militants continue to advance across the nation, gas prices in the U.S. are set to rise.  The national average for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline stands at $3.65, with the prospect of a five-to-10 cent jump over the next two weeks, according to Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy.com.  The turmoil in Iraq spooked Wall Street last week and left the major market averages in the red.  The markets have taken a bit of a breather this week, as investors shift their focus to oil and gas prices.

As Iraq fighting rages, gas prices climb.  A rising tide of violence in Iraq is driving up prices at the pump.  The hike in gas costs follows the battlefield successes of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), an al Qaeda breakaway group backed by Sunni fighters and other groups, in northern Iraq.  The cost of crude rose Friday afternoon to nearly $107, a 10-month high, amid fears that the mounting insurgency there could lead to major disruptions of oil shipments.  Brent crude futures, an international benchmark, climbed 54 cents to $112.96.

Average gasoline price in California hits nearly $4 a gallon.  A gallon of regular gasoline Thursday cost an average of $3.99 in the Golden State, the highest since September 2013, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge report.

Obama unveils $4T budget plan.  [Scroll down]  Obama also announced a four-year, $302 billion plan to boost spending on highways, rail projects and mass transit.  Half of the initiative would be financed through corporate taxes.  Funding for highway and mass transit projects expires at the end of September, and there's bipartisan interest in finding a supplemental funding stream to augment stagnant revenues from the $[sic]18.4 cents-per-gallon gasoline tax.

Gas Prices May Jump From California Emissions Law.  California's greenhouse gas reduction law already has shaken up the state's industrial sector, costing it more than $1.5 billion in pollution permit fees.

EPA finalizes new gasoline sulfur limits.  The Environmental Protection Agency on Monday set new limits on the amount of sulfur permitted in gasoline, capping a lobbying battle that pitted the oil and refining industries against automakers and public health groups.  The EPA's "Tier 3" gasoline rule ratchets down sulfur content to 10 parts per million from 30.  The agency said it would bring $13 in health benefits for every dollar spent to comply with the standard, amounting to between $6.7 billion and $19 billion in annual health benefits by 2030.

The Editor says...
Of course the EPA's rationale is all nonsense.  How many people can tolerate exhaust fumes with a sulfur content of 10 parts per million, but they get sick if it's 30 ppm?  I'll answer that question:  Nobody!

Obama: the Pen, Phone, and Failure.  [President Obama's] EPA is trying to regulate the coal industry out of business.  Coal provides 37% of our electricity.  Do not be alarmed, he is replacing that generating capacity with... well, nothing.  You see, skyrocketing the price of electricity was an objective not a side effect.  If you can't afford it, you won't use it.  The goal is to push Americans out of single-family homes into high-density cities, where tiny, cubicle-like apartments, clustered around mass transit will become the norm.  In these progressive Shangri-Las, no one will own a car, which is a good thing since Barry has doubled the price of gasoline in his first term and will probably double it again before the end of his second.

"America is One Big Pothole": LaHood Wants to Raise the Gas Tax.  With money running out in the Trust Fund that takes care of the highways and other mass transit projects, Mr. [Ray] LaHood has picked up President Obama's main budgeting technique:  raise taxes to find the money.  What's even funnier is that LaHood stated, "Because people are driving less, driving more fuel-efficient cars, and the gas tax hasn't been raised in many years" we are running out of money in the Highway Trust Fund.  Isn't that exactly what the government wanted us to do?

Democrat: Raise Gas Tax To Make Up Lost Revenue From Fuel-Efficient Vehicles.  Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) says his plan to nearly double the federal gas tax is needed because the tax hasn't been raised in years and a decrease in fuel tax revenues has occurred due to the improved fuel efficiency of vehicles.  When discussing his proposal on Fox News Dec. 3, Blumenauer said, "First of all, we haven't raised the gas tax in 20 years.  "During that time, the amount that the average motorist pays per mile that they drive because of increased fuel efficiency and inflation has been cut in half," he continued.

WashPost Article (or Press Release?) Promotes Raising Gas Tax by 15 Cents a Gallon.  With anti-tax Republicans in control of the House, it's a little odd that The Washington Post would devote a story on Thursday [12/5/2013] to liberal Democrat Earl Blumenauer's proposal to raise the federal gas tax by 15 cents a gallon.  It was stranger that reporter Ashley Halsey III seemed ordered to produce a Blumenauer press release, quoting absolutely no opposition to such a tax hike, instead quoting tax-hike backers like AAA and unions.  No one seemed to ask whether the nation's infrastructure was supposed to get a boost from Obama's "stimulus."

General Motors: Iran deal would cut gas below $3.  Detroit is quietly cheering the administration's nuclear talks with Iran, believing a deal would open the Arab nation's oil spigots and cut U.S. gas prices to under $3, sparking a new truck and SUV sales binge.  G. Mustafa Mohatarem, the chief economist for General Motors, said that a deal, which presumably would lift economic sanctions in return for Iran giving up nuclear ambitions, could pour enough oil into the world system that the barrel price might drop to $80 from today's $95.

Gas under $3 a gallon, coming to a station near you.  The average price of regular gas has fallen to $3.19 a gallon, with drivers in eight states now able to fill up their cars for less than $3.  Prices have been dropping by about a penny a day, according to AAA, with another six states close to falling below the $3 mark soon.  The fall in prices has been credited to a strong flow of cheap crude coming from Canada and North Dakota.

The Editor says...
Or it could be that the demand for gasoline is down due to the 13-percent unemployment rate, and due to the 47 million people sitting at home waiting for their welfare checks to arrive in the mail.

Gas Prices Are About to Hit New Lows.  According to this week's Energy Information Administration report, the national average for a gallon of regular at the end of September was measured at $3.42, which is around 40¢ less than a year ago.  The AAA Fuel Gauge Report indicates that gas prices dropped about 20¢ per gallon nationally in the past month.

The Editor asks...
$3 a gallon is a new low?  I can remember when it was 19¢ a gallon.

So long, $3 gas, AAA reports.  Tuesday [9/17/2013] is the 1,000th consecutive day that average U.S. retail gasoline prices stayed above the $3 per gallon mark, motor club AAA reports.  AAA said the average retail price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline Tuesday [9/17/2013] was $3.51.  That's about the same as the average reported one month ago but more than 30 cents cheaper than the same time last year.

U.S. gasoline prices climb, reverse recent fall: Lundberg survey.  The average price for a gallon of gasoline in the United States rose in the last two weeks, reversing four weeks of declines as crude oil advanced, according to the Lundberg survey released on Sunday [9/8/2013].  Gasoline prices rose 2.61 cents per gallon, bringing the average cost to $3.5847 on Sept. 6, up from $3.5596 on Aug. 23.

Washington's Latest Special Favor.  [Scroll down]  This matters because for refineries to stuff ballooning amounts of ethanol into a static gas pool, they must blend it at levels of more than 10%.  Since the nation's auto makers have declared they will void the warranties of cars using gas with more than 10% ethanol, refineries face lawsuits.  Most have instead turned to buying federal renewable "credits" to make up for the ethanol they don't blend.  As demand for these credits skyrockets, so has the price — jumping from a few pennies a gallon last year to close to $1 a gallon today.  Oil refiner Valero has said the credits could raise its cost by a stunning $750 million this year, a hit that will be passed on to consumers.

Gas Prices: What Can the President Do?  Gasoline prices certainly did rise under Bush, soaring 180 percent from the day he took office to their all-time peak in July 2008.  They plunged after that and, after adjusting for inflation, stood 9 percent lower when he left the White House than when he entered it.  Since Obama took office they have doubled:  Gasoline prices stood at $1.72 per gallon in January of 2009 and last month averaged $3.48. [...] You can't expect Democrats to blast their own president for any of this.  But what about the press?

The Death of Populism.  Gas has gone up about $2 a gallon since Barack Obama took office.  Given average yearly rates of national consumption, that increase alone translates into an extra $1 trillion that American drivers have collectively paid in higher fuel costs over the last 54 months.  Such a crushing burden on the cash-strapped commuter class is rarely cited in the liberal fixation on cap-and-trade, wind and solar subsidies, and the supposed dangers of fracking.

$4 gas cannot power US.  Right now, when you pull up to the gas pump everything seems fine, if you don't mind paying more than $3 per gallon.  However, with yet another crisis in the Middle East (in Egypt this time), oil has quickly jumped to 15-month highs, at more than $103 a barrel.  This can only mean one thing:  The price signs will be changing at the pump [...]

Transportation Secretary: Buy a hybrid, gas prices will never go down.  Outgoing Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, considered the most influential to ever hold that office, said Thursday [6/27/2013] that sky high gas prices are here to stay.  In his final press conference as secretary, he said, "gas prices aren't going down, they are not going to go down."

Canadians save $1.30 per gallon on gas by filling up in the U.S.
Study on possible border entry fee sparks opposition.  [Scroll down]  For example, the town of Blaine, population just shy of 5,000, generates over $225,000 from a penny per gallon gas tax, which is about 30 percent of its street maintenance budget.

Minnesota drivers paying highest average gas prices in Lower 48.  Minnesota drivers are paying the highest gas prices in the 48 contiguous states, with the average price statewide running at $4.27 per gallon.

Green Tyranny.  Environmental activists and politicians would like you to think that we must love their regulations — or hate trees and animals. [...] The Environmental Protection Agency just announced it will boost gas prices ("only" a penny, although industry says 6 to 9 cents) to make another minuscule improvement to air quality.  In New York City, my mayor wants to ban Styrofoam cups, saying, "I think it's something we can do without."  Congress already dictates the design of our cars, toilets and light bulbs.

The Oil Price Enigma.  [Scroll down]  The use of LNG as a more economic fuel for large trucks is also becoming popular and can displace up to 3 MBD of US oil demand — and therefore about one-third of oil imports.  Finally, we have the possibility of converting natural gas directly to gasoline or diesel fuel.  Shell Oil has already built such a plant in Qatar and is planning the construction of a much larger plant in the United States.  So even with natural gas production rising throughout the world, demand may rise even faster and raise the price of natural gas in relation to crude oil.

EPA's dirty secret about the environment.  The Environmental Protection Agency late last month proposed strict new "clean fuel" standards on gasoline.  The EPA said the so-called Tier 3 rule would cut emissions of smog-forming pollutants, as well as toxic emissions like benzene.  What the EPA didn't say was that levels of these pollutants have been falling steadily for years, and would continue to fall even without the new rule, which the oil industry says will cost tens of billions of dollars.

Higher Gas Prices [are] the 'Price of Cleaner Air'.  The new regulations would slash emissions of certain pollutants by up to 80 percent, including reducing sulfur emissions by 60 percent, according to the official EPA press release.  Oil companies and Republican lawmakers argue that the regulations would have little or no environmental benefits, while noticeably increasing the price of gas.

Proposed EPA Sulfur Standard to Boost Gas Prices.  Tighter restrictions proposed on sulfur content will add a penny or less to the retail price of a gallon of gasoline, according to the Obama administration, while the oil industry contends those same rules could hike prices at the pump as much as nine cents per gallon. [...] Regulations now limit sulfur content in gasoline to ten parts per million in smog-ridden California, but up to 30 parts per million in all other states.  The new rule would impose the California standard on the entire nation.

Why Abundant Oil Hasn't Cut Gasoline Prices.  Even as fuel consumption has fallen to 16 percent below its 2007 peak, gasoline remains about a dollar higher than the average price over the past decade.  So far this year, gasoline prices have risen 11 percent nationwide, to $3.65 a gallon.  Simple economics suggest that higher supplies and lower demand should translate into cheaper prices.  That presumes today's petroleum markets are simple.

Don't blame 'Big Oil' for high gas prices. Blame 'Big Corn.'.  [E]thanol and the Renewable Fuel Standards are terrible public policy — they are contributing to increased incentives to export US fuel and finished petroleum products, which is reflected in higher prices at the pump for American consumers.

The high price of 'Frankenol'.  Originally conceived to breathe life into the fledgling U.S. ethanol industry and reduce our dependence on foreign oil, continued tinkering with the renewable fuel standard (RFS) has turned the program into a nightmare.  The RFS requires refiners to blend increasing amounts of ethanol into the nation's fuel pool annually. [...] In creating the RFS program, the government assumed that gasoline demand would continue to rise.  It was wrong.  With more fuel-efficient vehicles, a lackluster economy and higher prices at the pump, gasoline demand has declined to the lowest level in 18 years.

Green Tyranny.  The Environmental Protection Agency just announced it will boost gas prices ("only" a penny, although industry says 6 to 9 cents) to make another minuscule improvement to air quality.

Auto makers: EPA gas rules good for environment, bad for wallets.  The Environmental Protection Agency's stringent new gasoline rules will be good for the environment but will cost both car manufacturers and consumers more money, automakers say.  The Tier 3 standards, released Friday [3/29/2013], will require carmakers to reduce emissions and reduce the sulfur content of gasoline by 2017, cutting sulfur by more than 60 percent and other pollutants by 80 percent.

EPA Proposal for New Gas Standards Prompts Backlash.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today a proposal for new standards for cars and gasoline, causing a backlash by the oil industry, which claims the change will cost drivers even more at the pump.  The new nationwide standards for gasoline, which still have to go through public comment, will cut sulfur in gasoline by two-thirds, from 30 parts per million to 10 ppm.

Oil industry, lawmakers say EPA fuel rule would hike prices at the pump.  The proposal, released Friday morning [3/29/2013], aims to reduce sulfur in gasoline by more than 60 percent in 2017.  The agency claimed the change would save lives and cut down significantly on respiratory ailments by making the air cleaner.  But critics questioned those claims, and said the plan would impose higher gas prices on hard-hit families.

The Editor says...
The amount of sulphur dioxide in the air is about one third of the levels experienced in 1970 — when there were less than half as many vehicles on the road.*  In 2011, there were 244,778,179 vehicle registrations.*  In 1970, there were 108,407,306 vehicles on the roads in the U.S.*  It is therefore safe to conclude that sulphur dioxide in the atmosphere isn't killing anybody — and thus any claims that the new EPA regulations "would save lives" are specious.  The purpose of this new regulation is to justify the EPA's existence and to turn the screws a little tighter on "big oil."

Obama administration moves ahead with sweeping rules requiring cleaner gasoline.  The Environmental Protection Agency will move ahead Friday [3/29/2013] with a rule requiring cleaner gasoline and lower-pollution vehicles nationwide, amounting to one of President Obama's most significant air pollution initiatives, according to people briefed on the decision.  The proposed standards would add less than a penny a gallon to the cost of gasoline while delivering an environmental benefit akin to taking 33 million cars off the road, according to a senior administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the announcement had not been made yet.

The Editor says...
The senior administration official probably wanted to remain anonymous because his claims will someday be proven false:  This action won't make any noticeable improvement in air quality and will certainly cost more than a penny per gallon.

House Dem calls for penny-a-gallon increase in the gas tax.  Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) on Tuesday [3/19/2013] said Congress needs to pass legislation increasing the federal gasoline tax in order to pay for increased and ongoing demands on U.S. infrastructure.  DeFazio warned on the House floor that the federal highway trust fund will fall to zero by next year, and said the government is spending billions less on infrastructure each year, which is hurting job creation.

Drivers face high gas prices despite US oil boom.  The national average price of gasoline is $3.69 per gallon and is forecast to creep higher, possibly approaching $4 by May.

As Gas Prices Spike, Obama Recycles Failed Policies.  Pump prices have climbed 40 cents a gallon since the start of the year, topping $3.60 a gallon.  Obama complains that every time gasoline prices spike, "politicians dust off their three-point plans for $2 gas, but nothing happens and then we go through the same cycle again."  But the truth is that Obama's the one who keeps dusting off the same tired old proposals — the very ones that have failed repeatedly in practice.

Obama's Energy Plans [are] Not a Triumph But a Tragedy.  [Scroll down]  The inclusion of this comment in the SOTUA aligns with Obama's ideology of pushing less energy usage.  This is troubling because it is widely accepted that energy consumption and economic growth go hand-in-hand.  A successful country uses more energy.  For example, one of the reasons the US is using less gasoline is that so many people are unemployed.  They are not driving to and from work every day.  They are not taking long driving vacations.  They are hunkered down.

Explaining the Inexplicable.  Any gas station that is now just 10 cents cheaper per gallon is packed with cars that trail out to nearly block traffic.  (On this clear day, we could see the eastern face of the Coast Range Mountains in the distance — beneath them is reportedly 20-30 billion barrels of recoverable oil in the Monterey Shale formation that apparently will remain mostly untapped.)  Aren't gas prices supposed to stay low during hard times (as now), when demand is off?

Gas prices set record high for February.  The current national average price is $3.78, and the national average for the month of $3.63 is the highest ever for the month of February, according to AAA.  The average has surpassed $4 a gallon in four states, "and a couple others are only a few cents shy of reaching the $4 mark," said Jessica Brady, a spokeswoman for AAA.

Gasoline Prices up over 50 Cents per Gallon since December.  In Los Angeles prices are around $4.30 per gallon.

Obama Admits: 'Energy Is Going to Be a Little More Expensive'.  This is not the first time Obama has admitted to supporting price-raising energy policies.  In 2008, then-candidate Obama said he was fine with soaring energy prices so long as they helped curb green house gas emissions.  "Under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket," he said.  Obama supporters in 2008 also applauded the prospect of rising gas prices because they would "force us to think about changing the culture to create more emphasis on mass transportation."  Following the sustained applause, Obama praised Europe for its rail system.

Media Protect Obama By Ignoring Gasoline Price Rise.  As of Tuesday [2/19/2013], U.S. gasoline prices had increased for 32 straight days.  The media, however, aren't interested.  They would be, though, if a Republican — particularly a Bush — were in the White House.

Why Are Gasoline Prices High and Rising?  As of February 20, 2013, gasoline prices in the United States are averaging $3.78, 14 percent higher than a month ago and are the highest on record for this time of the year.  The purpose of this post is to explain why this increase is occurring.

'WaPo': Rise in Gas Prices Has Absolutely Nothing To Do With Obama.  Hot Air's Ed Morrissey helps to clear up the Washington Post's confusion over the startling 45 cent rise in gas prices in a single month.  What's also of interest, though, is a word found nowhere in the Post's 750-worder; and that word is "Obama."  Not once does the Post question, examine, or consider how White House policies or lack thereof might be exploding the price of a gallon of gas.

Gas Prices Soar 51 Cents in Just Two Months.  Consumers are taking another huge hit in 2013.  First, the two percent Social Security tax hike began the year.  Now, gas prices are soaring ever closer to $4 a gallon and have jumped 51 cents a gallon since Dec. 20.  According to the Oil Price Information Service, the national average for a gallon of unleaded was $3.21.9 on Dec. 20, 2012.  Today, that price is $3.73.0. While there has been a steady increase, prices shot almost 9 cents just over the weekend.

Gas prices approaching $4 per gallon, up 60 cents from a month ago.  AAA Michigan said the average statewide price of regular, unleaded fuel has risen 16 cents during the past week to $3.91 a gallon.  That is 60 cents higher than a month ago and nearly 50 cents more than a year ago, according to the auto club's Daily Fuel Gauge report.

Gas Prices Soar 51 Cents in Just Two Months.  Consumers are taking another huge hit in 2013.  First, the two percent Social Security tax hike began the year.  Now, gas prices are soaring ever closer to $4 a gallon and have jumped 51 cents a gallon since Dec. 20.  According to the Oil Price Information Service, the national average for a gallon of unleaded was $3.21.9 on Dec. 20, 2012.  Today, that price is $3.73.0. While there has been a steady increase, prices shot almost 9 cents just over the weekend.

Hold On To Your Wallets: Price Of Gas Approaches $4 A Gallon.  2013 is on track to be one of the most expensive years to fill 'er up.  Gas prices in Maryland are up 16 cents in just one month.  Nationally, they are up 17 cents.  AAA says it's just the beginning.

Speculators driving spike in gasoline prices.  The national average for a gallon of regular jumped 17 cents in the last week, reaching $3.52.  In Houston Monday [2/4/2013], the average price was $3.357 a gallon, up from $3.175 a week ago.  Californians suffered even more of a shock, with the statewide average climbing 23 cents in one week, to hit $3.91 on Monday, according to a daily price survey from the AAA auto club.  Gas in California now costs more than it ever has at this time of year.

Why Drivers Don't Seem to Care About Rising Gas Prices.  Thus far in 2013, drivers have been paying less for gas, on average, than they were a year ago.  During the first week of January, for instance, the national average was $3.30 per gallon, or 7¢ less than it was 12 months beforehand.  But prices are rising, and the difference between current prices and 2012 counterparts is shrinking.  Lately, according to AAA's Fuel Gauge Report, the average gallon costs $3.42 nationally, compared to $3.45 a year ago.

Va. governor considers doing away with state gas tax.  Virginia could become the first state to eliminate its gasoline tax if the state legislature votes to adopt Gov. Bob McDonnell's alternative plan, which calls for raising the state sales tax and imposing additional vehicle registration fees in order to pay for roads throughout the state.

20 Ways America Has Begun to Reap What It Has Sown.  [#10]  We have abundant oil supplies on our own soil that we don't drill; then we're surprised that gas prices are so high.

CNN: Time for a Gas Tax Hike.  Dishonestly portraying "some experts" as offering a new fix to the fiscal cliff, CNN explored the idea of hiking the federal gas tax because, author Steve Hargreaves says, the current 18.4 cents per gallon is "not enough."  "As lawmakers race to negotiate a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff," Hargreaves urgently reports, "some experts say one tax increase should be on the table: a gas tax hike."  The tax, which raises $32 billion a year, hasn't been raised since 1993, he tells us.

Western senators ask Justice Department to probe soaring gas prices this year.  Six Pacific state senators are asking the Justice Department to investigate whether oil refineries manipulated the price of gasoline when it hit near-record prices in the region from May through October.  The price was more than $4 a gallon during that period and broke the $5 mark last month in California, even though the price of crude oil has been declining.

Our Incoherent Energy Policies.  The price of gasoline hit $4.80/gallon in California just a few weeks ago.  And yet near four years into this Administration, we are still without a coherent policy to access our vast reservoirs of oil and gas offshore, on federal lands and Alaska.

Tourist-area station sells gas for $6.44 a gallon.  A Shell station in the tourist area near Lake Buena Vista was selling gasoline for $6.44 a gallon Monday — more than $3 above what most motorists are paying.

With Election Over, the News Flows Freely.  We heard throughout the campaign of President Obama's "all of the above" energy policy.  That was then.  This is now.  About 48 hours after he was assured of reelection, the president's Interior Department issued a plan to close to oil shale development 1.6 million acres of federal land in the West to oil.  These acres were targeted for oil shale exploration and development by the prior administration.  Instead, only some 677,000 acres would be open for oil shale exploration, and an additional 130,000 for tar sands production.  The reason for excluding so much acreage from development includes a desire to protect sage grouse habitats and land with "wilderness characteristics."

The Editor says...
Personally, I couldn't care less about the sage grouse, and something tells me that when gasoline is $5.00 a gallon and constantly climbing, nobody else will care, either.

Tempers flaring as gas lines continue to frustrate drivers.  As gas lines reportedly get shorter, so are the emotional fuses of storm-battered New Yorkers.  Chaos nearly erupted this morning at a Hess station in Queens Village as motorists waited hours — in their cars and on foot — for gas to fuel their cars or generators.

Running on empty.  Survivors of Superstorm Sandy are becoming ever more desperate for fuel, bickering over their place in the queue at gas stations and even brandishing firearms to get what they need.  Large parts of the tri-state area are still without power four days after the storm struck and fuel shortages have become even more dire, prompting some opportunist convenience store owners to charge as much as $6 a gallon.

Tempers flaring as gas lines continue to frustrate drivers.  [Scroll down]  Cops, trying to keep order, threatened to close down the station after customers screamed at officers who were allowing first responders cut into hours-long lines.  The police-sanctioned line cutters showed their official IDs but were almost always in unmarked cars and not in uniform.  Civilian customers complained that cops were clearly allowing colleagues, not on the job, to fuel up for personal use.

Behind the gas panic: One expert explains.  Superstorm Sandy has left a gasoline panic in its wake.  The storm had barely left the Northeast last week, when a frightening sight became common in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut — dozens of shivering people standing in lines with jerry cans for gasoline to power up their darkened homes with generators, and cars stretching out miles deep, some waiting four hours to fill up.

State troopers deployed as tensions boil at gas stations in Sandy's wake.  State troopers have been deployed at all gas stations along the NJ Turnpike and Garden State Parkway, where dwindling gasoline supplies are causing frayed nerves as the region endures its third full day with massive power outages.

Reports of Fistfights, Guns Drawn, Nat'l Guard Presence over NY, NJ Gas Shortages.  On Twitter, there are widespread reports about fistfights and people bringing guns to gas stations, thanks to gas shortages in New York and New Jersey.

Gov. Christie signs order to ration gas in 12 N.J. counties.  Gov. Chris Christie signed an executive order today [11/2/2012] instituting gas rationing for the purchase of fuel by motorists in 12 counties. [...] Vehicles with license plates ending in odd numbers can only fill up at stations in these counties on odd numbered days of the month, the order said.

No relief in N.J. to long gas lines; mass power outages likely to continue for days.  Gas lines stretching onto highways and byways were just one obstacle as New Jerseyans continue their stutter steps toward normalcy following the region's most devastating natural disaster in modern times.  Bumper-to-bumper cars, trucks and SUVs stretched from the New Jersey Turnpike rest areas, taking up right lanes for up to a quarter of a mile.

Just in Time for Election, Media Forecast Falling Gas Prices.  Up or down, the media often hype changing gas prices, in spite of a long track record of incorrect predictions.  But the most recent forecast stands to benefit media favorite:  President Barack Obama.  In recent months, all three broadcast news networks and the USA Today have offered predictions ahead of the presidential election, saying prices would be much lower by late November:  after the election.

Why East Coast Gas Shortages May Not End for a Week.  The problem is not gasoline supplies, but the ability to distribute it, especially from the critical terminal area around Linden, N.J., which lost power and was hit by storm surge.  An estimated 75 percent or more of the gas stations in New Jersey were closed either because they had no gasoline, no power or both, said Sal Risalvato, executive director of the N.J. Gasoline, Convenience, Automotive Association.  His organization represents about 1,000 gasoline stations in N.J.

New Jersey Gas Lines Stretch For Miles And Miles.  More than 1,000 New Jersey gas stations are unable to sell fuel due to power outages and delivery problems, according to the head of one of the state's gas station associations.

Six Green Lies Threatening to Starve You.  Raising gas prices may inconvenience the affluent, requiring some tightening of budgets, fewer nights out, or perhaps a skipped vacation.  For the poorest of the poor, increased prices can mean the difference between maintaining a job, feeding children, and heating a home.  How compassionate is it to douse a freezing man's fire on account of the smoke?

Energy Is Everywhere.  According to the last Residential Energy Consumption Survey, the average American household in 2005 spent about $1,800 on non transportation-related energy use, including electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, kerosene, and liquid petroleum gas.  About $1,122 of that was spent on electricity, $471 was spent on natural gas, and $115 was spent on fuel oil.  The amount spent on kerosene was relatively trivial.  On top of that, the average American household in 2005 paid about $2,000 per year for gasoline.

Gas Prices Are Up Because of Obama's Offshore Ban.  In the Hofstra presidential debate, President Obama said:  "when I took office, the price of gasoline was $1.80.  Why is that?  Because the economy was on the verge of collapse."  Wrong.  Prices collapsed because we signaled to the world that we were finally moving forward with developing America's massive offshore oil and gas resources — and they shot back up when Obama reimposed the offshore ban.

More about offshore drilling.

Why gas is nearly $4 a gallon.  So it was Bush's bad policies that drove the economy down, and with it the gas prices.  Let's ignore the obvious, and not even point out that if what Obama said were true, gas would be [almost] free by now, if not for the taxes.

Romney's Ace-in-the-Hole.  The fact is that the value of gasoline has been plunging.  If one were to look at a chart of gasoline priced in terms of gold it would look like a downhill ski slope.  The reality is that it's not the gasoline that has been going up.  It's the value of the Obama dollar that has been going down.

More expensive gas pushes US consumer prices up.  Higher gas costs drove up U.S. consumer prices in September for the second straight month.

Thanks, Candy Crowley. Now I Hate the Mainstream Media More than Ever.  During the second presidential debate, President Obama uttered a line so full of ignorance that, if he were a Republican, it would be all anyone talked about afterward.  Mitt Romney noted that gas prices are roughly double now what they were when Obama took office.  Obama replied that gas prices were so low because the U.S. economy was about to go into collapse.  Obama never mentioned the effect of supply or demand on the price.  He never mentioned the effect that Middle East instability has on the price of gas.

Obama faces dilemma over gas prices as presidential campaign hits homestretch.  President Obama faces a dilemma as Mitt Romney bashes him over high gasoline prices in the final weeks of their close race.  Obama must decide whether to address the attacks head-on, or stay the course on a messaging strategy that has recently been addressing prices indirectly.

High gas prices roil House races.  High gasoline prices have become a political wild card in California, where several tight races are pivotal to Democrats' slim hopes of winning back control of the House.  Gas prices are always higher in California, but lately they're bad even by Golden State standards, soaring a half-dollar in one week to average $4.67-per-gallon on Oct. 9.

Adam Carolla: Rich California Liberals Don't Know, Don't Care About High Gas Prices.  Adam Carolla calls California home, but he's hardly a typical resident by local standards.  He's more likely to critique the Golden State (or its denizens) than send much love its way.  So when Bill O'Reilly asked the podcast king why his fellow Californians, particularly well-to-do Hollywood types, aren't up in arms over skyrocketing gas prices Carolla had an easy answer up his sleeve.

Bankrupt California.  I thought of my fellow Californian Energy Secretary Steven Chu last week, when I paid $4.89 a gallon in Gilroy for regular gas — and had to wait in line to get it.  The customers were in near revolt, but I wondered against what and whom.  I mentioned to one exasperated motorist that there are estimated to be over 20 billion barrels of oil a few miles away, in newly found reserves off the California coast.  He thought I was from Mars.

As California gas prices soar, political heat rises.  California Governor Jerry Brown on Sunday [10/7/2012] ordered pollution regulators to let service stations stock winter-grade gasoline early after an abrupt price spike last week sent some pump prices past $5 a gallon and left residents fuming.

Gas Prices Are The Government and Obama's Fault.  John Hofmeister is the retired former President of the Shell Oil Company.  After retiring in 2008, Hofmeister founded and now runs the not-for-profit association called the Citizens for Affordable Energy.  His organization is said to promote viable United States energy security solutions for the United States which includes improvements in efficiency, affordable energy supplies, the necessary essential infrastructure, long-lasting environmental policies, as well as a method to educate the public on energy issues.  In spite of Hofmeister's highly-respected and tremendously beneficial expertise and organization, he says that he has been totally ignored by President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and other politicians and current governmental officials.

California gasoline prices set to drop from record highs.  Average California retail gasoline prices have scaled yet another record high, an auto organization said on Monday [10/8/2012], while analysts said wholesale markets signaled consumers may see a dramatic drop in pump prices within a week.

Gas prices in California rise to another new record.  The average price of regular gas in California hit a record average of $4.655 on Sunday [10/7/2012], according to the AAA's daily fuel gauge report.  That's a rise of 4.1 cents overnight.

California Facing $5 Gasoline Stirs Brown to Relax Rules.  Gasoline closing in on a record $5 a gallon prompted Governor Jerry Brown to direct California regulators to relax smog controls so oil refineries could increase supplies of cheaper fuel.  Regular gasoline in California surged to an average $4.668 a gallon, an all-time high and 22 percent more than the U.S. average, according to data today from AAA, the nation's largest motoring organization.  Some stations were charging as much as $5.89 in the Big Sur area, according to GasBuddy.com.

California Governor Orders Winter Gas Switch.  California Governor Jerry Brown told state regulators to immediately allow oil refineries to make an early transition to winter-blend gasoline to help bring record prices at the pump under control.

Soaring Gas Prices in California.  According to a news clip I just saw, there is a gas station in the Los Angeles area currently selling regular gasoline for $5.58/gallon.  Some gas stations are shutting down because the owners don't want to buy gas at these prices for fear that they won't be able to sell it.  Prices have been moving higher over the last few months, but the recent increases have fallen like a ton of bricks on consumers.

Calif. gasoline prices hit all-time high - twice.  AAA reported in its latest update on Sunday [10/7/2012] that the statewide average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is $4.655.

Gas prices suddenly skyrocket in California.  "If this keeps up, I'll be looking at $5-a-gallon gas by next Thursday," said Ali Mazarei, who owns an Arco station in Riverside County.  On Thursday [10/4/2012], Mazarei was charging $4.52 for a gallon of regular gasoline, up from $4.27 on Wednesday and $4.21 on Tuesday.

Calif. gas prices hit all-time high.  The price of gasoline hit an all-time average high in California of $4.6140 a gallon Saturday, fueled by a reduced supply and a volatile market.

Calif. gas prices spike at $5 per gallon.  California gas prices will increase for several more days before leveling off after a temporary reduction in supply triggered a price spike that saw fuming motorists paying $5 or more per gallon in some locations and station owners shutting down pumps in others.

Are Those High Gas Prices Ever Going To Come Down?  One station in Calabasas is charging the highest rate in LA County — nearly $6 for a gallon.

San Diego gas prices continue to skyrocket.  The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in San Diego County recorded what is believed to be its largest single-day increase Friday [10/5/2012], rising 19.5 cents to $4.523, its highest amount since July 10, 2008.

$4 gas: Get used to it.  Reports of gas shortages along the high-demand west and east coasts may be fleeting — although deeply concerning — but they highlight a problem that's expected to persist in the U.S.:  our refineries are getting old.  Given that a new refinery has not been built since 1976, commodities desks on Wall Street are bracing for more refinery outages and fires just as the nation needs to gear up for the busy winter heating season.

California Gas Stations Shut as Oil Refiners Ration Supplies.  Spot gasoline in Los Angeles has surged $1 a gallon this week to a record $1.45 a gallon premium versus gasoline futures traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange, data compiled by Bloomberg show.  That's the highest level for the fuel since at least November 2007, when Bloomberg began publishing prices there.  On an outright basis, the fuel has jumped to $4.3929 a gallon.

A "Mean Green", Obama Wages War Against Cheap Energy.  Obama's preferred strategy has been to implement whatever policies increase the price of energy to American consumers. [...] Obama's animus against fossil fuels explains why he chose Dr. Steven Chu to be his Secretary of Energy.  Chu's most famous policy goal is encapsulated in his statement, "Somehow we have to figure out a way to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."

Top 10 bad economic signs for Obama.  [#6]  Gas prices:  In 2009, when Barack Obama was inaugurated president, the price of gasoline was $1.81 per gallon.  Since then it has more than doubled, nearing $4 per gallon, and that was before the recent Middle East turmoil threatened to drive prices up.  While such events are beyond the control of any president, Obama's reluctance to fully develop domestic oil resources and the delay of the Keystone pipeline contribute to the supply-and-demand problem.

Name a single thing that has improved under Obama's rule.
Obama's Dangerous and Disastrous Presidency.  Gasoline prices are twice what they were when Obama took office — and rising again.  The housing market remains in the doldrums.  Food stamp use is by far at the highest level in history, and poverty is markedly up.  Food prices are markedly higher.  Small businesses are jettisoning the health-insurance benefits they offered employees until Obamacare made it prohibitively expensive.  Doctors are retiring in record numbers rather than face Obamacare's scourges — and most of the law hasn't yet taken effect.

Where's Our Energy?  When President Barack Obama took office, the average price for a gallon of regular gas was $1.84.  That means gas prices have more than doubled on Obama's watch.  But why?  The primary reason is that the system is rigged. [...] Another reason Americans are getting hosed at the pump is that President Obama loathes the fossil fuel industry and does everything he can to inhibit production.

Gas Prices.  Wow, are gas prices high.  I have been doing a lot of driving lately.  Recently I have been as far north as northern Minnesota, in Wisconsin and now Mississippi.  I drive a diesel.  Diesel around the US varies in price from $3.89 to as high as $4.40.  Gasoline prices vary even more.  I have seen it close to $5 a gallon in Chicago, which has some of the highest gas prices in the US.  But, mostly it's solidly in the low $4 per gallon range.  The national average is in the high threes.  What's even more amazing is oil is not trading at extreme highs.

The government that can require you to buy medical insurance can also require you to buy gasoline you don't necessarily need.
EPA Mandates Motorists Buy At Least 4 Gallons of Gas at Ethanol-15 Pumps.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has mandated that all consumers in the United States must purchase at least 4 gallons of gasoline when they go to the gas station, if they are getting fuel from a pump that also offers a new E15 ethanol-gasoline blend.

What if you ride a motorcycle, or just need a gallon for your lawnmower?
EPA Institutes Minimum Gas Purchase Requirement For Some Stations.  Representative Jim Sensenbrenner (R., Wis.) has a post on the Hill's Congress Blog highlighting a bizarre new regulation from the EPA requiring some gas stations to sell at least four gallons of gasoline at a time.  It affects those that pump both E10 and E15 (gas with 10 percent or 15 percent ethanol) through the same hose.  Since E15 is pretty terrible for small engines and old cars (Sensenbrenner says it's "like metal in a microwave for a small engine"), the theory is that when customers whose engines cannot handle it are buying gas, the four-gallon minimum would dilute any residual E15 enough to keep it from damaging small engines.

The Editor says...
If E15 is that harmful, why isn't it sold from its own pump, like diesel fuel?

Levin: If You Think The 'Broccoli Mandate' Can't Happen, Just Try To Buy Gas Under EPA's New Rule.  Citing the EPA's new gas purchase mandate, Mark Levin mocked skeptics who say the threat of a broccoli mandate is ridiculous.  On last night's [9/17/2012] radio show, Levin compared a four gallon new minimum-purchase rule by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to the Obamacare health insurance purchase mandate and warnings that a broccoli-purchase mandate could be next.

The Media and Obama are Taking Us Down the Rabbit Hole.  To re-elect Barack Obama, the media has a long list of what they expect us to believe. [...] The media expect us to believe that we just have to pay $4.00 a gallon for gas.  The new normal.

Regulatory Tsunami To Hit Business If Obama Wins Second Term.  [For example,] Gasoline rules.  The EPA's so-called tier 3 rule, which would cut the sulfur content of gasoline, is also in the works.  The oil industry figures it will cost refiners $9.8 billion up front and more than $2 billion a year, boosting gas prices as much as 9 cents a gallon.

More expensive gas pushes up US wholesale prices.  A sharp rise in gasoline costs drove up wholesale prices last month by the most in more than three years.

End of summer gas spike hits drivers.  The average price of a gallon of regular gas increased 1.5 cents nationally to $3.84 in AAA's latest reading Tuesday [9/11/2012], the first significant move in gas prices since late August.

Obama Owns Today's Gas Prices.  When Obama took office in 2009, the average price for gas was $1.84 a gallon.  Today, it's well over twice that, and in many parts of the country it's more than $4 a gallon.  Taken on top of the 43 straight months of unemployment at higher than 8%, this is terrible news for the Obama administration.

Gas prices: Relief on the way?  The national average is $3.83 per gallon.  Six states are pushing $4.00 a gallon.  California has the highest prices in the nation at $4.15.

Gas prices at record levels for Labor Day weekend.  A gallon of regular unleaded gas in Massachusetts averaged $3.73 a gallon at the beginning of the week, up 12 cents from a year ago and a record price for this time of the year, according to the Automobile Association of America.

Gas prices expected to jump above $4 today.  Michigan gas prices are likely to hit $4 a gallon or more today [8/28/2012] because of refinery shutdowns along the Gulf Coast in anticipation of Tropical Storm Isaac and a minor pipeline shutdown in Illinois.

Eating America's Seed Corn.  As gas prices climb back toward $4 a gallon, the Obama administration — facing a tough reelection campaign and rising Middle East tensions — is once again considering tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.  For years, administrations have bought and stored oil for emergencies, in fear of a cutoff of imported oil, as happened during the Arab embargo of 1973-74.  But since 2009, the U.S. government has declared most federal lands off-limits to new oil and gas exploration — despite vast recent finds of energy and radically new means to tap it.

GOP: Unemployment has never been this high this long post-recession.  You've probably heard the president say recently that the private sector is 'doing fine' and that his plan 'worked.'  If only that were true.  Just take a look at the chilling report the Associated Press issued a few days ago confirming our fears, that this is the weakest economic recovery since the Great Depression.  Unemployment has never been this high for this long after a recession.  Even those who have jobs are seeing their paychecks shrink.  Rising prices on everyday things from gas to groceries certainly doesn't help matters.

Obama Gas Prices Going UP-UP-UP.  As president, Barack Obama has waged an ongoing war against domestic energy production, including offshore oil and natural gas.  As a result, energy prices are skyrocketing, which in turn increase prices for food and other day-to-day essentials, taking yet more money from already struggling middle class Americans.  This week sets an all-new record for highest gas prices.

Summertime blues for drivers: Gas at August record.  U.S. drivers paid an average of $3.72 per gallon on Monday [8/20/2012].

Once again, the  strategic  political oil reserves come into play.
Report: Obama may release oil reserves.  President Obama will consider releasing oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve if increased sanctions on Iran cause costs to rise, according to a report on Friday [8/17/2012].  Officials have a plan ready if gasoline prices do not fall after Sept. 3, according to Reuters.  Historically, gas prices drop after the Labor Day holiday.

Gas Prices Moving to All-Time High.  The prices that Americans pay for gas at the pump may reach an all-time high this summer.  The average price is $3.70 per gallon, which is an increase of 30 cents since July and the climb in price from July to August was 9 percent.  The increase is particularly concerning because a reduction in global demand, caused by a persistent world-wide recession, has kept demand for gas relatively low.  Some have predicted that the price of gas will reach $3.90 per gallon before Labor Day.  Gas prices have risen each month for seven straight months this year.

The Charts That Doom Obama.  News out this afternoon [8/17/2012] is that Obama is looking into opening the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a means to relieve pressure at the gas pump.  Someone at the White House woke up and realized that the welcome springtime fall in gasoline prices has reversed course and retraced its steps, as shown in the first chart below of gasoline futures prices.  I can tell you that out here on the Left Coast, the price of premium gasoline has reached $4.99 a gallon at my nearest station, but then California deserves it.

Gas costs more — in absence of shortage.  Gas prices in California remain significantly higher than they were prior to the Aug. 6 fire at Chevron's Richmond oil refinery — despite the fact that the blaze didn't impact gasoline production in the state as initially feared.  In fact, the state's refineries churned out more gasoline last week than they did the week before the fire, not less.

Gas prices surge 34 cents since June.  The national average for a gallon of gas at the pump has climbed to $3.67, a rise of 34 cents since July 1.

7 Things to Expect If Obama Is Elected to a Second Term.  [#3]  Gas and energy prices will be dramatically higher:  Obama once said, "Under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket."  His Energy Secretary Steven Chu added, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."  Is it any wonder that Obama won't drill ANWR, has blocked the Keystone Pipeline, and has slow-walked offshore drilling?

Who Really Gets Rich Off High Gas Prices?  Exxon, for example, made only seven cents per gallon of gasoline in 2011.  That's a drop in the bucket compared to the nearly 50 cents per gallon that federal, state and local governments rake in on an average gallon of gas pumped in the U.S.

AP Report on West Coast Gas Prices Moving to $4 a Gallon Ignores How They're Already There.  Last time I checked the Associated Press was a national news service.  So in a story about how a refinery fire in California will likely cause West Coast gas prices to hit $4 a gallon, why did reporter Jason Dearen ignore the fact that prices are already at $4 a gallon in many parts of the country already?

Refinery fire could slow entire California economy, expert says.  The lumbering California economy could be slowed by a prolonged shutdown of the huge Chevron Corp. refinery in Richmond, which provides a sizable chunk of the state's fuel-making capability, a UCLA expert said.  Gasoline prices in California could surge as much as 35 cents a gallon, taking the edge off the state's modest growth rate now estimated to be roughly 2%, said William Yu, an economist with the UCLA Anderson Forecast.

Gas prices climb 30 cents a gallon.  Gas prices continued their slow but steady march higher Tuesday, surpassing a nationwide average of $3.63 cents a gallon on the back of refinery problems in the United States and higher crude oil prices globally.

Next from the EPA: Four-Gallon-Minimum Gas Purchases.  The Environmental Protection Agency is going to require all consumers to buy at least four gallons of gasoline from certain gas pumps after the new E15 ethanol-gasoline blend is introduced into the market.  The new regulation was revealed in an Aug. 1 letter to the American Motorcyclist Association, which expressed concern that the vast majority of motorcycles and ATVs in use today aren't designed to operate on E15 fuel and residual fuel from a pump that serves multiple blends might harm these tanks.

Experts: California refinery fire will boost gas prices.  A major fire at one of the country's biggest oil refineries that sent scores of people to hospitals with complaints of breathing problems will push gas prices above $4 a gallon on the West Coast, analysts said Tuesday [8/7/2012].

Rising gas prices return to haunt Obama.  Gas prices have surged in recent weeks and analysts predict they'll keep rising, creating fresh openings for GOP attacks against President Obama that had waned when prices dropped sharply.  The nationwide average for regular gasoline is $3.60-per-gallon, a 24-cent rise over the past four weeks, according to AAA.

Gas prices soar to $4 a gallon in Detroit, could go higher.  Gas prices in Metro Detroit climbed for the sixth straight day Friday [8/3/2012], averaging $3.99 and going as high as $4.29 for a gallon of unleaded regular.  Since last Saturday, the average price for a fill-up — if you can afford to splurge that much — has jumped 34 cents a gallon, according to AAA, or about five bucks more for a 15-gallon tankful.

Gas prices head higher: Up 11 cents in 3 weeks.  Gasoline prices have risen 11 cents a gallon from the start of the month, following a rise in oil prices that was spurred by increasing tensions with Iran, an easing of the crisis in Europe and hopes for more stimulus from central banks.

Texas Gas Prices On The Rise.  After falling for months, AAA Texas says the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline actually rose two cents in San Antonio this week.  The state average is up seven cents a gallon.

Gas prices rising again.  Georgia's gas prices went back on the rise after several weeks of drops and the price drops could be over for the summer, AAA Auto Club South reported.  The average price per gallon in the Peach State is $3.21, up from $3.13 a week ago.  The national average price for gasoline was up 5 cents to $3.38.

Gas prices are silver lining as economy weakens.  There's some good news behind the discouraging headlines on the economy:  Gas is getting cheaper.

Summer gas prices — as good as they'll get.  As the summer driving season kicks off this holiday weekend, most Americans are enjoying lower gas prices than they might have expected when the spring began.  But prices, while well off their 2012 peak set in early April, are still higher than they've been at the start of most summers.

Voters say gas prices pose serious threat to economic recovery.  A large majority of American voters think gas prices pose a serious threat to the nation's economic recovery.  In addition, voters are sharply divided over whether President Obama could do more to bring down gas prices — or whether he even wants gas prices to go down.  Nearly half of voters, 47 percent, say high gas prices pose an "extremely" serious threat to the economy, according to a Fox News poll released Monday [5/21/2012].  Another 40 percent consider it a "somewhat" serious threat.

Top 10 misguided energy policies.  [#10] High gas prices:  Interior Secretary Ken Salazar recently called Republican energy plans "fairy tales" and "falsehoods."  Salazar, asked at a different event if the cost of gas was headed to $9 per gallon, responded by saying, "Where it all will end, no one knows."  What we do know is that Barack Obama and the environmental lobby have long wanted higher gas prices to "save" the planet from global warming.  Which party believes in fairy tales, Mr. Salazar?

Why Are Gasoline Prices High (And What Can Be Done About It)?  Policymakers often blame high gasoline prices on oil company profits, collusion, or speculators, but knowing what really goes into the cost of gasoline is key to understanding what the government could do to lower prices.

The Media's Annual Spring Spin on Gas Prices.  It would be humorous if it weren't so insane.  But for the media it's become almost a game.  They scored points blaming Bush and now rack them up defending Obama.  Nowhere is that more apparent than with gas prices.  So here we are again, with prices shooting skyward and a president and an energy secretary who have both previously said they supported high gas prices.  Stephen Chu, you'll recall, said, "somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe," according to The Wall Street Journal.

Falling Gasoline Prices Aren't Seen Helping Obama.  Gasoline prices may be falling but don't expect that to help President Barack Obama in November's presidential elections, experts and poll results say.  High gasoline prices can hurt a president in an election year, but when they fall, people forget about them, and they become a non-issue.

Mandating specific fuels can have enormous costs.
CAFE, RFS Endanger Convenience Stores, Study Cautions.  Today, the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) published a study on the challenges facing the more than 120,000 U.S. convenience stores that sell motor fuel in a market increasingly shaped by the competing requirements of two federal programs:  renewable fuel standard (RFS, a.k.a. the ethanol mandate) and corporate average fuel economy (CAFE).

Obama Energy Policies Have Cost Economy $358 Billion.  The American people need to pay more attention to the facts and less to the rhetoric.  President Obama boasts about how he is helping most American families; however, his poor energy policies have cost the 120 million households in our country an average of $3,000 per household due to gasoline prices alone.

Cabinets gone wild.  [Scroll down]  Then there is the even stranger case of Energy Secretary Steven Chu, whose department helped oversee millions in bad loans to green companies like Solyndra, First Solar and Solar Trust of America — the Teapot Dome scandals of our times.  Chu once infamously quipped before assuming office that he wanted U.S. gas prices to reach European levels.

10 Things That Would Be Happening Today If Obama's Policies Were Working.  [#3]  Judging by the number of times Barack Obama attacked George W. Bush for high gas prices and Obama's insistence that alternative fuels are a viable alternative to gasoline, you'd expect plentiful, cheap gas at under $2.00 a gallon as opposed to more than a doubling of the price of gas to $3.80 per gallon.

Seven Of The Most Disturbing Quotes From Members Of The Obama Administration.  [#7]  "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe." — Steven Chu, Energy Secretary.  Ever wonder why gas prices are so high under Obama?  Could it be because Obama's Energy Secretary wants to dramatically increase the price of gas?  Gas is more than $8 a gallon in most of Western Europe.  Guess that gives them something to shoot for if Obama gets a second term.

Salazar: 'No one knows' if US headed to $9/gal gas.  Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said that "no one knows" if gasoline prices in the United States will reach $9 per gallon, and acknowledged that the possibility is outside his control.

Pain At The Pump And Pain At The Checkout Line.  Pump prices are now more than $2 higher than they were when President Obama took office.  For a middle-class family that fills up, say, two cars with 15-gallon gas tanks each week, that amounts to an extra $3,100 a year — no small expense.

Obama's New Gas Price Scapegoat.  High gas prices are not a president's friend, especially in an election year, so it's not surprising that President Barack Obama is trying his darndest to shift the blame for record-high fuel prices onto something other than his failed energy policies.  Yesterday [4/17/2012] he made a desperate attempt to distract from those failures and redirect America's gas price rage with a flawed proposal to punish speculators for supposedly driving up the cost of energy.

Obama reframes gas prices as GOP problem.  President Barack Obama is trying to portray himself as the hard-nosed protector of gasoline-buying consumers, and to frame the GOP's free market policies as one cause of rising gasoline prices.

Speculation is a two-way street.  The flood of investor money into commodities, mostly in the form of exchange-traded funds, has certainly added to the level of speculation in the market.  But the notion that eliminating speculation would solve the problem of high gas prices is simply wrong-headed.

Gas prices are complex, but not mysterious.  Every 1-cent increase in the retail price of gasoline translates into about $1 billion annually in higher costs for American consumers.  If the nation truly wants to address the wild roller coaster of price swings, it's important to understand the factors that affect prices.

Why Your Highway Has Potholes.  In a typical year only about 65 cents of every gas tax dollar is spent on roads and highways.  The rest is intercepted by the public transit lobby and Congressional earmarkers. [...] One reason roads are shortchanged is that liberals believe too many Americans drive cars.  Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has been pushing a strange "livability" agenda, which he defines as "being able to take your kids to school, go to work, see a doctor, drop by the grocery or post office, go out to dinner and a movie, and play with your kids in a park, all without having to get in your car."  This is the mind of the central planner at work, imagining that Americans all want to live in his little utopia.

Bush Lowered Gas Prices, Obama Is Raising Them.  When gasoline prices rose under George W. Bush, the Democrats went crazy with accusations of how he and Vice President Dick Cheney were putting their allegiance to "big oil" over their allegiance to the American people.  However, even amid their unfounded criticisms, Bush was able to bring gas prices down to approximately $1.84 a gallon simply by pushing for expanded drilling both on the continental U.S. and offshore.  (For the record, the Democrats who were criticizing Bush for high gas prices also did their best to keep him from expanding drilling.)

Economy Can Handle Higher Gas Prices: Geithner.  The U.S. economy is in a better position to deal with high gasoline prices, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Sunday [4/15/2012], adding that unseasonably warm winter had lowered overall energy costs for consumers.

Obama Peddles Myths About High Gas Prices.  To hear President Obama talk about energy, you'd think annual oil price spikes were routine and predictable.  But it's another energy myth Obama peddles to avoid responsibility for high gas prices.

Higher gas prices cause less public anger this time.  Gas prices have soared about 15% in the last six months, hitting $3.94 a gallon on average nationwide, and $4.29 in California.

Obama's Favored Policy Would Boost Gasoline's Prices.  President Obama wants us to think he can compel oil companies to lower the pump price of gasoline, by eliminating business tax deductions for certain major companies, and raising their cost of doing business by what he admits would be $4 billion a year.  In reality, the companies will have to pass the tax hikes on to their customers — further increasing pump prices.

Restricting Supply To Boost Prices.  In 2008, in response to record-high gasoline prices, both Congress and President Bush lifted the decades-long ban on offshore drilling.  This opened the entire Pacific and Atlantic Coast to new offshore drilling.  When President Obama took office, the price of gasoline was $1.79 a gallon.  Look where it is now after he reversed Bush's policy and restored the ban.

States with highest gas prices back Obama.  There is a curious relationship between a state's gas prices and presidential politics.  The higher the price of gasoline, the higher President Obama's prospects of winning that state.

The Editor says...
That's one way to look at it.  Here's another:  The states where leftist tax-and-spend Democrats are in charge are the states where the cost of living is the highest.

High gas prices lead to spike in fuel theft.  Everyone knows it's important to protect your valuables, and with high fuel prices, that means the gas in your car as well.  With the national average price of gas is currently around $4 a gallon, a spike in fuel theft has followed.  Thieves have become more creative and more persistent in recent months.

'O' Canada!  President Obama must be planning to skip this year's presidential election and run for prime minister of Canada instead.  Why else, after all, would he be working so hard to help Canada open new markets for its oil outside the US and attract higher prices — even as motorists here are increasingly socked every time they fill up their tanks?

7 Devastating Facts About the Obama Economy.  [#3]  On the last day of President Bush's presidency, gas prices were $1.84 a gallon.  Today under Obama, the average price of a gallon of gas costs $3.94.

Obama is an ignoramus on the causes of high fuel prices.  Kudos to David Goldman (AKA "Spengler") for eviscerating President Obama's ignorant musings on why oil prices are going up. [...] If oil supply cannot keep up with demand — because the Obama administration has restricted development, among other factors — the oil price goes up.

More "Transformation" from Obama: $7 a Gallon Gas!  While millions of Americans suffer the economic anguish of ever-escalating gasoline prices in a morbid economy, environmental elitists in the Obama Administration have cause for celebration.  To wit, gasoline prices have reached $7 a gallon as the Obama-Chu goal of $8 a gallon edge closer to reality.

Virginians are paying too much at the pump.  No matter where I am in Virginia, a top concern on people's minds these days is punishingly high gasoline prices.  We've all felt the shock at gas stations.  To fill a 20-gallon tank costs an additional $40 or more than it did just three years ago.

Gas pains.  Based on the latest forecasts, gasoline prices at the pump will be on the rise over the next couple of months as the summer driving season kicks into gear.  Five bucks a gallon, here we come.  You know what that means in an election year:  Trouble for incumbents.

Gas numbers game is a loser for Obama.  President Obama's poll numbers are up and the country's unemployment figures are down — but $4 gas poses a potent threat to the incumbent's re-election bid, polls show.  Voters are giving Mr. Obama an emphatic thumbs down for his handling of gas prices — 68 percent disapprove of his response to the problem in the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll.

How to lower gasoline prices (and fix everything else).  Do you think that monopoly capitalism is the reason why you're now paying $4 for a gallon of gasoline?  Then ask yourself why you paid only $3.20 for the same gallon in January.

Obama Gets Noisy About Gas Again.  If the president gets his way, oil companies will see their tax bills raised.  They will pass that increase onto you at the pump.

Obama's Fake "Fossil Fuel Infatuation Tour".  For the past three years, America's oil industry has endured public denigration, access denials, and permitting delays — all while the President touts the virtues of energy sources not equipped to power America:  wind, solar, and, most recently, algae.  As gas prices have been spiking up, President Obama has been speaking out against the evil oil companies and accusing them of obscene profits.  Apparently, Americans haven't been buying into the rhetoric.  Polls show increasing numbers of people believe the President's policies have contributed to the high prices.

Blame Obama, Not Oil Companies For High Prices.  Last week's average price for regular gasoline hit $3.94 a gallon, according to the Dept. of Energy.  That's up 11 cents in just three weeks, and more than $2 a gallon since Obama took office.  So who gets the blame?  Obama for cutting oil production on federal lands and killing Keystone XL pipeline, for endlessly berating the industry and offhandedly dismissing oil as "yesterday's fuel"?  Nope, almost half of Americans in the latest IBD/TIPP poll blame oil companies and Wall Street speculators, the two players that have nothing whatever to do with the pain at the pump.

Sticker shock at the pump.  Obama and Democratic Senate push for higher gas prices.

Gas-price politics impacts Obama's environmental issues.  With rising gasoline prices fueling election-year political rhetoric, the Obama administration is accelerating moves it can paint as energy-friendly while putting the brakes on some environmental initiatives that opponents could blame for raising costs.  Among the stalled proposals is a requirement that refiners make gasoline that emits 67 percent less sulfur — 10 parts per million down from the 30 ppm permitted now.

Gas tops $3.90 a gallon.  The average price rose 1.3 cents to $3.911 in the latest daily survey conducted for the motorist group AAA.  The price has risen for 19 consecutive days.

Gas Prices: Obama's Misery Index.  When Barack Obama took office in 2009, gasoline prices were about $1.84 a gallon:  which means Americans could get more than two gallons of gasoline for the price they're paying for one gallon of gasoline now. ... And this is all thanks to Obama's opposition to offshore drilling, particularly in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska, his rejection of the Keystone Pipeline, and his refusal to expand domestic oil production significantly.

US Citizens Angry With Obama Over Gas Prices.  More than two-thirds of Americans disapprove of the way President Barack Obama is handling high gasoline prices, although most do not blame him for them, according to a Reuters/Ipsos online poll released on Tuesday [3/27/2012].

Gasoline prices hit record: $4.67 in Chicago; $4.51 in metro area.  The average price of unleaded regular gas in the Chicago metropolitan area [3/26/2012] was $4.51 a gallon, surpassing by 4 cents the high of $4.47 reached May 5, 2011, according to AAA, Wright Express and the Oil Price Information Service.

The Gas Price Kerfuffle: Obama's Achilles Heel?  As gas prices rise to $5 during the summer driving season, Obama is feeling the heat but has not produced new ideas.  On the contrary; all his policies tend to make gas more costly — opening the door for GOP initiatives. ... The Obama administration has shown little interest in lowering gas prices.

Obama's Energy Tour was a Political Disaster.  President Obama's energy tour was supposed to placate public anger over rising gas prices, and show voters that the White House is taking their concerns seriously.  Instead, the tour only ended up highlighting Obama's dismal energy record, and gave Republicans ample opportunity to make their case to the media.  The reason is that Americans have heard these promises from Obama before, and know better than to expect results.

Gas prices set record in Hilo.  The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline reached a record high today [3/22/2012] in Hilo of $4.669, according to AAA Hawaii's daily fuel gauge report.  The state average for gas is $4.50 a gallon, 9 cents below the record price set in May 2011.

Industry group: Obama should help lower gas prices.  President Barack Obama could lower gas prices by opening up more federal land and offshore areas for oil drilling, American Petroleum Institute President Jack Gerard said Tuesday [3/20/2012].  Gerard, on a conference call with reporters, argued that Obama is misguided in saying "there's no silver bullet" to combat high world oil prices or rising prices at the pump.  "We strongly disagree, and so do most Americans," said Gerard, who heads the industry organization.

Faith-Based Energy Policy.  Americans remember that [President Obama's] team boasted about wanting higher energy costs in 2008, when Obama was still basking in hope-and-change adulation.  Energy Secretary-designate Steven Chu, who doesn't own a car, pontificated about wanting higher American gasoline prices, hoping they would somehow reach European levels.  Candidate Obama breezily warned of skyrocketing energy prices — the necessary cost of his planned cap-and-trade, anti-global-warming legislation.  Senator Ken Salazar of Colorado, who was soon to become interior secretary, bragged that even if gas reached $10 a gallon, he would not vote to open up new federal offshore oil leases.

Obama Mocks Critics As Gas Prices Go Up.  Gas prices keep going up, with no end in sight.  But instead of taking action to bring relief to the American people, the Obama Administration is patting itself on the back for a job well done while mocking those who are calling for a commonsense energy policy.

The Old Democrat Party: FDR Expanded US Domestic Oil Production.  For three years the Obama Administration energy policy focused on pouring $60 billion into alternative energy; while limiting U.S. drilling off the Atlantic Coast, Florida Gulf Coast, Gulf of Mexico, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and federal lands in the Rockies.  Due to these policies, the average price per gallon of gas just hit an all-time-high for this time of year at $3.84 a gallon.

Recycling renewable-energy rhetoric.  At a congressional hearing Tuesday on Department of Energy green-energy programs, Secretary Steven Chu said, "I am not an expert on oil reserves."  You don't say.  In 2008, Mr. Chu famously said, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe," revealing a level of animus toward oil that President Obama's handpicked energy secretary has carried with him throughout his tenure as America's chief energy policymaker.

Obama's Jokes Are On Us.  Before President Obama chose him to be his Secretary of Anti-Energy, Berkeley Professor Steven Chu said what America needs is the same gas prices as Europe.  That is $8 to $10 a gallon.  He believes that because he thinks that is good for the environment. ... Why did President Obama choose Chu for his Energy Secretary?  Because Obama agrees with him.

How to Beat Obama:  Gas prices are through the roof; the economy remains in shambles; the situation in the Middle East has never been so tenuous.  And yet nearly half of all Americans think Obama's doing a decent job.  Which shows that nearly half of Americans are either dependent on the government or devoid of common sense or both.

Cheaper Gasoline Starts at the EPA.  One factor driving up the price is the impending closure of large Northeast refineries due to oppressive EPA regulations unilaterally imposed by Lisa Jackson of Obama's EPA.  Boutique blend requirements for different markets imposes extra costs on refineries and make them less profitable.  Want to drive gasoline prices down?  Fire Lisa Jackson and impose a six-month moratorium on the EPA regulations hamstringing the market.

Chu: I would give myself an 'A' for energy prices.  Energy Secretary Steven Chu told a House panel Tuesday [3/20/2012] that he'd give himself top marks when asked to grade his policies' effects on energy prices.

The President's Great Gas Price Spike Media Blitz.  The White House campaign team has created an enormous smoke screen to hide the connection between its leftist energy policy and high gas prices.

No Relief in Sight at Pump.  U.S. gasoline prices jumped 6% in February, and market experts predict they will climb higher because critical refining operations in the Northeast are shutting down.  From New York to Philadelphia, refineries that turn oil into gasoline have been idled or shut permanently because their owners are losing money on them.

Bait and switch at the gas station.  As President Obama always intended, high gas prices are "transforming" America. ... Consumer advocate Chris Churchill of the Albany Times-Union reports on a few cases of deceptive gasoline pricing, with what effectively amounts to a hidden surcharge for those who don't pay in cash.

Obama burns a zillion gallons of fuel to escape blame for high gas prices.  President Obama is very unhappy about his crashing poll numbers, and he wants Americans to know he's the first president in history whose policies have absolutely nothing to do with the price of gas.

Gas prices up for 8th straight day.  The national average price for a gallon of gasoline rose for the eighth straight day on Saturday [3/17/2012] to $3.835.  That is now only about 7% below the record high of $4.11 from July 2008.

Americans Have Become Compliant.  Over the past several years, gasoline prices have been shooting through the roof, but not to worry.  President Barack Obama's current secretary of energy, Steven Chu, said in December 2008, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."  That translates to $8 or $9 a gallon.

How do they know?
Gas prices forecast to top out at an average $4 a gallon.  Nearly one-third of the nation's drivers now fork out $4 or more for a gallon of gasoline.  After a 32-cent jump in the past month, regular gasoline averages $3.83 nationwide.  But price analysis of major metropolitan areas and 10 states — home to more than 65 million of the nation's 210 million drivers — shows even more pain at the pump, especially in heavily populated California, New York and Illinois.

These Gas Prices Are Obama's Gas Prices.  Barack Obama has spent his presidency finding scapegoats and fleeing responsibility.  For example, our massive deficit is not his fault.  Rather, it's George W. Bush's fault.  Our painfully high unemployment isn't his fault either.  Rather, it's due to the fact that "the economy is so automated."  He's even tried to assure us that we can't blame him for the sharp rise in gasoline prices we've seen under his watch either.  Rather, he boasts that he's expanded domestic oil production to its highest point in the last eight years.

Obama in Full Crisis-Control Mode on Gas Prices.  Gasoline prices have soared this year from an average of $3.29 in the first week of January to $3.82 on Thursday [3/15/2012].  Obama's poll numbers have fallen commensurately:  Last month, the CBS News/New York Times poll registered a 50 percent approval rating for Obama.  Now, the same poll shows the president's approval rating at 41 percent.

Rising gas prices can be directly attributed to Obama's failed energy policy.  The stated plan of the Obama administration, or at least their stated goal, was to see gas prices rise "to the level of Europe" so alternative energy sources would be more feasible, affordable and attractive.  Or that's how I remember it.  So here we are, headed that way.  But while the administration may find that to be a good thing, most Americans watching gas prices rise ... don't.

Real inflation: 7.2 percent and rising.  The killer question of politics, asked by Ronald Reagan when he ran against Jimmy Carter, was "Are you better off than you were four years ago?"  Everything is worse today than it was four years ago.  It's increasingly difficult for Barack Obama to hide the damage from people who are being told to stock up on toothpaste, and eat beans instead of meat to offset rising gas prices.

Drivers fume as local gas prices break the $4 barrier.  Gas prices are soaring past $4 in the District [of Columbia], and they're not expected to drop anytime soon, leaving Washingtonians to think about changing their driving habits and maybe their votes.  Drivers paid on average $4.01 per gallon in D.C. on Tuesday [3/13/2012], $3.82 in Maryland and $3.70 in Virginia.

High Gas Prices: Bad for America, Good for an Election.  [Scroll down]  Instead of beating up on each other, the Republican candidates need to grab the ball and run with it:  attack President Obama for his abysmal record on energy, maximize the Keystone debacle, point out the damage to the Gulf economy his drilling ban inflicted, keep the EPA's barrage of cost-increasing regulations front and center, and quote [Steven] Chu.

Obama's pump debacle.  As gasoline prices climb, President Obama's poll numbers plummet.

Chu renounces his desire for higher gas prices.  President Obama's Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, renounced his previously-stated desire to see gas prices rise to match European levels in order to motivate alternative energy research, telling the Senate today that he wants gas prices to fall for the sake of the economy.

Obama energy chief disavows '08 remark favoring higher gas prices.  Energy Secretary Steven Chu on Tuesday [3/13/2012] disavowed his 2008 comments about increasing gas prices to European levels, remarks that Republicans have pounced on in recent weeks.  "I no longer share that view," Chu said during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing, adding that he wants to lower gas prices.

Rising gas prices hamper Obama.  Four years ago, presidential candidate Barack Obama held a photo-op news conference at a gas station near Indianapolis to decry the nation's ineffective energy policy and complain about "gas that's approaching $4 a gallon."  At the time, the price of a gallon of regular unleaded at Joe's Junction was $3.55.  Nowadays, the price of gas at the same station under President Obama has topped $3.80...

Gas prices top $3.80 a gallon.  The national average price for a gallon of gasoline rose above the $3.80 mark Monday [3/12/2012], resuming the advance that has plagued drivers throughout the winter.

Poll: Most say Obama tanking on gas.  Almost two-thirds of Americans, 65 percent, said they disapprove of the way President Barack Obama is dealing with rising prices at the pump, a new Washington Post/ABC News poll finds.  Only 26 percent — the president's lowest rating in the poll — said they approve of his handling of gas prices, while a majority, 52 percent, said they "strongly" disapprove.

Obama's Covert Plan To Raise Gas Prices.  President Barack Obama's energy plan involves radically increasing gas prices to the European rate of about $10 a gallon.  And he's well on his way, as gas prices have more than doubled since he took office in January 2009, when gasoline was only $1.79 per gallon.  And he's scheming to double prices again in his second term, with you footing the bill.

Top 10 Obama energy blunders.  Of course energy prices are exploding.  That's what the President wanted all along.  Remember his famous utterance, saying that under his policies, "electricity prices will necessarily skyrocket."  Also telling was his selection of Steven Chu as energy secretary.  Chu once said that it was important for U.S. gas prices to mirror Europe's sky-high petrol costs.  It looks like he may be getting his wish.

Why Are Gasoline Prices High (And What Can Be Done About It)?  The gas price consumers pay at the pump reflects the world price of oil, state and federal taxes, and other factors such as escalating refining costs, environmental regulations, and the Federal Reserve's monetary policy.  Understanding what goes into the cost of gasoline is key to understanding what the government could do to lower gasoline prices.

Gasoline prices jump 9 cents overnight in Houston.  Gasoline prices jumped 9 cents overnight to $3.66 in Houston today [3/10/2012], and over the past week, prices at the pump are up 10 cents, according to AAA gas gauge.  Gas prices are up 25 cents over the past month.

How Obama Is Choking Off U.S. Oil Production.  The news wires are reporting that President Obama actively lobbied Senate Democrats to defeat the Keystone pipeline yesterday.  The effect of blocking the Keystone XL Pipeline is to defer 700,000 barrels of oil per day.  And as I reported at The Weekly Standard recently, the president's policy of choking off oil production under federal leases will prevent another 1 million barrels of oil per day this year, and even more next year.  Obama will soon be personally responsible for preventing some 2 million barrels per day of possible North American crude oil production from reaching the American economy.

Obama's energy abyss: He keeps wasting money on renewables.  ["]Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe," Steven Chu, now the energy secretary, said in a 2008 interview with the Wall Street Journal.  A gallon of regular costs more than $8 there.  The Oil Price Information Service thinks the average price here will rise to $4.25 a gallon by the end of April.  That would exceed the record of $4.11, set in July 2008.  A gallon of regular cost just $1.85 the day before President Barack Obama was inaugurated.

Obama's Driving Americans out of Cars.  Do rising gas prices distress the leading intellects in the Obama administration?  There is good reason to believe the opposite.  John Holdren is Obama's White House science and technology adviser.  In 1973, he joined with population control advocates Paul Ehrlich and Anne Ehrlich in writing an environmentalist manifesto titled "Human Ecology: Problems and Solutions."  It called for government action to find "alternative activities" for the auto industry.

Democrats are solely and entirely to blame for high gas prices.
Senate kills amendment to expand offshore oil drilling.  The Senate on Thursday [3/8/2012] defeated an amendment offered by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) that would have thrown open the doors for increased oil drilling and exploration along America's coasts.  Floor manager for the pending highway bill Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) led the opposition that resulted in the 46-52 defeat...

Obama Supported Higher Gas Prices in 2008.  President Barack Obama mocked a suggestion that he wants higher gasoline prices during an election year, although as a candidate in 2008 he suggested that higher prices might be desirable if there was a "gradual adjustment."

Obama really is the non-energy president.  In his weekly radio address Feb. 25, the President said that "under my administration, America is producing more oil today than at any time in the last eight years.  In 2010, our dependence on foreign oil was under 50 percent for the first time in more than a decade." ... These claims ... are nothing but spin.  While it's true that U.S. oil and natural gas production are up, this is not thanks to, but in spite of Obama.  All the increased production has come from state and private lands, where the President has little power.  On federal lands controlled by Obama, production has actually fallen.

Oil is 'the fuel of the past', says President Obama.  President Barack Obama on Wednesday [6/7/2012] dismissed oil as "the fuel of the past" as he made an unapologetic election-year pitch for his alternative energy industry policies and sniped at Republicans over painfully high gasoline prices.  "They get out on the campaign trail — and you and I both know there are no quick fixes to this problem — but listening to them, you'd think there were," he said at a Daimler Truck manufacturing plant in the battleground state of North Carolina.

Mich. 'Drive-Off' Plan: Swipe Drivers' Licenses.  A Saginaw, Michigan business owner says requiring customers to swipe their drivers' licenses when topping off their tanks could stop drive-offs — clients leaving gas stations without paying.  Privacy advocates, however, say the new "Post-Pay" method subjects innocent customers to potential identity theft.  Bob Hohn, president of Paxson Oil Company, invented Post-Pay because he was fed up with costly drive-offs.  Post-Pay makes it easier for police to catch people who pump-and-run without paying.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is for emergencies — not political disasters.  With the price of gas rising, Americans are feeling pain at the pump and President Obama is feeling the heat.  Three years of his failed energy policies have done nothing to give America energy security.  About the only quick fix the president has available is to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.  That's what he did last June when he sold 30 million barrels of oil to address rising gas prices.  It is almost inevitable that Mr. Obama will try tapping the reserve again.  The only question is when he will do it.  Raiding our emergency reserves now would be nothing more than a campaign trick.

Gas prices climb again, topping $3.76.  The nationwide average for gasoline prices rose for the 26th straight day Sunday [3/4/2012], topping the $3.76-a-gallon mark, according to the motorist group AAA.

UK: welfare to be less than what a worker earns.  With a gallon of gasoline now topping $8 — roughly $5 of that for taxes — British Prime Minister David Cameron and Parliament had to rein in government spending, and that meant entitlements.  The Welfare Reform Bill cleared the House of Lords and will cap family benefits at £26,000 a year — $40,000.

Barack's Presidency Finally Runs Out of Gas.  The most surreal episode yet of Obama's weird, contra-factual presidency recently occurred.  First, he condescendingly blocked the 1.1 million barrel-a-day Keystone Canada-to-US pipeline, in the hallowed name of environmentalism.  Then, following almost immediately, gas prices sky-rocketed.  But, Barack managed to top even this logical perversity.  He then gave a speech, apropos of nothing, defying the notion that drilling (or pipelining!) could possibly lessen USA's dependence on foreign petroleum.  He tagged this notion a "bumper sticker," i.e. a cliche representing a political hoax.  Finally, he chortled at Republican's silly belief in stateside petroleum development.

Here's another energy 'silver bullet' Obama should fire.  With gas prices heading toward $4 per gallon and beyond, President Obama repeatedly declares that "there are no silver bullets" to make the numbers on service station pumps go back down and that it is impossible "to drill our way" out of trouble.  In fact, a look at rig counts in the natural gas industry during recent years points to a different conclusion.

Return of the gasoline thieves.  [Scroll down]  As the WINK report goes on to note, there isn't much farmers can do about this, beyond camouflaging their gasoline depots from orbital detection, in the manner of SCUD missile launchers.  "With prices continuing to climb with no relief in sight," the report advises, "lock things up and always call police if you see anything suspicious."  But don't bother calling anyone about those suspicious climbing prices.  That's deliberate Obama Administration policy, working exactly the way it's supposed to.

The Gaseous Policies of Barack Obama.  So what exactly is the administration's reaction to skyrocketing gas prices?  That should be an absurd question — except that we know administration officials are either on record as indifferent to the high cost of gasoline or, in fact, hoping for higher prices.  Consider also the cancellation of the Keystone pipeline; the restrictions of new federal oil leases in the West, Alaska, offshore and in the gulf; Obama's prior promises that energy prices would skyrocket because of his efforts to enact cap-and-trade; his boast to help Brazil out by importing its new offshore oil finds; his worries only over the abrupt rate of gas increases in 2011 rather than his desire for gradual, steadier escalation; Energy Secretary Chu's various statements that high prices were not such a concern and indeed that he wished to see gas reach European levels (e.g., $8-10 a gallon); Interior Secretary Salazar's insistence that even $10 a gallon gas would not open up new federal oil lands; and on and on.

Obama: Relief from high gas prices is just 13 short years away.  Isn't this the same President who was recently flogging the slogan "We Can't Wait" to explain why he was doing end-runs around Congress?  Now he's telling you to wait 13 years for relief at the pump, when you'll be able to save "$8,000 at the pump over time," thanks to increased fuel efficiency standards that will cost you an extra $5000 per vehicle, leaving millions of Americans unable to afford a car at all.

The Editor says...
In other words, the price of gas will still be just as high in 13 years, but your little two-seat go-cart won't use very much gas, so you should thank Barack Obama.

See?  It's not Obama's fault.  You're just driving the wrong car!
Obama: Fuel-efficient cars an answer to gas prices.  President Barack Obama says higher auto mileage standards set under his administration and better cars built by a resurgent U.S. auto industry will save money at the gas pump over the long term, a counterpoint to Republican criticism of his energy policy.

Poll finds Obama, oil companies blamed the most for spike in gasoline prices.  President Obama is the top target of public blame for rising gasoline prices, but views on the matter are highly fragmented, a new poll finds.  The Pew Research Center-Washington Post poll shows 18 percent of people surveyed think Obama deserves the most blame, but there's a partisan divide.

About Those Gas Prices.  The Obama administration is increasingly concerned with the possibility of economic crisis, provoked by Iran, heading into election season.  Mounting tensions with the Islamic Republic are already driving gas prices toward $4 a gallon at the pump.  Taken in context of the delicate economic recovery, a global shortfall of 500,000 barrels a day — if Iran is excluded from the market — or some 10 million barrels per day — if Iran shuts down the Strait of Hormuz — spells a potential energy calamity for Obama's White House.

Chu must have told the truth.  [Scroll down]  Once in ... office, President Obama has revoked coal permits and forced at least a half-dozen coal plants to shut down.  On Tuesday [2/28/2012], Stephen Chu got caught testifying before Congress that his department could not care less about the rising price of gasoline.

Chu: Decrease dependency on oil, not gas prices.  Rep. Alan Nunnelee of Mississippi challenged Chu on rising gas prices, reminding him that it was a "cruel tax" on the poor people of his state and suggested that the Obama administration was dragging its feet on oil exploration.  Chu said that he was aware of the rising prices, and cited "agressive efforts" to develop alternative fuels for transportation such as natrual [sic] gas, electrification, and bio-fuels for American vehicles as a solution.

GOP Senator Criticizes Obama for Keeping a Campaign Promise to Send Gas Prices 'Skyrocketing'.  The chairman of the Senate Republican Conference said Wednesday [2/29/2012] that of all the campaign promises President Obama made leading up to the 2008 election, rising gasoline prices may be the one promise he kept.  "It may be the one issue where the president of the United States has kept a campaign promise because on his watch, since January 2009, gas prices have doubled," Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.).

Petrol hits an all-time high.  Petrol prices have hit an all-time high today [3/2/2012] as the cost of unleaded continues the march towards the £100 fill-up.  Prices at the pump have reached 137.44p, beating the previous record 137.43p — set in May last year — by 0.01p.  Diesel is up to 144.67p — another new record, said the AA.

Networks Skip Obama Administration Admission: 'Overall Goal' Not to Get Price of Gas Down.  The three networks have, thus far, skipped Tuesday's revelation by Energy Secretary Steven Chu that the "overall goal" of the Obama administration isn't to get gas prices down.  This is despite the fact that ABC, NBC and CBS have previously focused on the rising gasoline prices in general.  Politico reported, Tuesday [2/28/2012], "The Energy Department isn't working to lower gasoline prices directly, Secretary Steven Chu said Tuesday after a Republican lawmaker scolded him for his now-infamous 2008 comment that gas prices in the U.S. should be as high as in Europe."

Dying to be Green.  Americans complaining about high gas and oil prices can buckle up because what is happening in Europe is only a taste of what is coming this way.  Last year UK petrol prices hit 6 pounds per gallon.  That's nearly 10 dollars, though for the imperial gallon, which is greater than the US gallon.  If you think it costs a lot to fill up a tank now, consider that the UK has a better ratio of production to population than we do.  The high prices aren't an accident; they're part of the green program.  The Obama agenda isn't to make energy prices affordable.  It's to make them so horribly impossible to afford that we'll use less energy.

Like the Price of Gas? Just Wait!  The worthy journalists of the mainstream media have not seen fit to raise urgent questions about the soaring price of gas, and the current the current administration's role in causing it.  Contrast that with the intensely critical commentary directed at George W. Bush when gas spiked during the latter part of his tenure, and you can almost taste the difference.  Of course, the MSM silence is not amazing at all.  President Obama is the darling of the media, and they want desperately to see him re-elected.

Ten Indications That Obama Is Scared.  [#6]  Obama is deathly afraid of the unvarnished truth.  The Truth Team's assignment is to varnish it.  So now Obama was for Keystone XL and the 20,000 jobs that it didn't create.  High gas prices are good for the economy in the form of higher revenues and more lives saved, due to less driving.  Welfare is good for the economy, actually generating $1.85 return for every $1 spent.  That's the truth, and they're sticking with it.

Ever Get the Feeling the American People Are Going One Way and Obama Is Going Another?  The American people don't see things the way Obama does:  they certainly don't see proper governance of this country the way he does. ... He sees a green car nation although America is still a SUV nation.  People own SUVs and pickup trucks because those are the vehicles they want, and in many cases the vehicles they need, for their families or for their jobs.

Darrell Issa: Obama being fueled by Bush.  Rep. Darrell Issa on Wednesday [2/29/2012] accused President Barack Obama of "benefiting" from drilling policies enacted under President George W. Bush, as he warned amid rising gas prices that oil supplies are poised to "dry up" sooner rather than later.

Who's dishonest?
Carney: "Dishonest" Republicans Say Drilling Or Keystone Pipeline Would Lower Gas Prices.  White House press secretary Jay Carney opened his daily briefing by saying President Obama was right, that Republicans are "politicizing the issue of gas prices."  Carney says Republicans are "dishonest" if they think "simply by drilling or approving the Keystone XL pipeline that that would lower gas prices."

Mad About High Gas Prices? Then Chu On This.  This has been a mantra of Obama's for years:  There's nothing anyone can do about gasoline prices, so the only option is to find "alternative" fuel sources.  It's total bunk.  Recoverable oil has never been more plentiful, as the industry finds new sources and develops new drilling technologies.  The oil boom in North Dakota is proof enough of that.  In fact, according to the Institute for Energy Research, there's enough oil within our borders to supply our fuel needs for 250 years.  The problem is the country has put itself in an energy straight-jacket, in deference to environmental groups who challenge any and every effort to tap new oil supplies.

Not only that, he's proud of himself!
Obama's Energy Secretary gives himself an 'A-'.  President Obama's Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Steven Chu assigned himself an "A-" when asked him to assess his "management of the DOE resources" in light of the millions of taxpayer dollars lost through the DOE loan program.  "I would give myself a pretty good grade ... There's always room for improvement, [so] maybe an A-," Chu told Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., during a House hearing today [3/1/2012].

Gas prices to cost Obama.  I hate to quote the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, but the chickens have come home to roost for President Obama as higher oil and gasoline prices swamp his reelection bid. ... The president's veto of the Keystone pipeline and his refusal to drill in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge makes it crystal-clear to voters that there will be no relief coming from the north.  His stubborn refusal to issue deep-water drilling permits despite having officially lifted the moratorium he imposed after the BP spill is costing us hundreds of thousands of daily barrels in domestic production.  His relentless crusade against oil company tax privileges undermines our ability to explore, drill and produce oil.  As gas prices rise, Obama owns them.

Ten Indications That Obama Is Scared.  [#3]  Obama's energy policy is pure comedy.  When Obama took office, gasoline averaged $1.89.  Gasoline is now at its highest point in history, averaging $3.65 a gallon — and it's getting higher.  When gas crested at $3 a gallon under Bush, Democrats were quick to put Bush in cahoots with the oil companies.  Obama and other Democrats are blaming Wall Street, offering that high gas prices are "bringing families closer together" or that high gas prices are "saving lives."  Nice try.  The problem with gas prices is that they affect the lower end of the food chain the most.

Republican lawmakers step up attacks on Obama administration over rising gas prices.  As part of a week-long push, some leading Republicans continued blaming President Obama's policies for soaring gas prices.  "They seem determined to undertake policies that actually drive up the price of oil and gasoline because of their hope that we will somehow live in a world where only solar panels and wind turbines are necessary," Texas Sen. John Cornyn told Fox News.

Forget $5 gas, the new worry is $6 gas.  The first two weeks of February already have seen a surprising 18-cent jump in fuel pump prices according to petroleum Lundberg Survey, which charted a national average of $3.69 on Friday.  The online user-generated research group GasBuddy reported a slightly better national average at $3.65 per gallon with Houston clocking in at $3.54 — increases of 31 and 33 cents, respectively, from this time last year.

Worried Dems pressing Obama on gas prices.  Congressional Democrats are ramping up pressure on President Obama to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to prevent rising gas prices from threatening the economy and their election-year prospects.

The Editor says...
Note to Democrats:  It's the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, not the Political Petroleum Reserve.  If gas prices are too high for your political health, you only yourselves to blame.

What's Really Pushing Up the Price of Gas?  Whether China is purchasing more oil or not doesn't explain the sharp uptick in prices, because there's no apparent shortage of supply.  In fact, according to the EIA, the statistical arm of the Energy Department, inventories are unusually high.

Can you really afford four more years?  In January 2009, when President Obama was sworn in, a gallon of regular gasoline cost $1.68.  Today, it's more than double that:  The price has reached $5 in parts of California and $6 just outside Florida's Disney World.  In fact, prices have set a record, being so high so early in the year.  By Memorial Day, America's first big travel weekend of the year, gas nationwide will average $4 and above, industry analysts predict.

Gas Price Panic.  [Scroll down]  Republican Sen. John Thune of South Dakota wrote in a Thursday Politico op-ed that Obama has "systematically discouraged new energy exploration and development," citing the decline in drilling on federal lands and offshore, the rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline, and restrictive EPA regulations.  "Gasoline prices have already doubled under Obama [...] and they are expected to increase even further in 2012, with some predictions suggesting $5 per gallon by the end of May," Thune wrote.  "If the president continues to restrict access to domestic energy resources and drive up the cost of production, energy prices will continue to worsen."

7 Gas Facts Obama Cannot Escape.  President Barack Obama cannot escape the following seven gas-related facts:  1.  In September 2008, Barack Obama's "Nobel-prize winning physicist" of an Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, told the Wall Street Journal:  "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."  2. In 2008, then-candidate Barack Obama admitted that, like his future Energy Secretary Mr. Chu, he believed that high gas prices would be a good thing because they would force Americans to ween themselves off of oil, but that he would have "prefered a gradual adjustment."

Tell America the whole truth about gas prices, Mr. President.  Obama has doubled the bureaucratic delays on drilling permits, which ultimately adds to the price of gas at the pump.  As Jack Gerard, president of the American Petroleum Institute, noted last week, the increased production Obama cites is happening mainly on nonfederal lands and under permits issued before he became president.  As with so much that Obama says, his claims sound good, but he is playing fast and loose with the facts in order to steal credit he doesn't deserve and avoid blame that ought to be his.

Higher gas prices to spur hybrid sales.  Soaring gasoline prices have become a rite of summer in the 21st century.  With predictions of an imminent return to $4 a gallon gas in much of the nation, will consumers in the market for a new vehicle again take a look at hybrids and all-electric plug-ins?

The Editor says...
First of all, "soaring gasoline prices" are entirely the fault of Barack H. Obama and the environmentalist, anti-capitalist Democrats, who hate the sight of refineries, pipelines and gasoline tankers.  If you buy a $40,000 electric car that raises your residential electric bill by $200 a month, I will still be way ahead of you, even if gasoline is $6.00 a gallon.

Gov. Daniels: Obama administration 'wanted higher gas prices'.  "Let's give the president credit for one domestic policy that works.  He wanted higher gas prices and he got them," said [Indiana Gov. Mitch] Daniels on Fox News Sunday [2/26/2012].  "Secretary Chu said $8 are about what they pay in Europe.  It would be great.  Secretary Salazar said $10 and it still wouldn't be for drilling in the places where we know there's an awful lot of domestic production.  And so, they have gotten the doubling of gas prices and perhaps worse, it's a conscious policy of this administration.  Maybe the one thing they set out to do and actually accomplished," he said.

Gas prices keep climbing.  Paying at the pump grew even more painful Sunday, as gas prices climbed for the 19th day in a row.  The price of unleaded gasoline inched higher again overnight, rising 1.4 cents to a nationwide average of $3.69 a gallon on Sunday [2/26/2012], according to the motorist group AAA.

Algae, European Gas Prices, and Born in the U.S.A.  As gas nears $5-a-gallon out west, the president, who has cancelled a key pipeline and frozen federal leases from Alaska to the East Coast, teaches us about American algae potential, in the way he used to emphasize the importance of tire pressure and "tune-ups."  He castigates the opposition for making political hay out of bad news, in the way he routinely did as a senator in compiling the most partisan voting record in the Senate.  Energy Secretary Chu cannot and will not say a word about soaring gas prices, since he is on record not so long ago hoping that they might double — that is, get to $8- to 10-a-gallon as they are in Europe.

Obama owns these gas prices.  With the average price of a gallon of gasoline rising 40 cents just last week, President Obama attacked Republicans yesterday [2/23/2012], trying to distract voters from his own failed energy policy.  "The American people aren't stupid," Obama said "You know there are no quick fixes to this problem."  And Obama is right.  There are no quick fixes to this problem.  But Obama has been in office for three years now.  There is plenty the federal government can do to lower gas prices in three years.  Problem is, everything Obama has done on energy has been designed to increase Americans' pain at the pump.

Saving this for an "October surprise"?
Obama administration coy on possibility of tapping oil reserve as gas prices rise.  The Obama administration is staying mum about the possibility of opening up the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a way to curb the rise in gas prices — declining to rule it in or out while insisting all along that officials are not interested in "short-term fixes."  Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner stirred speculation on Friday [2/24/2012] when, in an interview on CNBC, he said "there's a case for the use of the reserve in some circumstances."

Nancy Pelosi on Gasoline Prices.  The congresswomen's comments are so cartoonish, I don't even have to comment on them.

New Chart Shows White House Plan for Higher Gas Prices & Fewer Jobs.  In yesterday's speech defending his failed energy policies — under which gas prices have nearly doubled and are rising faster than ever — President Obama called for the kind of "all of the above" energy strategy long-championed by Republicans.

'Stupid' and Oil Prices.  'The American people aren't stupid," thundered President Obama yesterday in Miami, ridiculing Republicans who are blaming him for rising gasoline prices.  Let's hope he's right, because not even Forrest Gump could believe the logic of what Mr. Obama is trying to sell.  To wit, that a) gasoline prices are beyond his control, but b) to the extent oil and gas production is rising in America, his energy policies deserve all the credit, and c) higher prices are one more reason to raise taxes on oil and gas drillers while handing even more subsidies to his friends in green energy.

The Five Biggest Whoppers In Obama's Energy Speech.  The White House billed President Obama's energy policy speech as a response to mounting criticism of record high gas prices.  What he delivered was a grab bag of excuses and outright falsehoods.

Tired Of High Gasoline Prices Already? We Ain't Seen Nothing Yet.  It's not even March yet and already the groaning has begun over ramping gasoline prices.  Nationwide the average gallon of gas cost $3.59 last week.  That's up big from $3.19 the same time last year.  U.S. oil prices, benchmarked to West Texas Intermediate are $104 a barrel, versus just $85 a year ago.

Gasoline Prices and Dollar Prices.  Surging gasoline prices are back in the news, and President Obama shows his concern for Americans by doing what he does best.  He gave a speech.  Happy now?

Gas reaches $5 per gallon at one Washington, DC station.  As the national average price for a gallon of gas climbs past $3.58, one gas station in Washington, D.C. is charging drivers $5.00.

Dem leader Pelosi blames Wall Street for spike in gas prices.  Oil speculators, not a lack of domestic drilling, are to blame for the nation's rising gas prices, the top House Democrat argued Wednesday [2/22/2012].

Another Obama Victory: Gas Prices Hit $4.49 in NYC.  Team Obama will simply blame the "greedy" oil companies, there will be calls for hearing on "windfall profits" and his media sycophants will regurgitate every talking point without pointing out if we drilled more here prices would tumble.  But hey, it's a re-election year and they've got to carry water for their boss.

Gas price surge: Up 10% this year.  Gas prices are surging, and quickly headed toward $4 a gallon, as growing tensions over Iran sparks a run-up in oil prices.  The national average price for a gallon of gasoline jumped 3.3 cents overnight [2/23/2012], to $3.612, according to the motorist group AAA.  That's the 16th consecutive increase.

Oil and gas leaders slam Obama.  Oil and gas industry leaders lobbed criticism at the Obama administration Wednesday [2/22/2012], using the stage of an annual industry conference in Houston to assert that the domestic energy boom has occurred in spite of what they call a corrosive energy strategy out of the White House.

Skyrocketing cost of gas has commuters running on empty.  Gas prices are at the highest they have ever been this time of year and continue to soar, leaving wallets empty and drivers fearful for the future.  In the Utica-Rome area, the average price of regular gasoline increased 17 cents in the last 30 days, from $3.68 to Tuesday's price of $3.85, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report.

Aren't High Gas Prices What Democrats Want?  Gas prices are spiking.  That's great news, right?  We have to wean ourselves off the stuff.  At least that's what we've been hearing for years.  Oil is dirty.  We import it from nations that hate our guts (like Canada!).  And moreover, we're running out.  Oil is "finite."  Finite much in the way water is finite.  So why aren't Democrats making the case that the spike in prices is a good thing?  Isn't this basically our energy policy these days?

Florida Drivers Shelling Out Nearly $6 A Gallon At Some Gas Stations.  According to GasBuddy.com, motorists are shelling out $5.89 for a gallon of regular gas at a Shell station in Lake Buena Vista, topping out at $5.99 a gallon for premium.  It doesn't get better at a Suncoast Energy station in Orlando, where drivers are paying $5.79 for a gallon of regular.

Obama's Double Talk on Sky-High Gas Prices.  When gas prices hit $4 a gallon in 2008, candidate Barack Obama said it was due to previous failed energy policies. Now that prices are heading still higher, President Obama calls it progress.

How to Defuse Political Peril of Surging Gas Prices.  The political risk of rising gasoline prices is the emerging hot topic in Washington.

The gasoline trap.  Gas prices are much on everyone's mind right now.  They've gone up "12 cents on average in the past three weeks," as reported by Fox News, en route to $4.50 or even $5.00 per gallon this summer, depending on where you live.  A surge in oil prices is making its way toward the pumps.  Iran's decision to cut off oil exports to the U.K. and France will increase the demand those nations place upon other sources, and since America has been very deliberately prevented from developing its domestic energy supply, we're heavily plugged into the turbulent global market.

Gas prices are a huge worry.  Five-dollar gas.  I don't know how it can be stopped as long as Iran is meddling and developing nukes, other than through demand destruction.

Obama's gas-price spike.  Gasoline prices are rising rapidly and already have shattered the $4-a-gallon mark in California.  Industry analysts say the all-time national average record of $4.11 could be shattered this summer.  Some stations in Los Angeles are charging $4.93.  Americans hired Barack Obama in 2008 partly in hope of finding relief from that summer's pain at the pump.  As the agony returns, voters could be primed by November to pull the lever for anybody but Barack.

Oil price surge could dampen global recovery.  A surge in oil prices sparked by saber-rattling from Iran is beginning to weigh on the global economic recovery, with potential ripple effects on consumers, corporate profits and interest rates.  Drivers already are seeing the impact at the pump, where prices have risen by an average of 12 cents per gallon in just three weeks to more than $3.50 a gallon, according to a report out this week.

Domestic production eyed as gas prices head toward record-breaking height.  President Obama's re-elect team defended White House energy policy on Sunday as gas prices shoot toward the $4 mark and beyond, a level that could devastate voters' pocketbooks as well as Obama's chances for a second term.  Nationally, gas prices are $3.53 a gallon, up 25 cents since Jan. 1, and likely headed to $4.25 a gallon by late April.

$4.50/gallon gas by Memorial Day?  When I saw that possibility mentioned in the San Jose Mercury News (gas prices are already topping four bucks a gallon in parts of California), I went looking up some confirmation on this.  And yes, it could hit $4.50 a gallon, thanks in large part to the subtly-and-steadily-eroding situation in Iran.

Gas prices are highest ever for this time of year.  At $3.53 a gallon, prices are already up 25 cents since Jan. 1.

Obama Likes High Gasoline Prices, But Won't Admit It.  If gasoline prices so far are any indication, the pain at the pump will be severe this year.  But if you think President Obama cares, you're wrong.  If anything, he's secretly cheering it on.

$2 gallon gasoline and energy independence.  When President Obama took office in January 2009, the average price nationwide was $1.89 a gallon.  Three years into the Obama presidency, the average is $3.47 a gallon.  Today, prices like those we enjoyed three years ago seem like a fantasy — and under the president's current policies, they are.

Obama Whines About Gas Prices — Forgets to Mention Keystone.  Barack Obama whined about high gas prices today [2/14/2012] in his press statement on the budget.  He forgot to mention the Keystone Pipeline or the numerous petroleum projects he rejected these past three years.

Expert expects gas prices in Chicago to hit $4.60 by May.  After rising 19 cents a gallon in the past four weeks, regular unleaded gasoline now averages $3.48 a gallon, vs. $3.12 a year ago and $2.67 in February 2010.  And prices could spike another 60 cents or more by May.

Average U.S. gas prices hover at record-high levels.  In January, retail gasoline prices averaged $3.37 a gallon, according to the Oil Price Information Service, a private fuel information service.  That compared with the previous record average for the month of $3.095 a gallon, set last year.  In 2010, January gasoline prices averaged just $2.71 a gallon.

Already pricey gasoline may near $4 by spring.  The average gas price in Houston jumped 3 cents overnight to $3.37 a gallon Tuesday for regular unleaded.  Motorists locally now are paying 46 cents a gallon more for gasoline than they were a year ago, according to AAA.  A whole rash of reasons can be blamed for the hit to your pocketbook.  They range from high crude oil prices to the closing of refineries.

CNN Projects Gas Prices Rising to $4.25 to $5 a Gallon.  When gas prices get high, politicians love to blame the financial speculators for driving the price up.  On Saturday morning [1/28/2012], CNN's Josh Levs reported that "we have analysts telling us to get ready for national average around $4.25.  That's spring.  Summer, that's when it could go higher, $5 could happen in some cities."

Obama-EPA Moving Quietly to Impose Gas Tax.  Senator James Inhofe (R-Okla.) Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, commented on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) plan to propose a Tier 3 rule on vehicles in March and finalize it in October.  These Tier 3 standards will cause gasoline prices to rise up to 25 cents a gallon.

15 Questions The Mainstream Media Would Ask Barack Obama If He Were A Republican:  [#5]  When you took office, gas was $1.79 per gallon.  Since then, you've demonized the oil industry, dramatically slowed offshore drilling, blocked ANWR, and killed the Keystone Pipeline.  Now, gas is $3.34 per gallon.  How much higher do you anticipate driving gas prices?

The truly dismal state of the union.  Regular gasoline per gallon cost $1.68 in January 2009.  Today, it's $3.39 — that's a 102 percent increase in just three years.  (By the way, if you're keeping score at home, gas was $1.40 a gallon when George W. Bush took office in 2001, $1.68 when he left office — a 20 percent increase.)

National gas prices up 3.5 cents in past 2 weeks.  That's according to the Lundberg Survey of fuel prices, released Sunday [1/22/2012], which puts the price of a gallon of regular at $3.39.

Gas pump prices at record high on supply concerns.  Retail gas prices are at their highest levels ever for this time of year despite ample supplies and declining demand.

Gas prices may get close to $5 in some spots.  The new year has greeted Americans with the highest January gas prices ever, and some analysts say prices could get close to $5 a gallon in some areas during the warm-weather driving season.  The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in the United States on Monday was $3.39, according to motorist group AAA.  That's nearly 30 cents higher than a year ago.

Senators warn new EPA rules would raise gas prices.  Senators from both sides of the aisle are warning that looming EPA regulations on gasoline could impose billions of dollars in additional costs on the industry and end up adding up to 25 cents to every gallon of gas.  The senators, in a letter this week to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, urged the agency to back off the yet-to-be-released regulations.  Though the EPA has not yet issued any proposal, they claimed the agency is planning to call for a new requirement to reduce the sulfur content in gasoline.

Missing $4,155? It Went Into Your Gas Tank This Year.  It's been 30 years since gasoline took such a big bite out of the family budget.  When the gifts from Grandma are unloaded and holiday travel is over, the typical American household will have spent $4,155 filling up this year, a record.  That is 8.4 percent of what the median family takes in, the highest share since 1981.

2012 — The Year of Living Dangerously.  The trend in gasoline prices over the last three years is not your friend:
January 2009        $1.65
January 2010        $2.57
January 2011        $3.04
January 2012        $3.29
Gas prices are rising during the lowest usage time of the year.  The average price of oil will exceed $100 during 2012 resulting in the highest average gas price in history for American drivers.

We Hope Obama Will Change Gasoline Prices.  If gasoline prices aren't an issue at this point in the presidential campaign, they could be by summer.  Patrick DeHaan, a senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com, told the Los Angeles Times that the gas hikes are "setting up an ugly year for motorists."  So ugly, DeHaan told ABC, that by Memorial Day he expects gasoline will be $3.86 to $4.13 per gallon.

Gasoline prices climb to record end-of-year highs ... again.  The most expensive year ever for gasoline purchases in the U.S. is heading to a close, but not without one last snatch at motorists' wallets.  Pain levels at the pump are rising again in California and across the rest of the nation, assuring that 2011 will mark the second year in a row that prices have posted record December highs.  The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in California on Tuesday is $3.562, up 2.2 cents since last week, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report.

Obama is achieving his goal of higher energy costs.  As CNBC reported earlier this week, the typical American family will spend the largest portion ever of its budget — 8.4 percent — on gasoline this year.  Economists expect the average price of a gallon of gas to be $3.53, a 76-cent increase over 2010.  Growing world demand for gas caused by economic expansion in China and India only partially explains this increase.  Obama's environmental and energy policies are also a key reason why prices are constantly heading higher.

At gas pump, 2011 was the year of the big squeeze.  When the gifts from Grandma are unloaded and holiday travel is over, the typical American household will have spent $4,155 filling up this year, a record.

Gasoline: The new big U.S. export.  The United States is awash in gasoline.  So much so, in fact, that the country is exporting a record amount of it.  The country exported 430,000 more barrels of gasoline a day than it imported in September, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

'Cause-and-effect' behind high gas prices.  Speaking at the forum, Arizona Senator John Kyl (R-Arizona) said Congress has failed to appreciate the cause-and-effect relationship between too many actions.  "There is a cause-and-effect relationship between the ethanol mandates and the rising cost of food and fuel," stated the conservative lawmaker.

Oil's up, gas is down. Why?  Those anxiously watching the rally in U.S. oil prices over the past few weeks have received a pleasant surprise at the pump: while oil has shot upward, gasoline is moving in the opposite direction.  The moves may seem counter-intuitive, since crude oil is used to produce gas.  But while the two are closely related, there are a number of factors that can push their prices apart in the short term.

Obama's Disastrous Energy Record:  Since Barack Obama took office, gasoline prices have surged from $1.83 [per] gallon to $3.39 [per] gallon as of early November.  Someone who drives an average of 300 miles per week in a vehicle that gets twenty miles per gallon is paying around $30 more per week, or about $120 per month, more than he or she was when President Bush left office in January 2009.  This increase in prices results in less disposable income for consumers.

Hey Obama: Gas Up and Go.  You can tell people are filling up their cars with gasoline by the scowls on their faces.  Nearly three years into Obama-Nation and the term "gas pain" is something that Tums just can't erase.  It's the culmination of the most anti-oil, anti-energy administration this country has seen since the failed presidency of Jimmy Carter.  But the American media are doing their best to hide that fact.

Obama's Energy Plan: Chevy Volt.  Three years ago, the national average for a gallon of regular grade gasoline was around $1.70.  The price climbed to $2.60 in 2009 and $2.80 a year later.  As of November 11, 2011, gas rose to an average of $3.45 per gallon, roughly twice as much as what we were paying in 2008.  When gasoline prices hit their peak at around $4.00, Democrats were demanding Bush's head on a platter, but under Obama the higher prices are simply the new normal.

Transportation officials considering raising gas tax.  There is a new move to boost the taxes you pay every time you fill up.  A new state report shows California is hundreds of billions of dollars short when it comes to fixing its roads.  It is a funding gap that could delay more than 3,000 safety improvements.

The Editor scoffs...
Yeah, right.  Excuses are always given when tax increases are proposed, and they always have something to do with safety, or protecting the children, or saving grandma from starvation.  That's because the people who keep tax-and-spend socialists in power respond to emotional outbursts rather than rational thinking.  For this reason, taxes never decrease or expire.

Coming soon, the £100 fill-up as the cost of petrol soars again.  Motorists were warned last night to prepare for four years of soaring costs at the petrol pumps, with the price of a full tank expected to top £100.  After a brief respite, fuel costs will start rising again next year as demand from the fast-growing economies of Asia triggers a boom in oil markets.

Slightly off-topic:
Gas pump handles top study of filthy surfaces.  Just when you thought filling up your car could not hurt any more, researchers may have found another reason to avoid touching the gas pump:  germs. ... A team of hygienists swabbed hundreds of surfaces around six U.S. cities to see what everyday objects are breeding grounds for the worst bacteria and viruses.  The top offenders, following gas pumps, were handles on public mailboxes, escalator rails and ATM buttons.

Gasoline prices at historic highs for this time of year.  The new normal for gasoline prices continues to drain the incomes of American consumers.  Over the past week, the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the U.S. stabilized, down just 1.1 cents to $3.451 a gallon, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report.  But that's 22% higher than the old record for this week of the year, which was an average of $2.823 a gallon set in 2007.

Paying for the Energy Bill.  An analysis of the upbeat-sounding Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection and Energy Efficiency Act by The Heritage Foundation concludes the bill would hike the price of regular unleaded to a national average of $6.41 per gallon by 2016.  In some states — California, Illinois, Michigan, Oregon and Washington among them — the price could close on $7 a gallon.  Lawmakers ... [are now] requiring producers to add more ethanol and other renewable fuels to gasoline.  Ethanol is more expensive to make than regular gasoline and delivers less mileage per gallon.

States where drivers pay the least for gasoline.  Fuel has dropped by nearly a cent every day for the past four weeks, the New York Times reports.  In some regions, they have even fallen below $3.00 per gallon.  Several factors affect gas prices depending on the state, but the main ones are gas taxes, the presence of nearby refineries, and what the people of the state can afford.

End Mindless Energy Policy.  Of all the absolutely mindless things coming out of Washington these days, it's hard for me to imagine anything more mindless than the Obama administration's thinking on energy policy.  His energy secretary has said he thinks we'd all be better off if gas cost $7 per gallon.

Could gas fall to $3 a gallon?  As gasoline prices keep falling at the pump, analysts are wondering how low they can go.  Crude prices could continue to drop, in part because of lingering economic woes seem likely to keep demand down.  The national average is down to $3.54 for a gallon of regular, and in the city with the cheapest gas, St. Louis, the going rate was $3.08 a gallon as of Friday, according to the Lundberg Survey released Sunday [9/25/2011].

Achieving $2 Gas.  Methanol has only about half the energy per gallon as gasoline, but is 105 octane, which means it can be burned more efficiently.  Taken together, these two factors make methanol's current spot price of $1.38 per gallon roughly competitive with $2 gasoline. ... Methanol can be made and sold profitably today for $1.38 per gallon.  At a 60 percent markup, its manufacture would be super-profitable, and massive amounts of capital would rush in to expand production.

I think that's what they used to say about ethanol.

Gasoline close to record high before Labor Day.  Gasoline is near the highest it's ever been for this time of year, just ahead of the Labor Day weekend.

Gas Price Drop of 30 to 50 Cents Per Gallon Expected in Next Few Weeks.  At a time when each day seems to bring more dire news regarding the economy, Americans have one silver lining:  the price at the pump is going down.  According to energy experts, gas prices should fall anywhere from 30 to 50 cents per gallon over the next several weeks.

When Will Obama Pivot to Gas Prices?  Since bottoming out toward the end of June, gas prices have been slowly rising.  Last week, the average price for a gallon of regular stood at $3.71, up more than 13 cents since President Obama belittled Congress into cancelling their Fourth of July recess.

Gas prices up despite use of reserves.  More than a month after the Obama administration said it would tap the country's emergency oil reserve to try to combat supply disruptions in the Middle East, gas prices at the pump actually have risen 10 cents.

Winds of Change.  Both West Texas Crude and Brent are climbing back up, and gasoline prices will soon follow.  Fuel prices are going to recover from the dip we saw a few weeks ago. ... After falling to $3.54 a gallon from May's $3.98 peak, prices have unexpectedly surged the past two weeks to a national average of almost $3.70 — a dollar higher than levels a year ago.

Gas prices creep back up.  Drivers are paying more for gas again.  Agencies that track gas prices showed the price rising in the past week both nationally and in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.  AAA said there was a 5-cent-a-gallon increase in the past week for regular gas nationally, up to $3.68.

Could U.S. Gas Prices Rise Above $5 Per Gallon?  Oil, as measured by West Texas Intermediate crude, Friday [7/22/2011] closed up 68 cents to $99.81 per barrel.  Moreover, the price of crude is considerably higher if the price of Brent Crude is used.  Brent is considered a more-accurate reflection of current price conditions, due to a surplus of West Texas Intermediate oil at the Cushing, Oklahoma storage facility, which has lowered its price.  Brent Friday closed up $1.16 to $118.67 per barrel.

Gas prices jump 6 cents in a week.  Average retail gasoline prices in Texas have risen 6.1 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $3.57 per gallon on Sunday [7/17/2011].  This compares with the national average that has increased 3.0 cents per gallon in the last week to $3.67 per gallon, according to gasoline price website TexasGasPrices.com.

Area gas prices jump 20 cents overnight.  Bob Astor, wholesale fuels business manager at Shipley Energy, blames a June 23 announcement that the United States would release 30 million barrels from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the country's emergency supply of crude oil.  The news of more gas available for purchase artificially led to a price drop in June, he said.  "That was the low point of the season," Astor said.  "Since then, they've ratcheted up and ratcheted up."

Obama's gas stunt comes up empty.  The results are in from President Obama's controversial decision last month to tap into the nation's oil reserves to drive down gas prices:  none.  Like his futile efforts to revive the moribund U.S. economy by spending $1 trillion in borrowed money, the president's release of 30 million barrels from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve produced nothing more than a brief pause in the steady rise in prices at the pump.

Obama's Plan for $10 Gas.  American drivers are angry at having to pay $4 a gallon for gas, and understandably so.  Their anger is often directed at the oil companies that supply the gas.  It should be directed at Barack Obama instead.  From the beginning of his appearance on the national stage, Obama has focused on the goal of driving up energy prices with the idea of "weaning" America off fossil fuels. ... By driving up gas prices, Obama hopes to force Americans to purchase hybrid and electric vehicles.

Gas prices drive fewer to travel, more to fly for July 4th.  Fewer Americans will hit the road during the Independence day weekend, consistently one of the heaviest travel periods of the year, but more are expected to take to the skies to reach their holiday destinations.

Top 10 Examples Proving Obama Wants High Energy Prices.  Perhaps the strongest indication that Obama wants higher gas prices is the fact that he appointed Steven Chu as energy secretary.  Before his nomination, Chu told the Wall Street Journal, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe," which are considerably higher than the U.S. due to steep levels of taxation.

Defeating OPEC.  Squeezing the nozzle handle, staring at the ever-rising price of gas, hardworking American families are wondering when the increases will stop.  Despite temporary dips in prices, the trend toward $5 seems almost unstoppable.

Don't Expect to See Gasoline Below $3 Any Time Soon.  Gasoline prices have dropped to $3.64 a gallon nationally from a peak of $3.98 in mid-May, according to AAA.  Diesel prices at the pump have fallen more slowly but are beginning to catch up and are now averaging $3.97 a gallon.

Why Obama's hometown has the highest gas prices in America.  Chicago:  the one party town wears that crown.  What are the consequences of living in the last of the one-party machine towns, a town that has hosted the Daley family as well as being the hometown of Barack Obama and the cronies he put in power (including Bill Daley, his Chief of Staff)?  Politicians who have no problem imposing the highest gas prices in America on their citizens.

How's That Hope and Change Working Out for Obama Supporters?  When Barack Obama assumed the position of President of the United States, the average price of gasoline was $1.81/gallon.  Going into the past weekend, the average price nationwide was $3.72/gallon.  That's a mere 106% price increase under Obama.

GM's gas-tax fraud.  Government Motors has become yet another mouthpiece for the Obama administration.  General Motors Co. CEO Dan Akerson told the Detroit News Saturday that he wants a $1 per gallon hike in the gas tax.  Consumers already facing nearly $4 a gallon prices at the pump aren't going to be pleased to see that figure jump overnight to $5, but the left and its crony capitalist allies don't care what the public thinks.

GM chief pushing for higher gas taxes.  General Motors Co. CEO Dan Akerson wants the federal gas tax boosted as much as $1 a gallon to nudge consumers toward more fuel-efficient cars, and he's confident the government will soon shed its remaining 26 percent stake in the once-bankrupt automaker.

The Launch of the National Running on Empty Tour.  Americans for Prosperity Foundation will launch the Running on Empty Tour with stops throughout the United States this summer and through the fall.  The tour warns American taxpayers how President Obama's regulatory and energy policies are causing skyrocketing energy prices — particularly prices at the gas pump.  "Big government regulations have Americans running on empty.  When President Obama took office, the price of gasoline was $1.83 per gallon; it's now $3.78 per gallon, a 106 percent increase.  Since taking office, he has paid lip service to allowing domestic production but has taken every step possible to block American energy," said Americans for Prosperity Foundation President Tim Phillips.

Obama monetary policy fueling pain at the pump, report says.  The Obama administration's monetary policies have added approximately 56.5 cents to the price of every gallon of gas you pump, according to a new congressional Joint Economic Committee report.  Estimates suggest that had the dollar maintained the value it had when Obama came into office, gasoline would cost approximately $3.40 per gallon instead of around $4 per gallon in many parts of the country.

Magnifying calamity with man-caused disasters.  With $4-a-gallon gas a matter of recent news, a few members of Congress are trying again to give the federal government the job of policing gasoline prices.  No matter that in study after study, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has found that public concerns over price gouging usually are misplaced.  No matter that the FTC has repeatedly told Congress a federal price-gouging law would cause more problems than it solves.

Comin' this summer... $5 gas.  The forecast for the summer driving season:  Hit the road early.  Not to beat the traffic, but to beat the higher gas prices expected in mid-July.  Goldman Sachs' crystal ball is proclaiming that oil will soon soar to $135 a barrel, and likely have service stations jacking up fuel prices to $5 a gallon in New York just like the summer of 2008 that preceded the recession.

MSN Money Finds 10 Reasons 'You Should Love $5 Gas'.  Many have noted that homelessness seems to always become a concern for the legacy media when a Republican is president.  Similarly, during Democratic administrations, media outlets always seem to find good things about bad economic news (remember "funemployment"?).  The latest such attempt comes from MSN Money, which on Wednesday tallied ten reasons that "you should love $5 gas."

Report Finds Obama Policies to Blame for High Energy Prices.  A new report from the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform details a disturbing "pattern of evidence" indicating that not only are the Obama administration's energy policies responsible for higher oil and gas prices, but that the administration's energy policy, in fact, is higher gas prices.

Rising Energy Costs: An Intentional Result Of Government Action.  President Obama, Energy Secretary Chu and others have stated that American consumers should pay more for energy, including electricity and gasoline.  From a political perspective, increasing the price of energy (by whatever means) helps them make the case for "green" energy.  Even beyond the effort to raise energy prices through "cap and trade" legislation that Congress rejected, a pattern of increased enforcement, regulatory delay and new hurdles can be seen across numerous agencies and approval processes.  The result of this government action is less production, higher costs for producers, and more expensive energy.

The Administration's No New Energy Policy.  The Memorial Day weekend traditionally marks the beginning of the summer driving season but this year Americans are looking at the prices at the pump and reconsidering the cost of a vacation via the great American highway.  Four dollar a gallon gasoline has folks tightening their belts rather than loosening their collars and relaxing for a week or two this summer.  There are numerous forces affecting the price of gas, including monetary policy and the war on terror premium, but the principal economic force driving these prices is future supply concerns and growing demand around the globe.

Forget the gas tax — a driving tax may be next.  Washington lawmakers are kicking around a new idea to help raise funds to fix our highways and infrastructure:  a national driving tax charging motorists by the mile.  A driving tax could either replace the current 18.4 cent a gallon federal gas tax or, possibly, add to it.

High gas prices change holiday travel plans.  The high price of gas is forcing many Americans to change their travel plans for the Memorial Day weekend, according to a survey released Friday [5/27/2011].  A CNN/Opinion Research poll showed that one in four adult Americans have altered their plans for this weekend because of high gas prices, and more than half say they have changed their overall vacation plans.

Reid: No cheap gas for you.  Increasing domestic production, keeping taxes low and cutting out bureaucracy is exactly what is needed to tackle high gas prices.  Unfortunately, Democrats appear more interested in scoring political points than helping American families.  [Senator Harry] Reid's continued fight to push through a $20 billion tax hike on oil companies would only increase prices at the pump this summer.

High Gas Prices Have Driven Only 2 Percent of Americans Into Public Transit.  The high price of gasoline has caused more than half of the nation's adult population to make "major changes" but has driven only about 2 percent of Americans out of their cars and trucks and into public transportation systems, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll.

Do falling gas prices spell recession?  After two commodity price spikes in four years, $100-a-barrel crude and $4-a-gallon gasoline are starting to seem like the new normal — the price we pay, unhappily enough, for an expanding economy.  Every twitch in the Middle East sounds the alarm for a new oil shock.  But those cursing the wallet-thinning impact of high energy prices should be careful what they wish for.

Obama the Desperate.  Energy prices affect all economic activity and threaten to put a crimp in our stilted recovery.  The administration's policies of rationing scarcity are largely to blame.  We are not drilling offshore for new oil.  We are only now taking advantage of new oil and gas deposits in the U.S., and the Environmental Protection Agency is hardly leading the way.  We are not exploiting our vast reserves of coal and natural gas.  The administration's resistance to increasing supply is born of a soggy leftist intellectual resistance to hydrocarbon fuels in favor of a wishful reliance on "green" energy sources — that won't be economically viable for decades.

Just Who is Gouging Us on Gasoline?  The taxes on gasoline at retail amount to a national average of 47 cents per gallon (including federal taxes of 18 cents, state and local taxes of 18 cents, and sales/other taxes at retail of more than 10 cents).  And before taxpayers have paid that princely sum (to people who haven't invested a penny to produce the product), the operating profits of the explorers are taxed at 34% — which is always passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices.  States get into the act here too, taxing the retailers' profits after taxing the product at the pump.

7 in 10 Americans say high gas prices hurt.  As gas prices hover near $4 a gallon, nearly seven in 10 Americans say the high cost of fuel is causing financial hardship for their families, a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds.

Study: Weak Dollar and Federal Reserve Responsible for Sky-High Gas Prices.  The weakening of the dollar since 2008 has added 56.5 cents to the price of gasoline, the congressional Joint Economic Committee has found.  The average price of gasoline would be $3.40 per gallon, instead of the current average price nationally of nearly $4, if the dollar hadn't declined.

Obamanomics and High Gas Prices.  [Scroll down]  At present, manufacturers cannot sell "green energy" on the market, at least not on any wide scale, because there's little or no profit to be made from it.  But if gas prices go through the roof, that will change.  By curbing and (best case, to Obama) destroying the market for gasoline and oil by making it too expensive for most people to afford, Obama thinks he can make people opt for things like wind, solar and other alternative forms of energy.

Gas Prices Are High Because the Liberals Want It that Way.  High gasoline prices are not a cause of the current economic recession, they are an avoidable and unnecessary symptom of liberal environmental and economic policies.  When President Barack Obama took office the price of gasoline was $1.83 per gallon.  Today it's over $4.00.  Understanding why that is so will give you insight into the patient game plan of the fossil-fuel-hating, combustion-engine-despising, environmentally obsessed left.  The high price of gas is not simply a function of the cost of crude oil.

Much Ado About Gas Prices.  [Scroll down]  As for the oil "subsidies," there are a few unique oil tax credits — which, if you truly believe in free markets, should be repealed. ... Our high corporate tax rates are the reason these tax credits exist.  Historically, it has been easier to enact these tax credits than to pass overall tax reform.  The Democratic leadership has singled out the oil industry — intending to leave the manufacturer's tax credit intact for other industries, lest they feel the wrath of unionized industries loyal to them.  Environmentalists, of course, are uniquely thrilled.  (They actually want higher gas prices.)

Obama's Scandalous War Against Domestic Oil.  Do you remember the terrible things the left was saying about President George W. Bush when gas prices soared under his watch?  Yet President Obama, whose policies and actions are actually contributing to rocketing gas prices today, gets the usual mainstream media pass.

High gas prices? Blame Bernanke.  [Scroll down]  Oil is bought and sold on world markets using the dollar.  The greenback is the official currency of oil trading. ... Just as an increase in the quantity of oil decreases the value (i.e. price) of oil, an increase in the quantity of dollars decreases the value of dollars.  On international oil markets, this means more dollars are required to purchase the same amount of oil.

Dems have no plan to bring down gas prices because they want higher prices.  Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-OK, sat down in front of a camera yesterday and patiently walked through the major myths about energy being propagated by President Obama, congressional Democrats and the liberal mainstream media.  The result is a concise, easy-to-grasp summary of energy facts.

Gasoline prices to stay high through 2012, federal agency says.  Gasoline prices will remain high through 2012, the U.S. Energy Information Administration says.  The government's prediction Tuesday [5/10/2011] assumes significant increases in global oil consumption, oil price increases to go along with that, and even stronger profits for oil companies in the short run.  But it does not mention the volatility that has beset oil markets in the last couple of weeks, driving prices to near record highs.

Another Tax On Gas?  Of all the ideas the White House has floated for taking more of your money, none is more pernicious than the latest:  slapping a tax on you for every mile you drive.  Isn't that what our gas tax does already?

More about odometer taxes.

Reality zings drivers' hopes at the pump.  A rebound in oil prices and flooding concerns at Mississippi River refineries may foil hopes that gasoline prices were headed for significant declines this week.  After several months shadowing oil on its steady upward climb, gasoline prices showed some signs of weakening over the weekend.

Obama and Reid offer hot air, not cheaper gas.  With gas prices hovering at $4 a gallon, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada reportedly wants a Senate vote this week on a measure to punish oil companies by denying them $21 billion in tax credits and deductions routinely given to other businesses.  At President Obama's request, Reid would instead use the money to fund alternative energy development projects that the Energy Information Administration says won't be able to replace fossil fuels to any significant degree for two to three decades.

Blotting out oil reality.  With polls making it crystal clear that Americans are not pleased with spiking gasoline prices, President Obama has deployed what might be called the "octopus strategy."  When an octopus is threatened, one of its survival tools is to dispense a cloud of ink to confound predators.  Likewise, in response to rising fuel prices, Mr. Obama has dispensed a cloud of obfuscation — one that scapegoats others for high energy prices when his own policies are at fault.

Politicians and pain at the pump.  When gas prices started spiking again this month, President Barack Obama turned to a move that worked in the past:  Make noise and talk tough about price gouging, then direct his attorney general to launch an investigation.  Immediately.  If that sounds familiar, it is.  It's part of the rhetorical playbook politicians have used for years when gas prices go up — that is until prices fall and what felt like urgent ideas go back on the shelf.

Crude, Gasoline Stage Sharp Rebound.  Oil futures clawed back some of the ground lost last week, pulled higher after heavy flooding and problems at a Mississippi refinery triggered a surge in gasoline prices.

Obama's Worst Enemy:  The gas crisis is something that, in its impact on the daily life of voters, should have a serious effect on Obama's chances in 2012.  So you'd expect some effort at a solution on his part.  But look as long and hard as you like — that is something you will not find.  What you will find is an insistence from Obama and all concerned that there's nothing to be done, that oil prices are a product of forces beyond the control of even the messiah, that "we can't drill our way out of the problem."  This is nonsense.  Faced with the same predicament in 2008, George W. Bush brought oil prices down simply by announcing that new drilling areas would be opened up.  Prices dropped, an outcome that Obama would have us believe is impossible.

House Bucks Obama: Bill Jump-Starts Gulf Oil Production.  Republicans are banking on a measure approved by the House on Thursday [5/5/2011] to lower gasoline prices by accelerating offshore lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico.  "The situation we find ourselves in today is detrimental to everyone who goes to the pump to fill their cars," said Rep. Rob Bishop (R.-Utah).  "The cost of gas increases, and continues to increase because of the inaction of this administration."

Government action to reduce prices at the pump.  A very simple cause and effect was observable yesterday [5/5/2011].  The House passed a bill to force the administration to sell offshore drilling permits in the Gulf of Mexico and off the Virginia coast, and the price of oil fell 8.6% in one day, the largest drop in over two years!  Are there any voters out there that want lower gas prices?  The Republican House passed the bill, the Democratic President is threatening a veto.  Your electoral choice is crystal clear.

Gas Prices Continue to Rise While Oil Drops Below $100 a Barrel.  Gas prices continue to rise — even while the oil used to make it drops in price, say analysts.  The national average price for gas this week is $3.96, according to the Department of Energy.  Hawaii still has the nation's most expensive gasoline as of today, but the nation's heartland is catching up.

Why Gas and Food Prices Are Likely to Drop.  As every motorist knows, gas prices have jumped by about 30 percent this year, with the average pump price perched just beneath the unnerving $4 threshold.  Food prices have risen by about 6 percent over the last 12 months, with some everyday items, like beef, coffee, and butter up by more.  Spikes in the price of certain commodities, like copper, cotton, and rubber, are raising the cost of products ranging from clothes to cars, with manufacturers increasingly trying to pass the pain on to consumers.  The sting wouldn't feel so sharp if wages were rising at a healthy clip.  But many families are getting by on flat or even falling incomes.

Obama's Stance Hurts American Energy.  With gasoline prices quickly surging to $4 per gallon and beyond, pinching the pockets of families and business across the country, it's no surprise that gasoline has become a regular talking point in President Barack Obama's stump speech.  Yet instead of offering real solutions, the president is telling the American people that there's "not much we can do" about high prices.  He's waving the white flag of defeat — essentially telling Americans to get used to paying more than $4 for gasoline.

Obama's War on Oil.  As a guest on a black radio talk show recently, I suggested that someone ask President Obama what his plan is for bringing down high gasoline prices.  What a gaffe that question would be.  The current high gas prices, and more, are precisely the President's plan.  President Obama's Secretary of Energy is former Berkeley physics professor Steven Chu, who said in 2008, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."

Rental car gas prices hit more than $9 a gallon.  The price of gasoline has reached more than $9 a gallon for drivers who don't pay ahead of time and who return their rental cars without a full tank.  A USA Today survey of auto rental gas prices at 13 big airports on April 25 found Hertz was charging $9.29 a gallon at all 13.  Dollar and Thrifty were charging $8.99 a gallon at two.

'Why does my gas cost $4.00 per gallon?'  Nearly seventy percent of the price of a gallon of retail gasoline is the price of the crude oil it is refined from.  Two graphs from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) make that point.  The first shows the price of a gallon of gasoline plotted against the price of a gallon of crude oil.  The two move in virtual lock-step; if you know the crude oil price per gallon, add $1.00 and you'll know the price of gasoline within a few cents.

Tornadoes contribute to gasoline price surge.  The deadly storms temporarily shut down seven refineries, which helps boost the national average for a gallon of regular to $3.963.  Gas is at an all-time high in Chicago.

Pump shock: Gas average near $4.  The Bay State's average gasoline price rose sharply over the past week, creeping closer to the psychological level of $4 per gallon and sparking fears of pain at the pumps this summer.  In July 2008, gas prices peaked at $4.09 a gallon in Massachusetts and $4.11 a gallon nationwide.

Michigan gas prices hit new record of $4.21.  Average gas prices have surpassed their summer 2008 peak in most of Michigan, as prices jumped between 5 cents and 10 cents a gallon between Sunday and Monday [May 1-2, 2011] as crude oil and wholesale prices fell in the wake of the U.S. killing of Osama bin Laden.  Michigan's average is now a record high of $4.217.  It's topped only by Hawaii ($4.57), Illinois ($4.28), California ($4.26), Connecticut ($4.26) and Alaska ($4.245).

Survey: Gas Prices Cause Shoppers To Downgrade.  Rising fuel prices are getting the attention of car shoppers and compelling many to shift their priorities for picking a new vehicle.  More than half of consumers surveyed said they have already lowered their sights somewhat regarding the next cars they plan to buy.

Gas could top $4 nationwide this week.  After jumping more than 3 cents over the weekend, gas prices across America could top $4 a gallon this week, according to one industry analyst.

Gas tops $3.90 nationwide.  The average price of a gallon of gasoline reached the $3.90 mark Friday [4/29/2011], after climbing 2 cents overnight, according to a survey by motorist group AAA.

Thefts rise as price of gas goes up.  As gas prices approach record highs, gas-related thievery is on the rise.

Obama running on empty.  Skyrocketing gasoline prices have sent President Obama's public-approval ratings plummeting.  The White House is searching for someone to blame, but the problem rests not with the pumps but with the president.

The General Motors Debacle.  [Scroll down]  I don't know anyone in America who doesn't want cheaper gasoline except for President Barack Obama and his Secretary of Energy, Stephen Chu.  And therein lies the problem because, between moratoriums on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, obstacles to increased drilling in Alaska (not even including ANWR), and the general ban on any offshore drilling along U.S. coastlines, the likelihood that Americans will have access to their own less costly oil, barely exists.

The Gas-Price Blame Game — Round 36.  Pump prices keep climbing, so what do those mainly responsible for the run-up do?  Try to pin it on someone else, of course.

Gasoline rises a penny to $3.87 per gallon.  Gas pump prices have climbed for 35 straight days even though industry surveys show Americans have started to drive less.

Are Sky-High Gas Prices Good?  From 2007 to 2008, Steven Chu, now secretary of Energy, weighed in frequently on global warming and the desirable price of traditional energy.  At one point, Chu asserted, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."  Chu also lamented, "We have lots of fossil fuel; that's really both good and bad news.  We won't run out of energy, but there's enough carbon in the ground to really cook us."  In other words, $10 a gallon for gas would be desirable, while an enormous amount of recoverable American oil, gas, coal, tar sands and oil shale should be left untapped.

Pelosi Blamed 'Oil Men in the White House' for Gas Prices in '08, Now Who's To Blame?  Back in 2008 then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) knew where she wanted to place the blame for high gas prices.  "The price of oil is at the doorstep — 4 dollars plus per gallon for oil, is attributed to two oil men in the White House," Pelosi said in a CNN interview on July 17th, 2008.  Now that President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are out of the White House, Pelosi has been silent on the issue.  She has made no public comments on gas prices over the past few months.

CNN's Vastly Different Reporting On Bush, Obama Gas Prices.  Read the article ... and see for yourself how CNN defends President Obama's actions regarding oil prices.  CNN showcases Obama's recent rhetoric about gas prices, while conveniently neglecting to fact check any of President Obama's claims (as CNN did when covering President Bush's gas price rhetoric in past years).

Spotting Media Bias in Story Choices.  Media bias can be easily noticed in what the media say, but sometimes the worst cases of bias involve what the media do not say.  A perfect example of this is the current media coverage — or non-coverage, if you will — of the recent gas price crisis nationwide.  When President Obama first took office, prices were $1.86 per gallon.  On 25 April 2011, the average price of fuel in America was $3.789.  Yet where is the media outcry about gas prices?

Obama's Real Strategy:  Watching the machinations of Barack Obama, it seems as though he is creating what the Marxists call "internal contradictions."  Gas prices ready to breach the $5 mark, but a relentless Administration campaign against increased domestic energy production...

The Gas Price Freakout.  Mr. Obama usually begins his gas price narrative, now a campaign trail staple, by explaining that there aren't easy solutions.  That's true — there's not a lot the political class can do to change gas prices in the short run — but then the President goes on to mention that there happens to be one easy solution:  raising taxes on the oil and gas industry.  This is also his stock answer on the budget deficit, world hunger and everything else.

Gas Pains and Infinite Liberal Stupidity.  The Obama Administration is clearly the most anti-energy administration ever.  Will Collier has a noteworthy item up today over at PajamasMedia on soaring gasoline prices and the Obama Administration's hypocritical policy of paying lip service to increased oil production at home while doing everything possible to hinder any real increase in domestic oil production.

Obama faces trouble with $4 gasoline.  Presidential campaigns are all about numbers — dollars raised, voters registered, poll results.  In the early days of his reelection bid, President Obama is focusing on one number:  $4 per gallon gasoline.

High gas prices starting to devour Obama.  I hope there's no one out there actually rooting for higher fuel prices, but it seems clear that President Obama's political fate will probably be tied to the cost of a gallon of gas on election day. ... This is why Obama has gone on the offensive against oil companies and "speculators."  The only thing he can do is try and shift blame for a situation caused by his own miserable energy policies.

Reality Clashes With Obama's Promised Utopia.  In an unfolding financial disaster that was wholly predictable by any who understand basic economics, gasoline prices are skyrocketing which means that Americans will have less disposable income with which to spur real growth.  Thus the much trumpeted but very anemic "recovery" will quickly evaporate into thin air.  No doubt those "evil oil company executives" will receive the blame, ... [but] this ruse will not enhance the nation's fuel supply by a single drop.

Hot Air About Gas Prices.  Rather than spending more millions of our tax dollars on even on more government employees looking into whether private companies are doing anything wrong, it would be nice if the President would look for ways to incent private companies to do something right.  The only good thing about $4.00 gasoline is, Obama will not be able to push for what his Liberal allies want most of all:  A dollar-per-gallon tax on gasoline to cut consumption.

Obama is a quick study on creating commissions.  As a candidate for president, Barack Obama called study commissions created by politicians "Washington-speak for we'll get back to you later." ... Most recently, Obama announced he was creating a commission to investigate whether manipulation of the oil markets was causing gas prices to soar.

President Obama's Lack of Action on Gas Prices Hurts America's Seniors and Poor.  Gas prices have spiked 37% since October of last year, according to AAA, and in some states, average prices have passed the $4 per gallon.  That spike hits the constituents that President Obama purports to care about the most — our most vulnerable Americans.  High gas prices hit seniors and the poor the hardest.  And they hit seniors and the poor who live in rural areas even harder.  What is AARP's response?  And anti-poverty groups?  Silence.  And don't hold your breath waiting for any protests from liberal organizations like those to call for more drilling.

Gas Prices Top $1-a-Gallon Higher than Year Ago; Media Don't Blame Obama.  The average price for a gallon of unleaded gasoline hit $3.86 on April 25, more than $1-a-gallon higher than a year earlier and less than 25 cents away from the record high price of gasoline set in July 2008.  In fact, per gallon prices are more than $2 higher than when Obama took office Jan. 20, 2009.  Yet the president has been nearly exempt from criticism on the issue of rising prices, despite a six-month drilling moratorium and more regulatory hurdles for industry.

Orlando gas station charges $5.69 a gallon.  Gas prices are on the rise nationwide, but one filling station in Florida has earned the dubious distinction of having the highest prices in the country.

Gasoline Prices and Speculators: They Think You Are Stupid.  It is with great interest that I read this past week about the President's initial response to rising gas prices.  What or who was to blame?  According to the President...speculators.  Nameless, faceless speculators.  They are to blame for the rising price of crude oil up and the accompanying price at the pump!

Obama publicly declares war on capitalism.  Just days ago, Mr. Obama publicly blamed "speculators" for the rising price of gas.  Mr. Obama publicly announced a war on speculators and speculation, imposing the Justice Department, government lawyers, Cabinet heads and the whole Big Brother kitchen sink on this "evil" bunch of capitalists.

President "Necessarily Skyrocket" Obama Baffled by Rising Gas Prices.  The same person who promised to bankrupt coal plants and cause electricity prices to "necessarily skyrocket" as a candidate would have us believe that he has nothing to do with Americans paying $4 or more a gallon at the gas pump now that he is President.  According to Obama, it's all a mystery to him.

Gasoline and Dollars: Supply and Demand.  Gasoline has exceeded or approached $5.00 per gallon in some parts of the United States long before the normal peak travel season has begun.  Already the politicians, headline writers, and some cable and talk show pundits are pointing to the usual suspects.  But they have avoided or are unaware of where the fault actually lies.

Gas price hikes just keep coming.  Maybe this is a conspiracy to get everybody to ride the bus.  Omahans who drove past ethanol gas for $3.659 a gallon on Thursday night could only shake their heads Friday when they saw the signs advertising $3.799 for ethanol and $3.899 for regular gas.  This is getting old.

The Editor says...
I believe it may in fact be "a conspiracy to get everybody to ride the bus."

High Gas Prices Catching Up to Obama?  Boy Obama's deep thinking on energy can get confusing, with yet another 'green electricity' plant, in Reno, for some reason serving as today's backdrop for him to defend high gas prices.

No Break at the Gas Pump This Spring.  With gas prices above $4 in some states, Americans are canceling spring break plans and rethinking summer vacation, and some tourist destinations are offering gas vouchers of as much as $50 to talk people out of giving up and staying home.

Could gas prices hit $6 a gallon?  Planning to hit the road this summer?  You might want to keep an eye on the AAA Fuel Gauge Report, which takes the daily temperature of gas prices around the nation.  The national average today for regular gas is $3.85 a gallon — up 99 cents from a year ago.  That's a 35% increase, and it shows no signs of slowing.

Gas Price Problem, Mr. President?  Rather than look in the mirror, President Obama has reached again for his dog-eared copy of Rules for Radicals and searched out a culprit to demonize.  And the winner is ... those bad "traders and speculators," who, he suggested yesterday [4/21/2011], could be "taking advantage of American consumers for their own short-term gains."  In order to carry out this farce, he has directed his ever accommodating attorney general, Eric Holder, to head up a "task force" to "look into any cases of price gouging."

Attorney General Holder To Investigate Law Of Supply And Demand.  In a sign of just how frantic and disoriented the White House is over rising gas prices, it announced Thursday [4/21/2011] that it tasked Attorney General Eric Holder with investigating "potential violations of criminal or civil laws" in the energy markets.  In other words, it was making a show about telling Holder to do what is the attorney general's job anyway.  What was conspicuously lacking from the White House announcement was any data that there was any kind of fraud actually being perpetrated.

Burn the witches with gas.  Last month, the President of the United States of America sicced his dogged army of regulators and prosecutors on the petroleum industry.  Not for oil spills, mind you, but for raising prices.  Actually, he instructed his teams of lawyers and other federal operatives to work with state agencies looking for fraud in fuel markets.  In the last few days, he's made much of his crusade, talking it up on TV and radio.  Backing up the prez, the Attorney General just formed the Oil and Gas Price Fraud Working Group.  The group is most interested in the role of speculators.

$6 Gas? Could Happen if Dollar Keeps Getting Weaker.  A dollar plumbing three-year lows is hitting Americans squarely in the gas tank, and one economist thinks it could drive prices as high as $6 a gallon or more by summertime under the right conditions.

Can a Lizard Raise Your Gas Prices?  Here we are, looking at $5.00 a gallon gas and rocketing prices on consumer goods and what are the feds doing here in New Mexico, one of the nation's leading oil and gas producing states, to help alleviate our pain?  Would you believe me if I told you they may be trying to drastically reduce gas and petroleum production in Southeast New Mexico, and perhaps West Texas for the really important reason of protecting the continuing viability of a creature I'm sure you all know and love, the Dunes Sagebrush Lizard?

Ten states where gas prices bite hardest.  The price of gasoline has risen to $3.815, according to the American Automobile Association. ... Gas prices fluctuate sharply from state to state.  Regular unleaded fuel costs $4.17 per gallon in Alabama, while the price is below $3.50 in some other states.  Part of the reason for these discrepancies is differing gas taxes, and another part has to do with the cost of transporting fuel.

Gasoline prices up 40% this summer, U.S. says.  Gas prices will jump 40% for the summer driving season compared with 2010, according to a federal projection released Tuesday [4/12/2011].  Retail prices for a gallon of regular-grade gasoline will average $3.86 from April through September, up from $2.76 for the comparable period last year, said the Energy Information Administration, the statistics arm of the Department of Energy.

Drivers Flock to Mexico for Cheaper Gas.  Gas prices are averaging $3.82 a gallon, according to Sunday's AAA Fuel Gauge Report.  But Reuters reports that a regular tank of gas in Mexico is 34.4 pesos per gallon, a price equivalent to $2.94.  But is the roughly 90-cent difference worth the hassle?

The Editor says...
People go to Juarez for eye surgery, too, if they're really desperate to save money.

Gas in 6 States and D.C. Tops $4 a Gallon.  Add New York to the growing list of states where gas prices are topping $4 per gallon.

Gas prices could top record highs by Memorial Day.  Gasoline prices, on the rise for more than three weeks, could top all-time highs by Memorial Day.  Nationally, a gallon of regular averages $3.81 — up 10 cents in the last week and nearly 96 cents above year-ago levels.  Industry experts say prices could surpass July 2008's record $4.11 nationally as seasonal demand, speculators and political uncertainty in Libya and the Middle East propel oil prices.

Gas at $4 in nation's capital, 5 states; NY next.  Hawaii, Alaska, California, Illinois and Connecticut already have pump prices above that mark, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge.

How we will end up paying $6 a gallon for gas:  Someday, you will be pumping gas, staring at the digital numbers racing by, and you'll wonder:  "How could I possibly be paying $6 a gallon for gasoline?"  You also will be wondering why so many of your friends and relatives are still looking for work.  Or why America is more dependent on foreign oil than ever before.  If you look back to today, you'll remember why:  President Obama's de facto moratorium on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Attack of the Cash Register.  President Obama's support among blacks and Hispanics has fallen to new lows according to a Gallup poll.  Black support declined by 7% and among Hispanics by 11%, farther than at any point since his inauguration. ... But there's another possible reason besides Libya and the deficit:  inflation, starting with energy prices.  The poor, including and especially blacks and Hispanics, are being hardest hit by increasing energy costs.

"Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."

— Steven Chu, United States Secretary of Energy.    
Sources:  [1] [2] [3] [4]    

Hawaii gas prices leads nation at $4.46 a gallon.  Hawaii's average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline hit a nation-leading $4.46 on Thursday, 28 cents higher than second-place California.

Small businesses bitten by higher gas prices.  Across the Washington region, gas prices are approaching all-time highs, rivaling the post-Hurricane Katrina prices that topped $4 per gallon.  Before that, the biggest spike was in 1981, when inflation-adjusted gas prices reached about $3.63.  "The effects will be varied, but significant," said Peter Morici, a business professor at the University of Maryland.

Drivers cut back as gas inches toward $5 a gallon.  The national average price for gasoline is still under $4 a gallon, but many Chicago stations are not far from the $5 mark.  Nationally, prices have shot up 19 cents in the last three weeks to an average of $3.76 for a gallon of regular, according to the latest Lundberg Survey.

Down Memory Lane: Gas Pump Edition.  With the Democrats in the driver's seat, things have sure changed.  $4 a gallon gasoline?  Stunning!  But just wait:  Obama's anti-energy policies may bring us $5 a gallon gasoline by Memorial Day.  Oh, and about that 5.5% unemployment rate?  The Obama administration considers anything below 9% a victory.

Are rising gas prices a laughing matter to you?  If you go to www.realclearpolitics.com, you can watch a video clip of President Obama joking about those who think he's out of touch with gasoline prices.  "I don't pump gas now, but I remember what it was like pumping gas," he said to applause and some laughs. ... This issue is not one to poke fun at, as the president is doing.  A study conducted by the Pew Research Center reported that a majority of Americans say gas prices have a "substantial impact" on their household financial conditions.

Gas prices: Up 20% from January.  Gas prices have risen for 15 days straight days and are getting closer to the all-time high of $4.114 a gallon, reached in July 2008.  The average price of unleaded jumped 2.2 cents overnight to $3.707 a gallon, according to motorist group AAA.

Gas Prices Could Rise To $5.  As gasoline prices continue to climb, the oil industry said this week that by 2012, we could be paying not $4 per gallon, but $5.

Obama's War on the Young.  President Obama needs to reinvent reality, so where does he go?  A college campus.  And why not?  With gas doubling in price toward $4 a gallon, what better place to talk energy than to back-packing cyclists at trendy, urban Georgetown University?  It's a far friendlier crowd than, say, one composed of truckers, commuters or laid off workers.

Obama promised higher energy costs. He wasn't kidding.  President Obama held a town hall meeting Wednesday at a wind turbine manufacturing plant in Fairless Hills, Pa., to promote his Big Green energy agenda.  Not everyone in the audience was receptive to his message. ... "There is no magic formula to driving gas prices down," the president also said Wednesday.  Maybe so, but Obama has figured out a pretty good formula for driving gas prices up.

U.S. gas prices rise 9 cents, hitting April record.  U.S. gasoline prices soared nearly 9 cents over the last week to $3.68 a gallon, the highest pump price on record for April, the Energy Department said on Monday [4/4/2011].  The national price for regular unleaded gasoline is up 86 cents from a year ago, based on the department's weekly survey of fuel prices at service stations.  Cleveland and Chicago had the biggest weekly gasoline price increases, rising 19 and 18 cents a gallon, respectively.

Obama's 'Let them eat cake' moment deep sixed by media.  As gasoline prices soar, while domestic oil production struggles under regulatory and permitting burdens imposed by the Obama administration, the American public is suffering, and so are Obama's reelection prospects.  The sad fact is that Obama wants high energy prices. ... When do suppose the last time was that Obama filled the tank on his own car?

Weekly Gas Prices Show Ninth Consecutive Increase.  The average price of gasoline hit $3.68 per gallon, said the Department of Energy this afternoon [4/4/2011], up 86 cents from a year ago and nine cents from a week ago.  The last time gas rose higher than $3.50 was Sept. 29, 2008, when the weekly average hit $3.64.

Class warfare at the gas pump.  Instead of pivoting away from his disastrous energy policies, the president called an Ides of March press conference to boast of booming domestic crude production.  In fact, from 10 million barrels a day, U.S. production has fallen to 7 million barrels and is heading toward 6 million.  With worldwide energy consumption rising despite the still-bleeding wounds of the 2008-2009 financial crisis, supply has maxed out. ... Government regulation — which Mr. Obama intensified after the BP Gulf spill — has throttled U.S. production.

Wrecking a Nation.  Here's how the economic and political system of a nation is destroyed.  Every price increase of just a dime per gallon of gasoline at the pump extracts approximately $5 billion from the pockets of U.S. consumers over the course of a year.

Gas tops $4 a gallon in San Jose.  If you haven't filled up in the last couple of days, be prepared:  The average price of regular unleaded gas topped $4 a gallon in the Bay Area and could go much higher.  Premium gas already was selling at $4.20 on Thursday [3/24/2011], but you could still get regular at some stations for $3.99.

A Man-Made Energy Crisis.  Gas is well over $4 a gallon in most places in California — and soaring elsewhere as well.  But are such high energy prices good or bad?  That should be a stupid question.  Yet it is not, when the Obama administration has stopped new domestic offshore oil exploration in many American waters, curbed oil leases in the West, and keeps oil-rich areas of Alaska exempt from drilling.

Energy Secretary Denies Administration is Intentionally Seeking Higher Prices.  On the day President Barack Obama announced his energy agenda, Energy Secretary Steven Chu rejected Republican claims that the administration sought to push up energy prices in order to promote a green agenda.

When Inflation Comes, Blame Big Government.  Raw food commodity indexes, for example, have hit all-time highs.  And the broader CRB Commodity Index, including food, energy and industrial commodities, has run up 32% the past 12 months.  As anyone who owns a car or truck knows, oil prices have jumped 29% in the past year to more than $108 a barrel.  This has pushed gasoline prices over $3.60 a gallon nationally, twice what they were when President Obama entered office.

The incoherence of Obama's energy policies:  As Americans watch skyrocketing gasoline prices (up an average of nearly 80 cents a gallon from this time last year) frustrate their hopes for economic recovery, they should be outraged by a new report on America's energy resources from the Congressional Research Service.  The report shows that the United States is sitting on the largest batch of energy resources on the planet.  In fact, these vital fuel sources add up to more than the resources of energy-rich Saudi Arabia, China and Canada combined.

Gasoline up 100% under Obama.  Feeling pain at the pump?  Gas prices have doubled since Mr. Obama took office.  According to the GasBuddy gasoline price tracking web site, the price of a gallon of regular gas was around $1.79 when Mr. Obama took office.  Today the national average is $3.58.  The lowest average price in the continental United States is $3.31 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the highest is $4.14 in Santa Barbara, CA.  Four-dollar-a-gallon gas has arrived on average throughout California, and a number of other states are headed in that direction.

President pumps politics.  President Obama's promise Wednesday to do something about rising gas prices was drowned out by the giant sucking sound of American dollars being funneled into OPEC pockets.  Not that many expected his plan to make much difference anyway.  A president who, as a candidate, said he didn't mind high fuel prices is not likely to be the one leading the nation toward energy policy sanity.

The Energy Choke.  Jobs and economic growth are being deliberately strangled.  Our economy is just beginning to feel the choking grasp of soaring fuel prices around its throat.

Energy Secretary Chu Embraces High Gas Prices, Again.  This weekend, Energy Secretary Steven Chu appeared on Fox News Sunday and host Chris Wallace asked him about his desire in 2008 for Americans to punitively pay more at the pump in order to wean them off of gasoline.  Shockingly, Chu did not walk back his comments as he has attempted to do in the past.  In fact, he embraced the strategy noting that his focus is to ease the pain felt by his energy policies by forcing automakers to make more fuel-efficient automobiles.

Average cost of gasoline rises to $3.57 a gallon.  The national average for a gallon of self-serve, regular gasoline was $3.57 on March 18, according to the Lundberg Survey of about 2,500 gas stations.

Pump prices may put Obama in peril.  Consumers' pain at the gas pump will likely be shared by President Obama at the polls in 2012 and could cost him a second term unless energy prices take a drastic turn for the better in the next 18 months.

Obama: The 'Pay More at the Pump' President.  President Obama's continuing war on American energy is dramatically increasing the price of gas and diesel.  To be fair, President Obama is in favor of drilling... but just not in the United States.  His numerous bans, restrictions, and proposed taxes are hamstringing America's ability to produce more oil and gas and are thereby increasing gas and diesel prices.

Soros Group Blames High Gas Prices On Speculators, Not Demand Or Mideast Turmoil.  Like the opening of the cherry blossoms on the national mall, every spring in Washington seems to bring with it another round of conspiracy theories regarding some hot public-policy issue.  With gas prices high, energy is a favorite this year.  The other week, it was that gas prices were rising because oil companies were engaged in a conspiracy not to drill — and thereby deny themselves profits — while demand was high.  This week, liberals say, the villains are oil speculators who have fiendishly been driving up prices for no other reason than their greed.

Hawaii is the first in the U.S. with $4-a-gallon gasoline.  It's a race no state wanted to win, but someone apparently had to.  Hawaii became the first in the nation to top $4 a gallon for regular gasoline, on average, over the weekend.

Palin Vs. '$4-A-Gallon President'.  We recently asked if President Obama actually wanted $8-a-gallon gas, a level reached by Europeans when Steven Chu, now his secretary of energy, said in a September 2008 interview:  "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe."  Notice he said "boost" and not "allow to rise, or fall, in accordance with the law of supply and demand."  Of course, restricting supply is one way to "boost" gas prices, whether by designating oil-rich areas off Alaska as "critical" habitat for an abundant and growing polar bear population or by imposing a de facto moratorium on offshore drilling because one well exploded.

The One Campaign Promise Obama Has Kept:  That is, his promise to increase the price of gasoline. ... Barack Obama took office as a naive leftist with essentially no knowledge of how our economy works or how wealth is created.  He subscribed to the leftist view that America is too rich and too powerful.  He therefore took office intending to make America poorer and weaker.  The single easiest way to accomplish this goal is by making energy more expensive.  Obama said that he would increase gasoline prices gradually and cause the cost of electricity to "skyrocket."  I'm not sure he has fulfilled any other campaign promise, but he has certainly made good on that one.

Obama policies drive up gas prices.  With gasoline prices at a two-year high, President Barack Obama, March 11, called for a crackdown on "price gouging" at the pump.  Some consumers may feel relief to hear that the White House intends to protect them from supposedly unscrupulous suppliers.  But the President's energy policies are a lot more to blame for the current high prices than any market manipulation.

Solving US Energy Problems:  [Scroll down]  Over five years ago, I wrote a book, Why Your Gasoline Prices Are High.  If you do not like high gasoline prices, demand that your government allow drilling for US oil.  If oil is worth fighting for in the Middle East, it is worth drilling for in the United States.

None of the Above on Energy.  [Scroll down]  The question is, why does Obama want to forestall access to so many of our energy resources just at the moment when gas prices are hitting $4 a gallon and experts are predicting they will go higher?  Either the President is out of his mind, or he is intent on wrecking our future.

An Energy Policy Designed to Fail.  Gasoline prices are on the rise again, mostly due to a combination of turmoil in the Middle East and increased worldwide demand that has driven crude prices up over $100 per barrel.  When refiners switch to EPA-required summer blends starting on May 1, gasoline prices will increase even more.

Obama's First Two Years a Disaster for America.  As of March 14, the average price of regular unleaded gasoline was $3.57/gallon.  When Obama took office in January 2009, the price was $1.81/gallon.  That represents more than a 90% increase in just over two years. ... The pertinent question we might ask is, "What has President Obama done in the past two years to limit the rise of oil and gasoline prices, if anything?"  The answer is... nothing.  If anything, his policies have contributed towards rising prices.

Green Goons.  It's getting so people are afraid to drive more than 150 miles for fear that they won't be able to afford the gas to get home again.  Still, President Obama refuses to allow oil development either on government-owned land or just off our coasts.  We have enough petroleum in the ground right here in the United States to last us centuries but Obama, the Democrats and their green goons won't let us get at it for fear there might be a spill and a sea gull might get oil on its wings.  It's all right though to send $1,000,000,000 a day to Muslim countries who use much of it to finance jihad against us in their radical quest to destroy western civilization.  Our liberal Democrat rulers want fossil-fuel energy prices to go up in hopes that Americans will turn to solar panels, windmills and Chevy Volts.

Energy in the Executive.  Anyone who's been to a gas station recently knows the feeling.  There you are, about to refuel, when you see the price of regular gasoline:  about $3.52 per gallon, up 77 cents since 2010.  Your pulse quickens.  Your stomach sinks.  Because this is not a dream.  The days of $4.00-a-gallon gas are about to return.  How we got here is no mystery. ... [President Obama] doesn't grasp that supply must increase by a lot more, and a lot more quickly, if Americans are to enjoy affordable fuel.

Gas prices: Up 37 cents and counting.  If you think gasoline is expensive now, just wait.  In the weeks to come, you'll be looking back at today's prices with a poignant sense of longing, if the forecasts become reality.  Gasoline prices just keep going up.  Prices jumped for the 17th straight day Friday [3/11/2011], increasing by 37 cents since Feb. 22 to a nationwide average of $3.542 per gallon, according to motorist group AAA.

Gas Prices Have Gone Up 67 Percent Since Obama Became President.  Ah, January of 2009.  Hope was in the air, but more importantly, gas was under two dollars a gallon.  Since then gas prices, have gone up 67 percent and it's an ominously upward trend.  Interestingly enough, the Heritage Foundation also took a look at the first 26 months of Bush's presidency — gas only rose 7 percent during that time frame.

Suspend the gas tax.  Republicans should demand the immediate suspension of the 18.4-cent federal gasoline tax and, at the state level throughout the nation, the suspension of the additional 30-cent average local tax.  When gas prices drop again — likely not for several years — the taxes should resume.  All told, federal, state and local excise and sales taxes account for almost 50 cents of the price of gasoline at the pump.

Gas prices continue climb, up 34 cents in 13 days.  Gas prices continued to rise Monday [3/7/2011], driven higher for nearly two weeks straight by the turmoil in Libya, with analysts expecting prices to keep climbing.  The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline rose six tenths of a cent to $3.509, according to a daily survey by motorist group AAA.

What are Republicans Waiting for?  Americans feel the price at the pump.  And they feel it often.  They're far less concerned with a "Continuing Resolution" and other such Washington techno-speak.  The national average for a gallon of gas is $3.43, and it's only March.  In fact, gas prices have skyrocketed 21% since the protests in Libya began two weeks ago.  Again, it's only March.  What happens when Americans start taking their summer vacations en masse and it's $4 a gallon, $5 a gallon, or higher?

Why are gasoline prices rising so much — even in Texas?  U.S. gasoline prices averaged $3.47 a gallon Friday [3/4/2011], the highest level since Oct. 6, 2008.  Gasoline prices have jumped by 6 percent in Texas this week alone, to an average $3.36 a gallon, at a time when fuel prices historically have yet to begin their run-up before the summer driving season, the American Automobile Association tells us.  And with unrest in the Middle East and North Africa continuing — it's already pushed the price of crude oil above $104, a 29-month high — analysts say pump prices likely are headed even higher.

Just How High Will the Gas Prices Go?  Since the beginning of the year gas prices have jumped about ten percent and seem to shoot up every day.  With oil prices soaring to more than $104 a barrel the impact is being felt at pumps across the country and Arkansas is not immune.  Gas prices are at their highest levels in more than two years forcing folks who are already cash-strapped to make tough decisions.

Gas prices headed toward $4 a gallon.  It won't be long before we're paying $4 a gallon for regular unleaded gasoline, at least if prices keep going up at their current pace.  Prices have already surged 38 cents a gallon in metro Detroit since President's Day and likely will jump again by early next week as crude oil prices shot up nearly $3 Friday to $104.63 a barrel.

Obama's energy transformation.  President Obama has intentionally hamstrung domestic energy production under the delusional theory that the U.S. economy can thrive on so-called green power.  As Mideast turmoil threatens the oil supply, the price of domestic crude has jumped above $100 a barrel and gas at the pump now exceeds $3.46 a gallon.  This shows just how dangerous the Obama administration's economic and energy policies can be to our wallets.

Is Your Wallet Screaming "Inflation"?  I need not mention what we are seeing at the gas pump these days.  The price of a gallon of gasoline has skyrocketed (in my home state of Florida) from just over $1.50 per gallon at the end of the Bush administration to close to $3.50 for that same gallon today.  Anybody that believes that inflation is really 1.63 percent (as told to us by the federal government's Bureau of Labor Statistics in its Consumer Price Index summary) is not living in the real world.

Gas Price Increases Are Intentional.  Gas prices continue to go up.  When George W. Bush was President of the United States, Democrats constantly demanded he open the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help lower prices.  Some even wanted a temporary suspension of the gas tax.  With Obama?  Crickets. ... The left could use gas prices as a political wedge issue against George W. Bush because they knew he did not actually want higher gas prices.  Barack Obama, on the other hand, wants higher gas prices.  His Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, wants the same.

Gas prices are going lower. Really.  So long as oil supplies from the Persian Gulf remain relatively undisrupted — and most analysts think they will — there's a strong case that gas prices could fall 25 to 75 cents a gallon from their current perch of $3.43.

Cut with a machete.  [Scroll down]  $4 per gallon.  That's the price point where we start to appreciate the beauty of an inert automobile.  It's also the point where we start looking askance at a seemingly inert president who may be a bit out of touch with what's going on with the rest of us on a day-to-day basis.  It's when we start throwing around words like ANWR and offshore drilling in everyday conversations, and we begin to point fingers at a president who seems more concerned with his ideological political base than our travails at the gas pump.  $4 serves as a trigger.

Media Hides Real Reason for Rise in Gas Prices.  Fill 'er up folks.  Gas prices in Southern California have hit $4.59 a gallon.  Oh, the media has finally started covering "Pain at the Pump" but they are not giving us the real reasons for the jump.

Food prices could reach 2008 level.  U.S. consumers could see food costs spiking to levels seen during the food crisis of 2008 as higher commodity and energy prices force companies to raise prices on products lining grocery store shelves, the Agriculture Department said on Thursday [2/24/2011].

How gas spikes 6 cents in one day.  Gas prices spiked 6 cents Friday [2/25/2011], the biggest one-day jump in two years, and drivers are probably wondering how prices can rise so much in such a short period of time.  Sure, oil prices surged past $100 a barrel Thursday [2/24/2011] in the wake of violence and protests in the Middle East.  But the gas you're pumping at the station was probably made two or three weeks ago, when U.S. crude was trading in the high $80s.  So why the 6 cent jump?

Five Dollars a Gallon?  Conservative thinkers have been saying for years (decades?) that we need to build up our own oil resources here at home so we're not at the mercy of the oil Imams of the Middle East.  We should have allowed more off-shore drilling.  We should have allowed Alaska drilling.  And shale.  There are ways to do these things safely and cleanly.  But it wasn't done.  The environmentalists wouldn't let it happen.

U.S., Chicago gas prices spike 6 cents overnight.  U.S. gas prices jumped 6 cents overnight, as the recent spike in oil prices begins to hit filling stations across America.  That marks the third day in a row that prices have risen, and brings the national average to the highest level since October 2008.

Does Obama Want $8 Gasoline?  While we sit on abundant oil and natural gas reserves, prices at both the wellhead and the pump are rising on fears of spreading Mideast turmoil and short domestic supply.  But then, maybe that's the plan.

The inflation disaster is near.  Five dollar a gallon gas will shatter the Federal Reserve's tightly constrained lid on inflation and accelerate the other half our long anticipated "double dip" recession. ... 91% of House Republicans have historically voted to increase the production of American-made oil and gas, while 86% of House Democrats have historically voted against increasing the production of American-made oil and gas.

After Obama, the Deluge.  Gas prices in many parts of the country are nearing $4 a gallon; it could get even worse as unrest spreads throughout the oil-exporting Middle East.  Yet the Obama administration once again seems to see no crisis.  It has curtailed new leases for offshore oil exploration for seven years and exempted thousands of acres in the West from new drilling.  It will not reconsider opening up small areas of Alaska with known large oil reserves.

The left's drive toward $8 gas.  A perfect storm of foreign and domestic policy choices by the Obama administration has paved the way for European-style energy prices to arrive on these shores.  Far from being alarmed, President Obama sees the prospect of $8 a gallon gas as an opportunity. ... Making energy more expensive is exactly what the administration's "cap and trade" scheme is meant to do.

Oil Shock.  The price of oil on the international market at yesterday's close was $93.57 per barrel, an increase of $7.37 in one day.  That increase was because of the unrest in Libya which is, unlike Tunisia, Egypt, and Bahrain, a significant oil producer.  According to the AAA, prices at the pump have increased to $3.17 a gallon for regular gasoline, an increase of six cents in a week.

Gov. Barbour on Obama's Energy Plan: 'Drive Up Prices'.  The turmoil and unpredictability in the Middle East right now is just one of many reasons America should be robustly producing her own energy, says Haley Barbour.  "This should be America's energy policy:  More American energy."  But as the Mississippi Governor noted, the Obama administration is hell bent on driving up the cost at the pump so that Americans consume less energy.

Gas Prices Going Up.  Why are gas prices going up?  "In a word:  Libya," says petroleum expert Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates in Houston.  He has been following gas prices one way or another for more than 30 years.  Unlike Egypt and Bahrain, he says, Libya is a significant exporter of light sweet crude.

U.S. Gas Prices Hit 28-Month High.  Gasoline pump prices reached a 28-month high Wednesday [2/16/2011] even though oil and gas supplies in the U.S. continue to grow and demand for gas is weak.

Gas pump prices highest ever for this time of year.  The national average hit $3.127 per gallon today [2/11/2011], about 50 cents higher than a year ago.

EIA projects gasoline retail prices to average 3.15 per gallon in 2011.  The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) issued its Short Term Energy Outlook update, which shows the trend for gasoline rising to $3.30 through 2012.

U.S. gasoline prices rise to $3.11/gallon.  The average price for a gallon of gasoline in the United States rose 2.99 cents in the last two weeks and was likely to remain steady for now, according to an industry analyst.  The national average for self-serve, regular unleaded gas was $3.11 a gallon on Jan. 21, compared with two weeks ago when the price was $3.08, according to the nationwide Lundberg survey of some 2,500 gas stations.

Md. bill would create sales tax on gasoline.  Democratic leaders in the Maryland Senate are proposing a new sales tax on gasoline — roughly equal to $2.16 per tank — with a bill that would steer one-quarter of the revenues from Montgomery, Prince George's and Baltimore counties to the jurisdictions' billion-dollar light rail projects.  Maryland currently charges drivers a fixed 23.5-cent-per-gallon tax on gasoline.  Tacking on a sales tax would not affect the state's per-gallon rate, but instead would tie any tax increases to the cost of gas.

Gas prices high — and might get higher.  Strong worldwide oil demand and lack of supply are to blame for steadily rising gasoline prices in the United States, an oil industry group said Friday [1/21/2011].  The American Petroleum Institute made no specific price forecast for 2011, but didn't seem to see a drop anytime soon.

Obama's Solar Nightmare:  The Obama administration has tried to kill off the oil industry.  Offshore moratoriums have been unilaterally imposed by executive orders and justified using scientific panel studies that were misrepresented — if not distorted — by the administration.  The drilling permitting process has been afflicted with sclerosis.  Federal lands are becoming less and less available for development. ... Hence, gas prices approaching $4 dollars a gallon — and this is not yet the summer driving season that typically boosts gas prices as demand increases.

Cost of gas up about 9 cents in the last 3 weeks.  The twice-monthly Lundberg Survey has found the price of regular gasoline has risen about nine cents a gallon over three weeks to $3.08.

Oil's surge in 2010 paves the way for $4 gasoline.  The price of oil is poised for another run at $100 a barrel after a global economic rebound sent it surging 34 percent since May.

Experts:  Gas could climb to $3.75 per gallon.  Drivers in the USA could be paying as much as $3.75 a gallon for gas this spring, oil experts predict.  Prices at the gas pump have inched up all year as the cost of crude oil neared $100 a barrel.  On Christmas Day, the average nationwide price of self-serve regular hit $3, a record for that day.  By year's end, the average price reached $3.06.

Dramatic spike in gas prices forecasted.  Oil and gasoline prices have risen to their highest levels in two years, and analysts say prices could shoot up dramatically this year as the thirst for fuel grows in the U.S. and around the world.  The former head of Shell Oil has warned that gas prices could hit $5 a gallon by 2012 because of fast-growing demand in emerging countries such as China and India, where more and more people are buying cars, combined with restraints on drilling in the U.S. in the wake of last year's disastrous Gulf oil spill.

The Administration's Administrative Tyranny Marches On.  [Scroll down]  The Heritage Foundation notes that gas prices decreased 9 percent during Dubya's eight-year tenure, but they've been on a steady rise under Obama.  The EPA emission rules will clearly make it more expensive to convert fossil fuels into energy, putting even more upward pressure on gas prices.  That's not all.  Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has decreed that the Bureau of Land Management will establish new rules to make it more difficult to develop natural resources on government-owned land, which will also drive up the cost of gas and electricity and increase our dependency on foreign energy sources.

Will It Be Slow Enough for Obama This Time?  While campaigning for the presidency in 2008, Barack Obama spoke to the $4 a gallon gasoline prices Americans were facing by making it clear he had no problem with gas prices at that level.  He simply "would have preferred a gradual adjustment" toward that price.  In other words, he wasn't bothered that gasoline hit $4 a gallon, just that it did so too quickly.  Fortunately for the American consumer, shortly after fuel prices had skyrocketed to those levels they dropped enough that when Obama took office they were hovering around $1.81 a gallon.  But two years into the Obama presidency, and one offshore drilling moratorium later, prices are well over $3 a gallon in much of the country and climbing fast.

Oil up 34% since May; average gas price hits $3.07.  The price of oil is poised for another run at $100 a barrel after a global economic rebound sent it surging 34% since May.

U.S. gasoline appetite shrinking.  After seven decades of mostly uninterrupted growth, U.S. gasoline demand is at the start of a long-term decline.

Gas Prices Back Above $3, Networks Don't Question Obama Policies.  Gas prices are "soaring" again, crossing the $3-a-gallon threshold on Dec. 23 for the first time since Oct. 17, 2008.  Back then the benchmark was a relief as prices plunged from the highest price ever of $4.11.  Pump prices have been climbing all month, yet network reports downplayed the pain and suffering of consumers.

Gas price rise may thwart economic recovery.  Gas prices are spiking again, setting off new fears for the economy even as it heads toward recovery.  Gasoline costs $3.13 a gallon in Metro Detroit and Michigan — up 23 cents from last month and 46 cents or 17 percent from the same time a year ago, according to AAA Michigan.  It's the highest price in more than two years — since mid-October 2008.

$5 Gas Predicted Under Obama — What, No Pitchforks?  During President George W. Bush's administration, we constantly heard demands to hold the President accountable for "Big Oil's price gouging."  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., just two years ago, knew exactly whom to blame for "skyrocketing" oil prices:  "The price of oil is at the doorstep; $4-plus per gallon for oil is attributed to two oilmen in the White House and their protectors in the United States Senate."  In 2007, when the average national price ranged from $2.17 to $3.22, then-Sen. Barack Obama demanded that the Federal Trade Commission investigate Big Oil for "price manipulation."

Gas Prices Predicted to Soar.  Two summers ago, Americans were reeling over the exorbitant gas prices that averaged $4.50 per gallon.  As gas prices are once again beginning to inch their way back to those numbers, former president of Shell oil John Hofmeister predicts that America will witness a continued rise to well over $5 per gallon in two years.

Gas pump prices rise above $3.  The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline topped $3 on Thursday [12/23/2010].

Ex-Shell president sees $5 gas in 2012.  The former president of Shell Oil, John Hofmeister, says Americans could be paying $5 for a gallon of gasoline by 2012.  In an interview with Platt's Energy Week television, Hofmeister predicted gasoline prices will spike as the global demand for oil increases.

What you can do about outrageous gas prices.  Gasoline isn't the type of product you can stop using.  So a consumer boycott is out of the question.  And the way the energy markets are being gamed shows a boycott wouldn't be effective anyway — as gasoline usage is already down sharply.  But you can call the people who invest your money — your broker, your retirement plan and even the college you attended.  See if they are participating in fleecing American consumers by investing in energy future contracts.  And tell them to stop the nonsense.

Gas zooms up 8 cents per gallon in 1 week.  Gasoline prices spiked 8 cents a gallon in Chicago in the past week.  The average price of unleaded regular gasoline jumped to $3.10 a gallon Monday [12/6/2010] from $3.02 a week earlier, according to AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express.  Nationally, prices rose by an even larger margin, but the average still remained below that in Chicago.  The average per gallon price was $2.95 nationally, up 9 cents from $2.86 a week earlier.

Gas up $1 a gallon on Obama's watch.  Gas prices have risen $1 since just after President Obama took office in January 2009 and are now closing in on the $3 mark, prompting an evaluation of the administration's energy record and calls for the White House to open more U.S. land for oil exploration.

The Editor says...
A dollar?  Really?  Gas prices in my neighborhood have gone up maybe 30 cents in the last two years.

New gas pains:  Motorists face new rounds of increases.  For the second time in a week, local gasoline prices have increased — this time to more than $3 a gallon, a price the local area hasn't seen since the fall of 2008.  And gas prices across the country could rise by another 25 cents in the near future if a proposed federal fuel tax is enacted.

Gas prices rise, breaking pre-election pattern.  Gasoline prices haven't gotten much attention amid all the other bad economic news for Democrats heading into a final week of campaigning, but the price per gallon has climbed nearly 15 cents since Labor Day — a surprising jump, given that prices usually plummet before an election.

Gas Prices Back on the Rise.  The average price of regular gas is up about 10 cents in Orange County.  According to AAA and Oil Price Information Service figures, the average price is now $3.08.  Marie Montgomery of the Automobile Club of Southern California said that the only thing they can attribute to the rising prices is "the fact that crude oil prices have shot up."

Chumps at the pump.  We all remember how painful it was when gasoline prices surged past four bucks a gallon a couple years ago.  The price is now around $3 a gallon.  That steep sum will seem like chump change if global-warming alarmists in Congress have their way.

Santelli:  $4 Gas, $150 Oil Coming This Summer.  With summer driving season upon us, it's important to note that there's a traditional jump in gas prices.  But will this seasonal adjustment benefit commodities, specifically oil and make the price of gasoline even higher?  That could happen if those forms of energy lure investment from what seems to be an over-valued equities market, brought on by what some claim is cheap money.

The Debt and Energy Conquer Even Hope and Change.  [Scroll down slowly]  Should gas hit $4 a gallon, when oil, new natural gas finds, and nuclear power went untapped amid Al Gore-Van Jones-like sermonizing, the present Tea Parties will seem tame in comparison with a new round of populist anger.  Nothing quite ticks people off like $1.50 more a gallon at the pump, and the knowledge that local, state, and federal tax increases led to greater, not lesser, annual deficits, together with cuts, not expansions, in public services.

Gasoline, Oil Break out to 18-Month Highs.  New reports showing improvement in the housing and services sectors combined with encouraging employment data to send oil and gasoline prices to an 18-month high Monday [4/5/2010].  After months of trading in a range of $75 to $85, a recent rally driven by positive U.S. economic news has some analysts wondering if oil could make its first foray into triple digits since late 2008.

Gasoline Prices:  Increases in retail gasoline prices from 2000 until fall 2006, and their sudden decline in September of that year, led to claims of price manipulation by oil companies, with Democrats accusing Republicans of being "in the pockets" of oil and gas companies.  In fact, gasoline prices at their peak only matched their inflation-adjusted prices of the 1980s, and oil industry profits, while large in dollar terms, are not higher than the profit rates reported by other industries.  Repeated investigations of oil industry practices have failed to find evidence of price-fixing or anti-competitive behavior.

The Real Reason Gasoline Costs More:  The popular myth about Big Oil is that it wields such great power that nation states cannot resist them.  The reality is that, faced with dictators like [Hugo] Chavez, often the only alternative is to leave or cut the best deal they can.  The other reality is that Venezuela's oil production has declined 25 percent since Chavez, a committed Communist, crushed the strike.  With the major oil companies departing, how much greater a decline lies ahead?  That is just one reason gasoline will cost more.

An Incurious Media or a Four-Leaf-Clover President.  [Scroll down]  Remember when we were supposedly in Iraq to steal oil?  We've certainly been there long enough to drain that nation dry.  Only one problem — we didn't do it.  Or maybe it was the oil company conspiracy to lower gas prices and fix the election.  CNN's Jack Cafferty was just one of many media voices to say "if you were a real cynic, you could also wonder if the oil companies might not be pulling the price of gas down to help the Republicans get re-elected in the midterm elections a couple of months away."  That conspiracy was also proven bogus when gas prices didn't plummet until after the 2008 elections.

Find the lowest gas prices in your zip code.

State-by-state gasoline averages from AAA.

Federal Gasoline Excise Tax Rate, 1932-2007.

Gas prices state-by-state  (Map)

More Oil and Gas News.

Gas Buddy can help you find cheap gas prices in your city.  It is a network of more than 179+ gas price information web sites that helps you find low gasoline prices.

Gas price up $1 a gallon on Obama's watch.  Gas prices have risen $1 since just after President Obama took office in January 2009 and are now closing in on the $3 mark, prompting an evaluation of the administration's energy record and calls for the White House to open more U.S. land for oil exploration.

Obama's a pain at the pump.  The U.S. Energy Information Administration is predicting gas prices will spike soon to more than $3 a gallon, and some areas have already exceeded that price.  Contrary to its posture of attentiveness toward America's energy needs, the Obama administration actually has imposed a two-year delay on new drilling — from 2010 until 2012.

Oil companies look at permanent refinery cutbacks.  Some of the nation's biggest oil companies are looking at permanently reducing how much gasoline and diesel fuel they make, a move that analysts say would almost certainly trigger higher prices for drivers.

$7-A-Gallon Gas Needed to Meet Government's CO2 Cuts.  As the national average of gasoline creeps to three dollars a gallon, economists are warning that high gas prices in the United States could slow the economic recovery.  Other countries' economies are recovering more quickly and increased production and activity is putting upward pressure on oil prices.  That coupled with a relatively weak US dollar spells trouble for American drivers.  Throw in carbon dioxide cuts and gasoline prices could reach unprecedented levels.

Why Ethanol Doesn't Reduce Oil Imports.  Even our biggest source of alternative fuel is taking very little bite out of our petroleum consumption.  Much more effective has been high prices and recession.  In fact, I believe it unlikely that any combination of biofuels will ever replace even 50% (net) of our present petroleum consumption.

Is gasoline losing steam?  Gasoline markets have exhibited the first signs that an extended rally in pump prices is nearing an end after 52 straight days on the rise.  Gasoline futures started falling midweek after a government report showed a surplus.

A shock at the pump?  They're back.  Rising gasoline prices, that is.  Millions of Americans hitting the roads over Memorial Day weekend faced prices for regular gas averaging $2.35 per gallon, a full 30 cents higher than at the beginning of the month and nearly 60 cents more than at the start of the year.  But don't expect any help from Congress.  In fact, Washington is working on a bill that would raise costs further.

Why has the price of gas jumped 18 cents a gallon?  Why are gasoline prices going up so much?  I suppose I should be happy I am paying only $2.69 a gallon for mid-grade, instead of the $4.10 I paid in 2008.  But it seems like the economy is not booming and oil supply exceeds demand, which would suggest oil prices — and hence gasoline prices — should be dropping.  But they're not.  And the reason is the same as last year — speculators.

Gasoline prices continue slow climb.  Pump prices in California and around much of the nation continued their ever-so-slow crawl higher over the past week, the Energy Department said Monday. ... Crude oil futures for June delivery were up $1.27 to $54.47 a barrel Monday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the market's best close since November, analysts said.

Are Wall Street speculators driving up gasoline prices?  Oil and gasoline prices are rising fast as Memorial Day weekend approaches, but not because supplies are tight or demand is high.  U.S. crude-oil inventories are at their highest levels in almost two decades, and demand has fallen to a 10-year low, but crude oil prices have climbed more than 70 percent since mid-January to a six-month high of $62.04 on Wednesday [5/20/2009].

Gas prices jump significantly.  You may have gotten a real shock at the pump if you noticed around a 30 cent jump almost overnight.  Prices were coming in at around $2.27 a gallon for regular unleaded.  That's up around 30 cents from where it has been.  AAA says there are several things at play here.

Why haven't gas prices gone down with the lower price of crude oil?  Crude oil prices are down, so why hasn't the price of gasoline dropped at your local station?

Crude oil is getting cheaper — so why isn't gas?  Crude oil prices have fallen to new lows for this year.  So you'd think gas prices would sink right along with them.  Not so.  On Thursday [2/12/2009], for example, crude oil closed just under $34 a barrel, its lowest point for 2009.  But the national average price of a gallon of gas rose to $1.95 on the same day, its peak for the year.  On Friday gas went a penny higher.

A Funny Sort of Depression.  The sudden crash in energy prices may be hurting Iran, the Gulf monarchies, Russia and Venezuela.  Yet Americans, who import 60 percent of their transportation fuel, along with natural gas, have been given about a half-trillion-dollar annual reprieve.  The reduced price of energy could translate into more than $1,500 in annual savings for the average driver, and hundreds of dollars off the heating and cooling bills for the homeowner.

California adopts first regulation to limit greenhouse gas emissions from fuel.  California took aim today at the oil industry and its effect on global warming, adopting the world's first regulation to limit greenhouse gas emissions from the fuel that runs cars and trucks.  The state Air Resources Board voted 9-1 in favor of the complex new rule, which is expected to slash the state's gasoline consumption by a quarter in the next decade.

Commission recommends federal gas tax increase.  As Washington struggles to find ways to fund highway improvements, a congressionally created commission on Thursday [2/26/2009] called for a 10-cent-a-gallon increase in the federal gas tax, while proposing that the country move to a system of charging motorists for how much they drive.  The idea of a tax increase would probably face strong resistance from lawmakers seeking reelection and consumers already reeling in a tough economy.

California Gas Stations Shut Under Expensive Mandate.  Nearly 100 California gas stations are being forced out of business by a statewide mandate requiring them to implement expensive new equipment to reduce vapor emissions at the pump.  The mandate, issued by the California Air Resources Board (CARB), is known as Phase II of the state's Enhanced Vapor Recovery program.  It requires gas station owners to purchase and install devices to prevent vapors from escaping when customers fill their cars.

Commission Urges 50 Percent Hike in Federal Gas Tax.  Motorists are driving less and buying less gasoline, which means fuel taxes aren't raising enough money to keep pace with the cost of road, bridge and transit programs.  A federal commission created by Congress to find a way to make up the growing revenue shortfall in the program that funds highway repairs and construction is talking about increasing federal gas and diesel taxes.  A roughly 50 percent increase in gasoline and diesel fuel taxes is being urged by the commission until the government devises another way for motorists to pay for using public roads.

Gag The Guzzlers.  Congress is considering legislation that would give drivers of gas guzzlers a financial incentive to get rid of their cars.  Where was this program when gasoline prices were at $4 a gallon?

Truckers protesting high fuel prices.  Independent truckers around the country pulled their rigs off the road and others slowed to a crawl on major highways in a loosely organized protest of high fuel prices.  Some truckers, on CB radios and trucking Web sites, had called for a strike Tuesday to protest the high cost of diesel fuel….

Bush and Congress Should Lift Environmental Restrictions on Energy Production.  With American consumers currently paying the highest gasoline prices in recent history, and after another winter of high heating costs, many Americans are properly concerned about America's energy future.  Predictably, many politicians and commentators blame the "greed" of U.S. energy companies for the soaring prices.  The truth, however, is that prices rise when demand increases relative to supply, and that the American supply of energy is being strangled by the policies of U.S. federal and state governments.

Astonishing!
Gas Shenanigans:  During this unprecedented increase in oil and gas prices, … we, the United States, are allowing the sale of gasoline refined domestically.  That's right … we're sending gasoline out of the country.  The very same gas, is refined here, then shipped to Mexico — where subsidies put in place by the Mexican government allow Mexican citizens to purchase gas at half the price Americans pay.

Gasoline, Oil and the Economy:  Despite the current gas price relief, growing numbers of Americans remain wary of domestic gasoline supply, gas prices, and fear for their economic future.  They are wary of the OPEC nations, who can throttle supply on political whim; and, they fear that, should they lose their job, how will they be able to buy food, gas, and pay for their home.  Their worry is understandable.  Perhaps, it is also wise — if their worry serves as a catalyst for demanding specific action by elected officials.

High gas prices lead to surge in mass transit.  It's standing-room-only on many commuter buses from Washington's suburbs.  Rail systems from Boston to Los Angeles are begging passengers to shift their travel to non-peak hours.  And some seats have been removed from San Francisco's subway cars to allow more people to cram in.  Around the country, high gas prices are helping to push more people to leave their cars at home and crowd onto trains, buses and subways.

More information about Mass Transit and Car Pooling .

What makes up the price of gas?  Once oil is pumped from the ground, it can be sold on the spot market, a last-minute trading arena where oil companies and distributors buy and sell to each other, or straight to refiners.  After it's brewed into gasoline, the product can again be sold on the spot market, or directly to wholesalers, who in turn can supply their own stations or sell it to other retailers.  Each step of the way, buyers and sellers negotiate a price until, finally, drivers pay the ultimate tab at the pump.

Speaker Pushing Stealth Renewal of Congressional Energy Embargo.  Having failed to pass the required measures to fund the government for the next fiscal year, Congress must now pass what is known as a Continuing Resolution (CR) in order to avoid a government shutdown.  A draft of the resolution contains a provision taken from the recently passed House bill, H.R. 6899, to continue the ban on energy exploration and production on nearly all of the taxpayer owned Outer Continental Shelf in the lower 48 states for another year.

Gas prices blame game:  [Scroll down]  It's also worth noting that oil companies are probably the most investigated companies in America.  Every few years, outraged legislators demand that the Federal Trade Commission determine whether oil companies are colluding to inflate prices.  Repeatedly, federal regulators find that they aren't.

Average gas price drops below $3 a gallon.  The national average price of a gallon of gasoline has fallen below $3 for the first time since February.  The average price for a gallon of regular gas was $2.991 Saturday [10/18/2008], according to the AAA's daily survey of up to 100,000 self serve gas stations by the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express.  That's down from $3.040 Friday.  A year ago, the national average price of a gallon of gas was $2.81, according to AAA.  A month ago, it was $3.835.

Republican talks fuel prices; Dems tout their agendas.  Sen. John McCain on Tuesday [4/15/2008] called for a summer-long suspension of the federal gasoline tax and several tax cuts.  To help people weather the economic downturn immediately, the Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting urged Congress to institute a "gas-tax holiday" by suspending the 18.4 cent federal gas tax and 24.4 cent diesel tax from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

Global Warming Holiday:  Most of the price of gasoline is determined by the global price of crude oil, which is spiking now due to a combination of the weak dollar and commodity speculation.  The source of the problem isn't the tax.  Domestic demand for gas always goes up with summer driving, but the McCain holiday doesn't affect production, and anyway, only applies over the short term.  More notably, it makes a hash out of the climate-change policies that the candidate purports to favor.

Shell Oil president:  To cut price, produce more gasoline in U.S..  John Hofmeister, president of Shell Oil Co., the U.S. division of Royal Dutch Shell, addressed rising gasoline prices during an interview Wednesday [4/30/2008] with John Roberts on CNN's "American Morning." … "I say we need more gas to be produced in this country.  I've been saying that for three years, ever since I took this position [as president of Shell].  If the U.S. set a goal to produce 2 to 3 million barrels more a day in this country, we would send a shock around the world that would immediately say to the speculators, hey, U.S. is serious."

Aging refineries drive price at the pump.  It is not ExxonMobil or Middle Eastern oil producers who are driving the price of gasoline you pay at the pump.  It is shortages of gas and other problems at aging refineries in your neighborhoods.

Group trying to stop BP refinery expansion.  The Natural Resources Defense Council filed a federal court appeal Wednesday [7/9/2008], alleging that BP Whiting's air permit will allow an expanded refinery to emit substantially more pollution than the Clean Air Act allows.  The environmental group hopes the lawsuit will send BP and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management back to the drawing board to draft a new, more stringent permit.

Environmental Group Sues to Block Oil Refinery Expansion.  An environmental group on Wednesday filed a lawsuit intended to stop the expansion of a BP oil refinery in Whiting, Indiana.  A shortage of oil refining capacity is often mentioned as one reason for soaring gasoline prices.

Gas could fall to $2 if Congress acts, analysts say.  The price of retail gasoline could fall by half, to around $2 a gallon, within 30 days of passage of a law to limit speculation in energy-futures markets, four energy analysts told Congress on Monday [6/23/2008].

Gulf Oil CEO says gas could hit $1 next year.  Gulf Oil CEO Joe Petrowski said on Wednesday [12/3/2008] that the price of oil could sink to $20 per barrel, and there is a chance gasoline prices could drop as low as $1 per gallon by early next year.  Speaking at a South Shore Chamber of Commerce breakfast at Lombardo's in Randolph, the Brockton native said that after speculators drove oil prices up, there is a chance that the market will overshoot on the way back down, resulting in much lower prices at the pump.

Who Is Really Responsible For The High Prices You Pay For Gasoline?  For the last 28 years, Democrats in Congress and a few Republicans have again and again opposed our drilling for oil in Alaska's ANWR area when we knew it contained at least 10 billion barrels of oil we could be using now.  For the past 31 years, Congress repeatedly prevented us from building any new oil refineries that we now badly need.  More recently, congressional Democrats defeated and discouraged any bill that would let us drill in the deep sea 100 miles out.  However, it's somehow OK for China to drill there.

Top 10 reasons to blame Democrats for soaring gasoline prices:  If Bill Clinton had signed into law the Republican Congress's 1995 bill to allow drilling of ANWR instead of vetoing it, ANWR could be producing a million barrels of (non-Opec) oil a day — 5% of the nation's consumption.  Although speaking in another context, even Democrat Senator Charles Schumer, no proponent of ANWR drilling, admits that "one million barrels per day," would cause the price of gasoline to fall "50 cents a gallon almost immediately," according to a recent George Will column.

Turn up the heat on Congress to bring gas prices down.  Senators and representatives know there is growing anger and frustration in the body politick over rising gas prices.  They know their excuses for inaction are not flying with the public, says the editor and founder of WND.  Joseph Farah is taking the unusual action of launching an ad hoc political movement in the waning days of the second session of the 110th Congress.

Blame Democrats for high gas prices.  Two years ago then Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi boldly proclaimed, "Democrats have a common-sense plan to help bring down skyrocketing gas prices."  Since she became speaker of the House, gas prices have skyrocketed from about $2.33 per gallon to $3.85 as I write this.

Energy a Democratic minus?  Gasoline prices are flattening consumer wallets and hobbling our economy, while the Democrats sit back and play politics with the issue.  Voter surveys show the economy and gas prices top the list of the most critical issues facing our country.  A Washington Post/ABC News poll reported last week that 85 percent of voters polled said gas prices will be either extremely or very important to their vote in this year's elections.

Drivers blame D.C. for high gas prices.  Fed up with record gas prices, drivers often scapegoat big oil companies for high prices at the pump, but in a recent survey, more Americans directed their scorn towards Washington lawmakers.  According to a Consumer Reports Auto Pulse Survey released Thursday [6/26/2008], 77% of consumers said the root of high gas prices lies with the government's failure to implement an effective energy policy.

Cussin' At The Pump Won't Fix The Problem.  These days, each gas station and each grocery store receipt shows American citizens how much they are paying for politicians who sold out to radical environmentalists and liberal social engineers.  That's the cost of bad political leadership.  How so?  Since the 1970s, liberal politicians in Congress have passed laws that have locked up most of our oil reserves, stopped the construction of refineries and virtually banned the building of nuclear power plants.  Every time we buy food, pump fuel or pay a natural gas or electric bill, we pay a price for these foolish policy decisions.

What's not to like?  Time magazine's recent piece "10 Things You Can Like About $4 Gas" exposes the twisted thinking of watermelons (green on the outside, Red on the inside).  While acknowledging Americans' only recourse today is to "adapt just by suffering," the article celebrates the benefits of record gasoline prices.

Democrats Float Bill to Curb Gasoline Demand.  Anxious to look like they're doing something about rising oil and gas prices — but unwilling to expand domestic oil drilling — Democrats have introduced a bill that's supposed to ease pain at the pump by offering alternatives to driving.  The bill does nothing to increase domestic energy supply.

Fossil Fool.  As pressure builds to develop America's domestic energy resources, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid now says it's a health issue.  Coal and oil, he says, make us sick.  So why does he oppose nuclear power?

How much have the Democrats cost you at the pump?  Senator Chuck Schumer claims that coercing Saudi Arabia to increase oil production by 1 million barrels a day would drop the per barrel price by $25, saving Americans 62 cents per gallon at the gas pump.  Yet, somehow, that same amount of oil coming from Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would only ease oil prices by a penny.

When You Fill Up the Tank Thank Congress for High Gas Prices.  Left-wingers want to have their cake and eat it too, of course:  they simultaneously insist that oil is running out, its use is ruining our environment and should stop as soon as possible, and that oil gas should still be cheap at the pump. … How stupid do they think we are?  How is it possible to simultaneously wean ourselves from oil and the carbon dioxide emissions that stems from it, keep oil cheap and abundant, drill for oil absolutely nowhere, and sue oil companies without hurting consumers?  Oh, and don't forget to slap a "windfall profits" tax on the oil companies just for good measure.

Ball Squarely In Congress' Court.  If this "lame duck" president succeeds in exposing this do-nothing Congress' self-serving pettiness in the midst of so much consumer pain at the pump, things might not turn out as badly for Republicans this November as the pundits predict.

The Marxist tactic of Crisis revolution:  The current revolutionary cry is to tax the "greedy," American-owned oil companies for their "wind-fall" profits.  In much the same way that [Bill] Clinton spoke of gun companies in the 1990s, today's Democrats demean oil companies with their "shame on you for what you're doing to the American people" approach, while simultaneously refusing to allow domestic drilling, to increase offshore drilling, or to drill in ANWR.  Like Clinton, the Congressional Democrats, who have created the current crisis, will allow a certain degree of suffering on the part of the people in order to insure their agenda is furthered.

Dems Skip Town:  Empty Promises Revealed.  Right now middle-class Americans are suffering from expensive-energy induced inflation.  We all know the adverse consequences pain at the pumps has wrought.  So what does "the most open" House majority of all time do when a fair and honest debate over drilling doesn't exactly help them?  They dodge the debate for weeks.  They disingenuously lead the American people to believe that oil and gas won't necessarily be a part of our energy needs in the future.

Fueling a Furor:  Beyond the finger-pointing, it's important for Americans to understand that America's "big oil" industry did not place us in our current predicament.  Congress and state legislatures — with the aid of special interests groups — are largely to blame.  The inescapable reality is that our nation needs and uses a lot of energy.  And without policies that encourage increased domestic production of energy, fuel will get even more expensive.

Too "Complex"?  The problem is not that supply and demand is such a complex explanation.  The problem is that supply and demand is not an emotionally satisfying explanation.  For that, you need melodrama, heroes and villains.  It is clear that many people prefer to blame President Bush.  Others prefer to blame the oil companies, who have long been the favorite villains of the left.  Politicians understand that.

Common glitch at pump adds to gas costs, also cheats station.  Angry about the price of gas?  Just imagine paying for gas you don't get.  Some alert consumers have noticed it over the years:  A pump that seems to hesitate a second when the lever is squeezed.  Anywhere from 2 to 6 cents tick off before the rush of gasoline starts.  That's what happens with a common, hard to diagnose and mostly ignored problem with the "check valve," which is supposed to make sure gas flows at the same time the price meter starts.  But even if your gas pump works, it can still be off as much as $5 for every fill up.  Tests by local regulators allow a pump to charge as much as 6 cents more than the gas delivered in a five-gallon test.

As gas nears $4, Minneapolis eyes limits on engine idling.  Minneapolis City Council members today [5/15/2008] will hear from city staff members about a proposed ordinance to restrict vehicle idling in most cases to 3 minutes.

Update:
Minneapolis limits vehicle idling to three minutes.  The Minneapolis City Council and Mayor R.T. Rybak approved changes Friday [6/6/2008], to the city's vehicle idling ordinance that aims to reduce air pollution.  The ordinance limits mostvehicle idling to three minutes, except in traffic.

Should Madison ban the drive-through?  First it was a proposed ban on plastic bags.  Now, a member of the influential Madison Plan Commission wants to ban the restaurant drive-through — or at least restrict the ubiquitous symbol of America's auto-centric lifestyle.  "Given the concern about all the carbon going into the atmosphere, I'm not sure we should be building more places for people to sit idling in their cars," says Eric Sundquist, who was appointed to the citizen panel by Mayor Dave Cieslewicz this spring.

Chicanery alert!
There is a big difference between "carbon going into the atmosphere" and carbon dioxide going into the atmosphere.

Gas thefts are on the rise.
A New Way to Guzzle Gas:  In the past the most common form of fuel theft was to drive away from the station without paying.  Station owners have fought back in recent years by forcing drivers to pay before fueling.  These days 99 percent of the nation's million-plus pumps have that requirement, according to the NACS. … Because of the prepayment requirement, thieves have had to devise more creative schemes.

Thieves Find Easy, Lucrative Work In Siphoning Fuel From Cars, Stations.  With average prices of more than $4 a gallon for unleaded and $5 for diesel fuel, siphoning has become an easy and profitable crime of opportunity, officials said. … Pilfering gas requires little more than a hose and a container, although the low-tech method might involve a mouthful of fuel to get the flow going.

U-Haul:  Crooked renters refill gas tank with water.  Crooks have come up with a new scam to get out of paying for gas, and it's costing truck rental companies thousands of dollars.  Crooks reportedly rent U-Haul trucks then, when the time comes to return the truck, top off the tank with water instead of gas, wrecking the engine.  U-Haul dealers say the scam has become more prevalent as gas prices continue to rise.

Take it from UPS:  Left turns waste gas.  UPS routes are designed to avoid left turns.  Idling while waiting to turn left wastes time and gas.  This tip shaved 29 million miles off its U.S. drivers' routes last year, saving UPS more than 3 million gallons of gas.

At $9 per gallon, British driving habits change.  Pump nozzle in hand, Lisa Atkins keeps a close eye on the digital display rapidly adding up the pounds.  Gone are the days when she'd routinely fill the gas tank to the brim.  She now has to be more cautious.

House Republicans vow push on oil drilling.  With the November congressional and presidential elections looming, Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are blaming each other for rising energy costs and gasoline prices that are topping $4 a gallon.  Republicans cited Democratic opposition to opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and more offshore areas to oil and gas exploration and drilling.

The Moral Imperative for Drilling:  The other day in a poor part of Central California, I talked with a number of folks at a rural gas station.  Most drove second- and third-hand pickups, large cast-off sedans or used SUVs.  They didn't have the cash to buy a new fuel-efficient Honda or Toyota.  And they were now spending a day or two of their wages just to fuel their cars.

Congress, Get Off Your Gas, and Drill.  With gas at $4 per gallon, roughly two cars in every household, and the average annual gas usage at 700 gallons, you do the math.  Americans are being forced to use their hard-earned money that once put food in their stomachs to put petroleum in their tanks and to drive the exact same distances they drove a decade ago for four to five times the price.

Senators Warn Bill Could Spike Gas $1.50 to $5 a Gallon.  Worried about gas prices hitting $4 a gallon and beyond?  Imagine if they were $6, $7 or even $8 a gallon.  Those levels are a certain possibility should Congress pass cap-and-trade legislation, which could face a vote in early June.  Oil is trading at record levels, in excess of $120 a barrel.  Leading Republican Sens. James Inhofe (Okla.) and Jeff Sessions (Ala.) both told the Business & Media Institute (BMI) energy prices would drastically increase if the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act (S. 2191) is signed into law.

Price of petrol to stay high for 8 years.  As oil prices reached an all-time high, experts forecast the cost of petrol could hit an average of £1.21 per litre within months.  Over the next two years it could even climb as high as £1.46, they said.  Petrol currently costs an average of £1.13 per litre following a month of almost daily price rises.

Gasoline May Soon Cost a Sawbuck.  Get ready for another economic shock of major proportions — a virtual doubling of prices at the gas pump to as much as $10 a gallon.  That's the message from a couple of analytical energy industry trackers, both of whom, based on the surging oil prices, see considerably more pain at the pump than most drivers realize.

$4 a gallon could seem cheap, analysts say.  If oil reaches $200 a barrel as some analysts have said it could, forget $4-per-gallon gasoline.  Think $6.64, according to a Rice University analysis of the link between prices of crude and gasoline.

Petrol-buying panic in Britain.  British motorists are in a petrol-buying panic after a North Sea pipeline that supplies 40 percent of the country's oil and gas was shut down because of a strike at a major refinery. ... The pipeline takes more than 700,000 barrels of crude oil ashore every day and supplies Britain and international markets.

Gas crisis?  Think back about 35 years.  Amid the $4-a-gallon mutterings — and, hey, I'm not thrilled about gas prices either — some perspective, please.  This is nothing compared to the gas crisis nearly 35 years ago.

Gas Prices — Dems are getting exactly what they fought for.  The world knows that with the power structure in Congress that's been in place since long before the Democrats took over the majority, the Dem will fight against and, in fact, will not allow 1) any more domestic oil production; 2) any more domestic refining capacity; and 3) the further development of any existing technology, such as nuclear, that could have an immediate and significant impact on our domestic energy production.  Couple that with domestic policy thrusts that are designed to increase the price of gasoline at the pump... you get the picture.

Bush faults Democrats for gas prices.  President Bush yesterday characterized Capitol Hill Democrats as hypocrites for demanding that Saudi Arabia pump more oil while blocking attempts to increase domestic drilling in such places as Alaska and the Gulf of Mexico.

As Gas Prices Rose, Democrats Ignored Opportunities to Help Production.  Gasoline today at the pump is $1.25 more, on average, than it was when the Democrats took over Congress.  Why is that a good place to measure?  Because during that period, we've had an opportunity to build more refineries, and the Democratic majority voted it down.  We've had an opportunity to open up additional parts of the Outer Continental Shelf and the Democratic majority voted it down.  It's clear that on the production side of the equation, this new majority is not interested in doing anything.

Like Your $5 Gas?  When it comes to crippling, racist, and economically debilitating energy policy liberals have truly paralyzed America.  And they seem proud of their efforts.  In the left's refusal to allow us to seek new energy sources they are stunting a nation's economy, they are hurting the average family, and they are starving hungry children. … They also express abject resentment towards anyone who dares to mention the obvious — that it is their policies that put us in this mess to begin with and disallows our escape from it.

Democrats Solve Oil Crisis!  Democrats have been in charge of the House of Representatives for more than two years now, and the price of gas is a whopping $1.61 higher than it was when they took control of the House and Senate — a 58 percent increase!  What was their plan in 2006?  It was to empower the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute oil companies engaged in price gouging and market manipulation.  How would they prove this?  By doing what they do best:  Govern by subpoena.

Democrats Fumble Ball On Energy.  [Nancy Pelosi] and congressional Democrats have pursued energy "price-gougers," even though more than 17 studies have shown the practice is virtually nonexistent; they've punished "Big Oil" with higher taxes, while handing subsidies to alternative energy; and they've sought to punish "market manipulators."  None of these ideas work.

The Drill-Nothing Congress.  The average price for regular gas hit $4 a gallon over the weekend.  Gas prices have risen 75% since Nancy Pelosi took over.  Where's the energy independence Democrats promised two years ago?

Voters Say "Drill".  Public worry number one is now oil, jobs, and the economy, with the inflationary woes of the U.S. dollar right underneath.  The candidate who can connect with these issues will win in November.  But so far neither Obama nor McCain are dealing with the new political reality.  In fact, it's all about oil right now.  The price has doubled over the past year while the economy has slumped.

Why So High?  One major reason for this overall rise in prices is because the dollar does not buy as much as it used to.  And the reason the dollar does not buy as much as it used to is because the Federal Reserve System (along with the U.S. Treasury Department) is inundating our economy with newly created dollars.  Their intent is to finance the federal government's massive expenditures as well as to prevent a deepening recession.

Pump price vapors:  Regulation of gasoline prices doesn't work, and, by and large, our politicians know it doesn't work.  There's no escaping those remorseless facts.  Why worry at this point about regulation of energy?  The numbers on the gasoline pump tell us.  Anything above $3 a gallon is bad news, unless we adjust our expectations or start riding bicycles.  Then, memories of past government interventions — the price controls of the '70s and the lines that ensued at the gasoline pump, the "windfall profits" tax on oil profits — make chillier the sensations moving up and down the spine.  Regulation isn't equivalent to "solution" of anything.

Gas prices and $100 oil.  This week, a barrel of oil closed near $100, but why are gas prices still the same as when oil was $75 per barrel?  The refiners say gas prices are two-thirds controlled by the crude price.  If that held true from one gas price to another, gas should be at $4 right now.  Well it's not that expensive, but gas is headed higher in a time when it should be slumping.

Gasoline prices hit new high.  U.S. average retail gasoline prices have reached a new high of almost $3.20 per gallon and will likely jump another 20 to 30 cents in the next month, worsening the pain of consumers struggling to make ends meet in an economic downturn.  Gasoline prices are rising sharply as refiners, who have kept prices down in order to compete for sales, become more willing to pass on their higher costs of crude oil, according to an industry analyst on Sunday [3/9/2008].

$4-a-gallon gas forecast in some areas.  Gasoline prices in the coming months are likely to top $4 a gallon in some parts of the country, and perhaps nationally, the government said Tuesday.  According to the monthly report of the Energy Information Administration, the non-partisan statistical arm of the U.S. Energy Department, the monthly nationwide average gasoline price is likely to peak at $3.48 a gallon in May and June.

How Close Is $4-Per-Gallon Gasoline?  Would the price of crude oil have to rocket up $40 more per barrel for us to see $4-per-gallon gasoline?  If you use the back-of-the-envelope calculation that the government's chief energy forecaster employed Monday [11/12/2007] to gauge how much more pain at the pump is headed our way, it would indeed take nearly $140-per-barrel crude oil to add a dollar to the pump price.  But we may not have to wait that long.

Gasoline at $4 Coming to a Pump Near You.  Whether it's $50 to fill up your Prius or $130 for the Ford Expedition, $4-a-gallon gasoline is coming to a pump near you.  Fuel prices are rising at a pace not seen since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita knocked out a third of the U.S. oil refining industry in 2005.

Oil hits a high; some in U.S. see $4 gas by spring.  Gasoline prices, which for months lagged the big run-up in the price of oil, are suddenly rising quickly, with some experts fearing they could hit $4 a gallon by spring.  Diesel is hitting new records daily and oil closed at an all-time high on Tuesday of $100.88 a barrel.

Or maybe not...
Gasoline could drop 50 cents/gallon by spring.  U.S. drivers could enjoy a drop of up to 50 cents per gallon in gasoline prices by this spring as high fuel prices and the threat of a recession force them to conserve, experts said on Wednesday [2/6/2008].  U.S. gasoline supplies hit a near-14-year high of 227.5 million barrels last week, helped by falling demand for the fuel, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

Or maybe so...
Price at the pump likely to reach $4.  Gasoline prices could break the $4 barrier in some places this summer despite falling demand in the United States, the world's largest oil consumer, the government's energy forecasting agency said yesterday [4/8/2008].  Diesel prices already have soared past $4 a gallon, and prices for regular gas are verging on $4 in high-cost states like California.

Michigan Congressman Wants 50-Cent Tax Hike on Every Gallon of Gas.  A Michigan congressman wants to put a 50-cent tax on every gallon of gasoline to try to cut back on Americans' consumption. … Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., wants to help cut consumption with a gas tax but some don't agree with the idea, according to a new poll by the National Center for Public Policy Research.

The Editor says...
Apparently the congressman doesn't understand the concept of supply and demand. The high price of gasoline will reduce consumption without government intervention. He's just looking for an excuse to raise taxes, and a way to make the US economy look worse than it really is during an election year.

Oil investors welcome high prices at pump.  Regular gasoline prices vaulted to a once unthinkable record of $3.42 a gallon yesterday [4/17/2008], paining most Americans but pleasing a growing contingent of investors who are profiting from the fast-rising price of fuel.  Scott Lee, a small investor from Georgia who owns oil company stock, said it's the reason he is not bothered by rising pump prices.

The Wacky World of Oil:  Throughout the USA, the number of gasoline stations has been systematically cut in half since the 80's.  This cuts supply outlets and reduces retail outlet competition.  In California and elsewhere, states now require gasoline stations over a certain age to dig up and replace their worn out underground storage tanks and clean up these alleged "hazard pollution site" — whether they are leaking or not.  Independent, privately-owned gasoline stations can't afford the hundreds of thousands of dollars to comply, so they often close down.

Bicyclists, transit officials and environmentalists are happy about high gas prices.  The $3 gas prices posted at the station he passes on the way to work give Kevin Ishaug 20 miles to gloat over how much he saves commuting by bike.  Ishaug, owner of the Freewheel Bike shop in Minneapolis, is one of those people who welcome higher prices at the pump.  It brings more people into his shop for new bikes or repairs, as they switch to muscle-powered transportation to save money.

Refusal to drill impacts gas prices.  You no doubt have noticed all of the headlines concerning the recent escalation in the price of oil. … While these headlines caught your eye, there was another one that probably didn't:  "SF County Approves Drilling Moratorium."  With a unanimous vote the Santa Fe County Commission, with the governor's full support, laid down a moratorium of at least one year on the granting of any drilling permits in the Galisteo Basin.  The 100 people in attendance stood and cheered the Commission's decision.

RV sales up despite high gas prices.  Americans are defying high gas prices and jumping into gas guzzling recreational vehicles for their summer vacations. … Sales of RVs have shot up 22% in the past three calendar years.

The Editor says...
I suspect the popularity of RV's is partly because of the inconvenience, delays and invasive searches people routinely encounter at the airports.

Energy Bill Won't Bring Gas Price Breaks for '08.  Despite claims that the newly passed energy bill will reduce the amount that consumers pay at the pump, recent government projections show the cost of energy rising over the next year in the United States.  The president signed the energy bill in late December.  The week before the bill was signed into law, the Energy Information Administration at the Department of Energy estimated that the cost of gasoline would average well over $3 per gallon in 2008, with gasoline prices peaking at over $3.40 per gallon this spring.

Big Gas Price Hike Likely Come Springtime.  Experts are predicting pump prices, which jumped by almost a dollar a gallon in each of the last two springs in many parts of the United States, will spike again this year as refiners and gas stations switch from winter- to summer-blended fuels.

Gas whine is a sure sign.  Funny isn't it that charges of price fixing are never levelled at gas retailers when prices go down all at once?  A report released yesterday by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives called, Gas price gouge:  The sequel, claims that Canadians have been ripped off at the pump ever since Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc with refineries in the fall of 2005.

Canadian drivers should expect record gas prices.  Canadian drivers should brace themselves for record gasoline prices this spring if crude oil stays in the $90-a-barrel range, experts say.  "They could be getting into the $1.30, $1.40, maybe even the $1.50 range per litre," said Jason Toews, one of the founders of GasBuddy.com, a website designed to help motorists find the best deals at the pump.

CNN's Wastler Backs $1 Gas Tax Hike.  Gas prices are high, but CNN wants them higher.  Lots higher.  CNN's Allen Wastler told viewers April 28 that the government should increase the price with a huge new tax.  "Put in a tax to make it $4 a gallon right now," he urged.

Gas prices:  How high?  Could Americans actually see a $4 price tag on a gallon of gasoline?  There are analysts out there that would argue yes — in fact, they're saying it could happen as soon as this summer. … [Glen] Schuler says uncertainty is the culprit — uncertainty of the Gulf of Mexico hurricane season, in Iran, Nigeria and in oil-producing countries in general.  That is pushing the price of oil higher, which in turn makes gas more expensive at the pump.

Michigan's gas prices among highest in the country.  On the eve of a proposed nationwide protest, Michigan gas prices reached $3.27 a gallon, their highest levels ever, making the state's gas the third most expensive in the country.  Since Jan. 22, Michigan consumers have seen pump prices shoot up a total of $1.31.  In addition, Michiganders are now paying 20 cents more than the national average, as industry observers continue to blame refinery outages and capacity issues for the sharp increase in costs.

Econ 101:  How to Reduce Gas Consumption.  In 1931 Harold Hotelling published a paper, "The Economics of Exhaustible Resources," that showed that the market process efficiently allocates the exploitation of a non-renewable resource over time.  His basic point is that as the supply of a resource shrinks, the price begins to rise.  That leads to an effect on the demand side.  As the price of oil rises, people will use less oil.

Fill 'er up, Cheyenne.  In a turnaround from last fall, gasoline prices in Cheyenne now rank among the lowest of all the state capitals in the nation.  Back then, the price of gas here stubbornly remained higher than in neighboring states that have a history of charging more for a gallon of regular unleaded.  On Monday [1/8/2007], when the twice-monthly Lundberg Survey of gasoline prices was released, Cheyenne topped the list of low prices at $2.09 a gallon.

Greens all talk, no action on global-warming cuts.  A survey by Deloitte & Touche in the summer found virtually no change in consumer energy use and driving habits despite grumbling about skyrocketing heating and electric bills and gasoline prices that twice reached more than $3 a gallon since 2005.  Americans also have been slow to spend more to buy more fuel-efficient cars and appliances and make their homes more energy efficient.

Soaring gas prices drive scooter sales skyward.  Record gasoline prices are fueling a boom in sales of fuel-efficient scooters across the United States, as commuters ditch their gas-guzzlers and don helmets and goggles to beat high prices at the pump.

If you own a yacht or a limo or an airplane I do not feel sorry for you.
High fuel prices keep boaters closer to harbor.  Bill Bouwens relaxed on his 36-foot express cruiser this week in Waukegan Harbor, where his boat will stay docked a lot more often this summer.  That's the sacrifice Bouwens says he'll make because filling up his 300-gallon tank costs a whopping $1,300 or more.

With RVs, the road's less traveled.  Bill and Barbara Wright sold their house in Georgia two years ago and drove off in their RV with plans to visit 50 states in five years.  But record fuel prices have forced them to cut their annual mileage in half, add at least a year to the schedule, and give up their dream of driving to Alaska.

Driving less?  It's costing the state.  High gas and parking prices are convincing people to drive less.  Statewide, traffic volumes are down by two percent. … The high price of gas is the real problem.  It's got most of us trying to figure out where we can cut back.  But every time you save a gallon, it costs the state 36 cents.

Funds for Highways Plummet As Drivers Cut Gasoline Use.  An unprecedented cutback in driving is slashing the funds available to rebuild the nation's aging highway system and expand mass-transit options, underscoring the economic impact of high gasoline prices.  The resulting financial strain is touching off a political battle over government priorities in a new era of expensive oil.

Oklahoma's painful car culture:  For many people in Oklahoma, life is built around the car.  With several refineries in the region, years of cheap fuel have made it possible for many people to live far from their jobs.  Now the situation is unraveling.

Gasoline at $6 vs warming?  It's hard to say which is scarier — apocalyptic global warming scenarios or the economic impact of some of the proposals designed to prevent them.  A recent European Environment Agency (EEA) study reported greenhouse-gas emissions from motor vehicles continue rising due to increased driving, despite heavy fuel taxes that boost prices there above $6 per gallon.  Even with gas prices more than twofold that in the U.S., Europe falls short of its global-warming goals.

You Can't Fuel All of the People All of the Time.  Environmentalists are constantly clamoring for higher gas taxes as the cure-all to their insane global warming theory.  Clinton proposed a 26-cent tax on gas.  John Kerry said it should be 50 cents.  Gore endorsed the Malthusian proposal of Paul and Anne Ehrlich in "The Population Explosion" that gas taxes be raised gradually to match prices in Europe and Japan.  The result is consumers now pay about 46 cents per gallon in gasoline taxes.

Prices at the pump: how low will they go?  Amid the recent avalanche of bleak economic news, one small bright spot has emerged:  Gasoline has gotten a lot cheaper.  After topping $4 nationwide this summer, pump prices are down more than a dollar a gallon in the past month alone and even have fallen below $2 in parts of the country, including some stations in Houston.

Trucking industry proposes limiting speed to save fuel.  Struggling with record diesel prices, the trucking industry's main trade group yesterday [5/8/2008] introduced a plan to reduce fuel consumption and emissions over the next decade mainly by having its members slow down.  The American Trucking Associations [wants to] limit the speed new trucks can travel to no more than 68 mph and reduce the national speed limit to 65 mph for all vehicles.

The Editor says...
Get a clue.  That idea has already been tried, and it flopped.  Richard Nixon implemented a 55 mph national speed limit, which was nothing but an annoyance, although it provided a big boost to the electronics industry.  There was a surge in the sales of CB radios, radar detectors and more advanced radar guns.  The so-called Criminal Band was expanded from 23 to 40 channels, even though 90% of the activity was on Channel 19.

Is 55 in Our Future?  If there's one thing that's worse than paying $4 per gallon for gasoline, it's the resurgent talk of lowering speed limits to conserve fuel.  Because, of course, these lowered limits won't be enforced as a "conservation" measure.  Any curtailment of speed limits will be treated as a saaaaafety issue — just as happened during the Dark Decades of the 55 mph National Maximum Speed Limit.  "Speeding" tickets will be issued and "points" assigned.  At the stroke of a lawmaker's pen (and the cop's, too) driving "x" MPH will suddenly become "unsafe," rather than merely wasteful.  This is the most intolerable aspect of the whole scam.

Higher gas prices not slowing drivers.  Even in a time of $4-a-gallon gas, the slow lane is lonely these days.  For all the griping about gas prices, there's no clamor for the return of the 55 mph speed limit of the '70s and '80s — though most agree it reduces consumption and saves money.

Return of the 55-Miles-Per-Hour Speed Limit?  Republican Senator John Warner of Virgina has asked Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman to calculate what speed would provide optimum gasoline efficiency under current technology.  In a letter to Bodman, Warner cited studies that show the 55-mile per hour national speed limit saved 167-thousand barrels of oil a day — after it was imposed by Congress in 1974 because of the Arab oil embargo.  That speed limit was repealed in 1995.

The Editor says...
The "optimum" speed is different for cars and trucks.  Why not also impose a speed limit on locomotives and buses and cargo ships?

The Insanity of Drive-55 Laws.  It didn't seem possible that politicians could think up a sillier energy proposal than Barack Obama's windfall profits tax on oil companies, but Republican Sen. John Warner of Virginia has done just that.  Earlier this month, Mr. Warner suggested a return to the federal 55-mile-per-hour speed limit on America's highways, as a way to save on national gasoline consumption.

Campaign For 55 MPH Speed Limit Renewed.  Nearly 15 years after it was removed by Congress, the effort to limit driving speed in the United States to 55 mph is back.  The national 55-miles-per-hour speed limit was introduced in 1970s.  Proposed by President Nixon and enacted in January 1974, the nationwide speed limit was supposed to be a temporary emergency response to oil shortages and was to expire in mid-1975, but Congress quickly made it permanent.

The Federal Price Gouging Protection Act

Who Is Gouging Whom?  The real gouger driving up gasoline prices is not the private sector, it is our government.  To "gouge" means to extort, to take by force — something that oil companies and gas stations have no power to do.

Gasoline Price Gouging Laws Will Not Benefit Consumers.  Sometimes the simplest solution is the best one, but not in the case of high gasoline prices.  Previous federal efforts to simply outlaw high prices through gasoline price controls have a bad track record, actually hurting consumers rather than helping them.

The Coffee Talk on Gas Prices That Isn't:  To highlight their empathy before a frustrated public, Democrats and Republicans alike in the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Federal Price Gouging Protection Act.  According to a study recently issued by American Council for Capital Formation (ACCF), the likely impact of this legislation and others like it is the imposition of price controls on gasoline similar to those in the 1970s which caused major supply disruptions, rationing and endless waiting lines for gasoline.  History is set to soon repeat itself if these bills become law.

Pumping Politics:  So if history shows that proposed anti-price-gouging legislation has fallen flat on its face, and if two federal agencies have said they haven't found any evidence of price gouging by oil and natural gas companies, and no one has been prosecuted under existing laws for price fixing, then why the new legislation?

Congress Should Not Criminalize "Price Gouging" of Gasoline.  Congressional demagoguery over prices at the pump has reached new heights in the "Federal Energy Price Protection Act of 2006" (H.R. 5253).  Though the conduct at issue, "price gouging," goes undefined in the legislation, it (whatever it is) could be punished with civil and criminal sanctions that include a $150,000,000 fine and imprisonment for up to two years.  In addition to being economically harmful, the criminal provisions of H.R. 5253 are potentially unconstitutional and certainly immoral.

What to Do About High Gasoline Prices:  In response to recent rises in gas prices, we are once again hearing calls for the government to "do something" to force prices lower.  But no matter what the price of gasoline is, such calls are wrong.  All market fluctuations in the price of gasoline, up or down, are a good thing — and none of the government's business.

Who Is "Gouging" Whom?  Last Wednesday, 79 members of the House of Representatives introduced a bill instituting criminal and civil penalties on any corporation or individual found guilty of gasoline "price gouging."  But the real gouger driving up gasoline prices is not the private sector, it is our government … which has engaged — with popular support — in the gouging of both the producers and consumers of gasoline.

'Price gouging':  One lawmaker has a plan.  Even though she admits the "problem" has not arisen in Nevada in recent memory, state Sen. Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, now offers Senate Bill 82, which seeks to ban "price gouging" by classifying as an illegal "deceptive trade practice" the sale of a consumer good or service "for an unconscionable price before or during a state of emergency."

The Gouge Party:  America was saved Tuesday from a Democratic Congress determined to do more damage to our economy and raise oil prices still higher.  Energy taxes and eco-extremism make Democrats the real oil gougers.

Requiem for a heavyweight?  The fate of the Hummer brand is up in the air.  GM, which bought the brand from military contractor AM General in 1998, has plowed a load of capital into Hummer, including $250 million for a plant expansion in Shreveport, La.  It has a pickup truck version of the mid-size H3, the H3T, in the pipeline for a summer release.  Meanwhile, product development is well along on a Jeep Wrangler-size 4x4 called the H4.

Hummer, How We Need Thee.  No set of wheels since the hapless Edsel has been as persistently reviled as the Hummer.  [But] America needs the Hummer to remind us of what has always made our automobiles stand out, from the tailfin 1950s to the muscle car 1960s and '70s: swagger.  Americans don't just drive their cars — they proclaim something about themselves by driving them.

Car rental companies caught short as demand for smaller vehicles soars.  David Sikorski went to a Hertz in Austin, Texas, last month to rent a car for a business trip to Dallas.  He'd booked a fuel-efficient mid-size sedan, hoping to keep expenses down on the 400-mile round trip.  What he got was a 16-mile-per-gallon Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle.  "I walked right back in and asked for something smaller," said the Austin computer data specialist, who eventually was given a Hyundai.  "They claimed it was an upgrade, but I sure don't want an upgrade if it means driving an SUV."

Soccer-mom stigma helping to slow down minivan sales.  Asked recently how the U.S. minivan market has been faring, Nissan Motor Co.'s Dominique Thormann had a concise answer.  "It collapsed," said Thormann, a senior vice president of Nissan North America.  While the rapid sales decline of pickup and sport utility vehicles has been grabbing the headlines, minivan sales have also taken a tumble, falling 20% during the first five months of this year.

"Supply and demand" at work:
Gas-hog owners can't sell them.  Tammy Fontanilla loves her red 2004 Dodge Ram pickup truck, but when gas prices began to soar last year, she felt she had no choice but to put it up for sale.  Problem is, there's little demand for a vehicle that gets 13 miles per gallon and costs nearly $100 to fill up.

Natural-gas stations fall behind.  Drivers of vehicles that run on natural gas have escaped prices above $4 per gallon for gasoline, but they're having to wait longer, or search harder, to fuel up along the Wasatch Front.  Many drivers of natural-gas vehicles say they have gone to filling stations in recent weeks only to find that increased demand has created insufficient pressure in the station's tank to pump the fuel.

Priceless politics, Part II:  What do prices do?  Prices impose the most effective kind of rationing — self-rationing.  Why is rationing necessary?  Because what everybody wants always adds up to more than there is.  It doesn't matter whether you are talking about a capitalist economy, a socialist economy, a feudal economy or whatever.  Resources are limited but desires are not.  That is the basic and defining problem of economics.

Wal-Mart sales may reflect gas costs.  While retailers that attract higher-income consumers continued to do well in November, others, especially Wal-Mart, may still be feeling the pinch of high fuel prices.  Wal-Mart's November sales were down 1%, and the company predicted December sales would be flat or up just 1%.

Big Oil's New Conspiracy:  We have heard much in recent months about the plot by oil companies to gouge consumers at the pump.  Now, I am writing to report another insidious plot on the part of Big Oil.  They are scheming to lower prices.  Shocking, I know.  But it is all true.

CNN talking head's conspiracy theory runs out of gas.  When gas prices shot up in spring, some in the media were quick to criticize "corporate greed," but as prices plummet, even that decline has to be a "conspiracy."

Enron and Today's Oil and Gas Prices.  If a Senate study concluded that legislation signed by George W. Bush and supported by Halliburton was partially responsible for today's high oil and gas prices, do you think you would have heard about it?  Well, such a report was released by the Senate.  However, the president that signed the law in question was William Jefferson Clinton, and the company that strongly lobbied for its passage was Enron.  Yet, mysteriously, this study was almost completely ignored.

Pain at the Pump:  Gas Prices Rise on Democrats' Watch.  Well, remember that?  The Democrats blaming the president for high gas prices, pledging to do something about it if they took control of Congress.  Well, since Election Day, the price of a gallon of gas has jumped nearly 40 percent.

Gas tax trial balloon.  A 2004 Congressional Budget Office paper concluded that if CAF standards were raised by 3.8 miles per gallon, it would take 15 years for gasoline consumption to fall by just 10 percent, and the economic cost would be high.  Raising the gas tax by 46 cents would also cut fuel consumption by 10 percent, but do so much more promptly.

More about Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards can be found here.

Paying at the Pump:  Gasoline Taxes in America.  Early gasoline taxes in the states were explicitly created in an attempt to charge road users for the privilege of using roads.  However, from the very inception of gasoline taxation, public officials have faced temptation to divert gasoline tax revenue to projects that are only tangentially related to transportation and that are often purely politically motivated.

Hawaiian gas prices dip under $3.  While still the highest in the nation, Hawaii's statewide average for gasoline has dipped below $3 a gallon for the first time in six months.  Yesterday's average for regular, self-serve unleaded was $2.98 a gallon, according to AAA's Fuel Gauge Report.  Next highest were Alaska at $2.76 and Washington state at $2.57.

7-Eleven Drops Citgo as Supplier.  7-Eleven Inc. dropped Venezuela-owned Citgo as its gasoline supplier after more than 20 years as part of a previously announced plan by the convenience store operator to launch its own brand of fuel.  7-Eleven officials said Wednesday [9/27/2006] that the decision was partly motivated by politics.

7-Eleven Dropping Venezuela-Backed Citgo.  Convenience store operator 7-Eleven Inc. is dropping Venezuela-backed Citgo as its gasoline supplier at more than 2,100 locations and switching to its own brand of fuel.

The Editor says...
Petro Express is owned by the same people as Citgo, according to various sources [1] [2] [3] [4].
I first heard of the connection from the RF Cafe.

The Russians are coming… with another Lukoil gas station.  The gas station down at the corner is taking on a bold new look.  The latest player on the block is Lukoil, a Russian oil company that holds the second largest oil reserves in the world behind only ExxonMobil.  In the past 16 months, Lukoil has been rapidly converting hundreds of Mobil service stations in the region to its own distinctive brand.

Terror Free Oil:  The gas station at 131 Street and Q used to show a Sinclair dinosaur.  Now, in big bold letters "Terror Free Oil."  The idea is to sell gasoline made from oil orginating in countries friendly to the United States.  On its website, the terror free oil organization says the U.S. is funding its own demise.

Conspiracy theories run out of gas when drivers fill their tanks.  When gasoline prices topped $3 a gallon in mid-summer, motorists were justifiably aggravated about the high price.  So now that gasoline has plunged below $2 a gallon you would think everybody would be happier.

State-by-State Motor Fuel Taxes.  Here are the latest state motor fuel tax rates effective 7/1/06. … This comprehensive summary looks at both gasoline and diesel tax rates.  Bar charts illustrating the state taxes are included. [PDF]

Decline in Gas Prices Isn't Buoying Detroit.  Just when $3-a-gallon gasoline looked as if it were here to stay, it left.  But it was around long enough to devastate Detroit's automakers by convincing many car shoppers that smaller is better.

This logic only makes sense if you're an environmentalist.
Could Lower Gas Prices Be Bad?.  From the way some people are carrying on, you would think it was the sky that was falling, not gas prices.  Heading up the field is Daniel Akst, whose op-ed piece in The New York Times today lays out the case for the negative effects of lowering gas prices.  "Anything that reinforces the role of fossil fuels — particularly oil — as the world's primary energy source, is bad, not good," Akst writes. … "Lower oil prices would promote more driving," Akst notes.

Has Citgo become a political tool for Hugo Chávez?  One of the USA's largest refiners, Citgo is a subsidiary of Venezuela's state-owned oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA).  As such, it ultimately belongs to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, an avowedly anti-American leader who counts Fidel Castro among his closest friends and mocks President Bush as a "genocidal murderer."

Katrina and the punch at the pump:  Lost amid the anniversary articles about Hurricane Katrina is how we've dealt with the energy fallout.  We've had a year to get used to $3-per-gallon gasoline and to come to grips with the vulnerability of our energy supplies.  What have we learned?  We've learned that the impact didn't have to be so bad and that Washington can take measures to ensure that the next big storm won't hurt drivers and homeowners as badly.

High Gas Prices Courtesy of Environmental Rhetoric.  As a matter of national security and as a significant boost to the American economy, it makes no sense to not assure and achieve a higher level of energy independence.  So why, in mid-May, did the House of Representatives reject an end to the quarter-century ban on oil and natural gas drilling in 85 percent of America's coastal waters?

An Energy Lesson from Cuba and China.  An unlikely political figure is willing to fight for lower gas prices.  His name:  Fidel Castro.  He's working with foreign investors, including China, to find oil off the Cuban coast, close to American waters.  In contrast, American companies aren't looking for oil off the Florida coast, because it's part of the 85 percent of the nation's offshore areas where drilling's not allowed.

House Roll Call Vote on Offshore Drilling.  The 232-187 roll call Thursday [6/29/2006] by which the House voted to end the offshore drilling ban.

Cuba oil probe spurs calls for U.S. drilling.  Congressional proponents of oil and gas drilling are pointing to Cuba's exploration off the coast of Florida — with help from China — as a prime reason to open up U.S. drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

FTC chief sees a gas-price-gouging law passing.  The head of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Thursday [11/16/2006] that Congress will probably pass a law designed to stop gasoline price-gouging after it convenes in January, despite objections from the agency.

Who is "gouging" whom at the pumps?  [Rising oil and gas prices] is an issue that affects many Americans and Democrats hope to convince those Americans that greedy Bush oil buddies are to blame.  But as usual, the real facts are quite different from the bogus campaign rhetoric … Who is getting rich at the gas pumps?  For starters, many average Americans who hold stock in the oil companies, either directly or indirectly through their 410k or mutual fund.  But the fact is, the gross profit margin for a gallon of gas in America today, is what it has always been, on average, .08 cents per gallon.

The Big Three Pump Up While Drivers Pay Out.  Detroit is pushing hot wheels this summer, figuring Americans want to play NASCAR driver in new versions of vintage muscle cars.  But a let's-burn-rubber message seems likely to stall in an era of $3-a-gallon-gas and more fuel-efficient foreign brands.

Some relief appearing at the pump.  Are gasoline prices, after hovering just below $2.90 a gallon for weeks, actually on their way down?

Big Media are Repeatedly Wrong Claiming 'Record-High' Gas Prices.  Since Hurricane Katrina swept ashore on the Gulf Coast, we've heard seemingly countless reports of "record high" gas or oil prices.  From the beginning of September last year, the big three networks — ABC, CBS and NBC — have told us about record high gas or oil prices close to 100 times.  They've been wrong each and every time.

Claim of Record High Gas Prices Tanks Under Scrutiny.  Don't believe the media hype:  Prices at the pump aren't as bad as you've been lead to believe.  Compared to what they were nearly 25 years ago, today's gas prices are a bargain.  And they're a bargain compared to other necessities, too.  According to Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average cost of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in U.S. cities was $1.41 in April 1981.  Excluding federal and state gas taxes, this meant the price was around $1.26.  In today's dollars, that would be about $2.83 per gallon.  But in May, the before-tax cost of a gallon of unleaded gasoline was just $2.29 — about 19 percent lower than that.

Governmental Viscosity Breakdown:  Members of Congress, such as Pennsylvania's Arlen Specter, who … manages to exude split-atom energy when it comes to cheerleading for bad ideas, are calling for a windfall profits tax on the oil companies.  Of course, the tax would be passed on to consumers, but Congress will deal with that later — it'll be good fodder for calling for the federalization of the oil industry.  In a Beltway culture that confuses motion with action, windfall profits taxes are but flailing victims in the quicksand of lunacy.

Higher Gas Prices Require Higher Minimum Wage, Dems Say.  Before leaving Washington, D.C., for the Memorial Day recess, Democrats in the U.S. Congress Thursday [5/25/2006] criticized Republicans for failing to "lower skyrocketing gas prices" and called for the GOP to show "real leadership" by raising the minimum wage.

Did someone mention the Minimum Wage?

Consumer mood rises on lower gas prices.  U.S. consumers were more optimistic in June as once-soaring gasoline prices eased, and the government reported that a key measure of the nation's trade deficit narrowed more than expected in the first quarter.  The University of Michigan's preliminary June index of consumer sentiment read 82.4, up from May's final reading of 79.1 and above Wall Street expectations for a reading of 79.0.

'Green' Politicians Add to Gas Price Woes.  Certainly increased demand for oil from the growing Chinese and Indian economies and instability in the Middle East are major pressures on oil prices, but both Republicans and Democrats have added to these pressures by allowing the environmental movement to tie our energy policy in knots.

Reporting on the economy is worse than the economy.  The same people who blame Bush for higher gas prices resist allowing the president to do the things he can.  This includes a suspension or reduction of taxes, permission to drill in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the outer continental shelf, and allowance for the construction of nuclear power plants.

No Way to Handle a Fuel Crisis.  There is no big oil "collusion;" the crude oil price is universal.  It was 54.8 percent of the cost of a gallon of gasoline in March and rising in response to supply concerns amid geopolitical tensions in oil-producing countries.  Federal and state taxes account for about 24 percent of the price.

We are all Marxists now.  National Public Radio's Juan Williams, appearing on Fox News Sunday, insisted repeatedly that "supply is at an eight year high" as proof that the oil companies are cheating us.  He kept repeating the phrase, as if that would make it a more sensible statement.  It didn't. … Frustrated by his inability to convince others of his nonsense, Williams then insisted that there is no connection between supply and demand.

Pumping Gas:  The facts are not pretty.  Gas prices at the pump are not going to drop significantly in the foreseeable future, no matter what Congress or federal and state governments do.  Sure, they can lower their take on a gallon of gas, which … is an average of 45 to 46 cents.  At best that would be a temporary solution.  After all, what government would be willing to long forego a great source of tax revenue?

Incendiary Ignorance:  I'd planned on ignoring the inferno of idiocy raging in the nation's capital over gas prices, but it's looking like an eternal flame.  First came the Democrats.  For more than a decade their leading lights have extolled higher gas taxes, and hence higher gas prices, to pay for everything from school roofs to the development of alternative energy sources that would usher in the economic Shangri-La of "energy independence" — whatever that is.

Say It With Me:  Supply and Demand.  Precisely 10 years ago (April 29, 1996) as gas prices reached a shocking $1.27 a gallon, President Clinton ordered his Energy and Justice Departments to launch investigations to find out why.  In my column that week, I offered a wild guess as to why:  "Supply is down and demand is up."

Energy Policy for Idiots:  In the short run, the supply of gasoline is fairly inelastic.  Current inventories of crude oil and refined products are fairly difficult to adjust, so that the supply of gasoline is what it is.  That is why it is pretty certain that drivers face a "tough summer," in the words of the President.  If the supply of gasoline is what it is, then the price of gasoline will be whatever it takes to limit demand to meet the supply.  If that means $3.00 a gallon, then consumers are going to end up paying $3.00 per gallon, no matter what the tax is on gasoline.

High gas prices cause more hot air.  The Congressional Research Service estimated in 1990 that [Jimmy] Carter's windfall profits tax (really an excise tax) decreased domestic oil production by 3 percent to 6 percent, while pumping up dependence on foreign oil by 8 percent to 16 percent.  Thank you, Congress.

Brazilian drivers opt for ethanol-gas mix.  [In Brazil], ethanol is a sort of like a miracle drug, having helped Brazil to kick its own dependence on foreign sources of oil by the end of last year.  In the United States, Brazil's success story is either a free-market solution the United States should try to match, or a pipe dream that is impossible — and dangerous — to try to copy.

Which costs more, ethanol or gasoline?  With oil topping $135 a barrel, ethanol must be cheaper than gasoline, right?  Not if you adjust for the fact that ethanol has about 30% less energy content than gasoline by volume.

Mixing gasoline and moonshine:  The House approved by a vote of 389 to 34 a plan to impose criminal penalties and fines of up to $150 million for refiners and wholesalers for "gouging," with a fine of $2 million for retailers.  It is pitiable that 389 members of the House were so eager to make a public spectacle of their economic illiteracy.  It is revealing that they totally exempted congressional moonshine — otherwise known as ethanol.

More derogatory information about ethanol can be found here.

Congressional squawking won't bring fuel prices down.  When a crisis strikes, Americans can count on Congress to swing into action.  So as gasoline prices soared toward $3 per gallon, lawmakers did what they do best:  They complained.

Gas prices and hot air:  Political hot air will not bring down gas prices.  Last week Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) claimed that gas prices are rising because too many oil companies have been allowed to merge in the last decade.  If one could identify 100 factors responsible for causing high gas prices, mergers would be number 101.

Think $2.90 for Gasoline Is High?  Try $5.17.  Public hysteria over high gasoline prices is unwarranted, according to [Jerry] Taylor.  "I actually saw an MSNBC story the other day which interviewed a pawn shop owner who said people were selling earrings and diamonds and what not to pay for gasoline.  Those kinds of stories just make me very annoyed because they are utterly unhinged and they lack a tie to reality," he said.

Government Gasoline Help?  Someone messed up all right but it was not the terrified oil executives.  Congress did it with an assist from a nervous Executive afraid to veto the bill that caused the crisis.  The one thing Congress does not promise that would actually work is for it to stop "solving" the problem.

Serious About Gas Prices.  It is disappointing that President George W. Bush has decided to make cheap political points about high gas prices instead of promoting policies that will lead to more domestic oil production and lower prices.

Gas gouge?  ExxonMobil paid $23 billion in taxes last year, which gives us some idea of the scale of an activity whose gross income exceeds the combined income of IBM, General Motors and AT&T.

Bush orders suspension of gas rules.  President Bush yesterday [4/25/2006] ordered a temporary suspension of environmental rules for gasoline, which are creating bottlenecks in U.S. gasoline markets, and announced a federal investigation into potential manipulation of gas prices that have topped $3 per gallon.

Bush on Gas Prices:  Who's He Kidding?  With gasoline prices close to $3 a gallon, President Bush this morning [4/25/2006] gave a disingenuous speech to an alternative fuels association about what he was going to do to stem the rising tide.  There were a few flashes of candor and insight, but, on the whole, it was a sad example of political capitulation by a former Texas oilman who certainly knows better.  What Bush clearly understands is that prices rise when demand increases faster than supply, and that supply is being limited in the United States by government.

$100 Rebate Checks

Here is another bad idea that went over like a lead balloon.

Senators to push for $100 gas rebate checks.  Most American taxpayers would get $100 rebate checks to offset the pain of higher pump prices for gasoline, under an amendment Senate Republicans hope to bring to a vote Thursday [4/27/2006].

The Editor says...
Let me make a prediction:  Many of these checks will end up in the hands of people who ride the bus to work and don't buy gas.  (Need I remind you of last year's FEMA debit card fiasco?)  And where do you suppose the $100 is going to come from?  Your paycheck, of course.

Senate GOP backs off from oil tax increase.  Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, under pressure from business leaders, retreated Monday [5/1/2006] from a plan that would have used a tax increase on oil companies and other businesses to fund a $100 gasoline rebate for millions of motorists.

The $100 rebate plan is a loser.  Last week Republicans announced a plan to mail a $100 rebate check to voters to offset the rising price of gas.  The plan has not gone over well with anyone.

Gas Fumes Obscure GOP Base.  In short, the Republican base wants to know:  Where's all this partisan extremism we were promised? … The actual GOP response?  Hundred-dollar rebates.  Cash money, friend, just for drivin'.  We feel your pain:  Here, have some money we borrowed from someone else.

Stupid Petrol Tricks:  Dems Feign Pity for Consumers.  The Democrats are sounding terribly concerned about the high prices we're paying for gasoline these days.  Upon closer inspection, however, we can see that they have no problem with gas prices being higher than three dollars a gallon.  In fact, they prefer it that way.  Their only real objection is about where the bulk of that money is going.

A Self-Inflicted Energy Mess:  It's always tempting to blame soaring energy costs on some nefarious foreign plot and be done with it. … But, as we've written before, those aren't the only things to blame.  The federal government, with its balkanized gasoline requirements, its taxes and its myriad regulations, deserves a large measure of responsibility for the soaring cost of gasoline.

It's Hard Out Here for a Pump.  I would be more interested in what the Democrats had to say about high gas prices if these were not the same people who refused to let us drill for oil in Alaska, imposed massive restrictions on building new refineries, and who shut down the development of nuclear power in this country decades ago.

Price-gouging in the public interest.  Today, the U.S. must import 10 percent of its gasoline as well as 57 percent of its oil.  Thus, even the temporary closure of several refineries by Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita sharply inflated pump prices.  Environmental regulations, backed by activists who mix demonstrations and lawsuits, create delays and inflate costs.  One Arizona project begun a decade ago is still at least five years away from completion.

Oil industry helped Texas craft storm strategy.  By the time [Hurricane] Rita's 175 mph winds followed Katrina into the Gulf of Mexico and made a beeline for Texas, motorists had tapped just about every drop of gas available in Houston and the surrounding area.  Complicating the exodus was that until Rita, no Texans had ever been told they must evacuate from a storm area. ... Damaged production platforms and evacuated refineries left the oil industry vulnerable to the crush in demand for gasoline.

Skip The Gas Profit Tinkering.  Though many Americans seem to feel low gasoline and oil prices are their birthright, price controls are disingenuous and counterproductive, leading to reduced investment in oil and gas exploration and possibly gasoline shortages — the exact opposite of what consumers and the country need.

Of Price and Men.  There has been much talk about "price gouging" by the oil companies, as we witnessed the average gasoline price rise to about $3.10 before falling to pre-Katrina levels most recently.  But as I listened to well-paid pundits pillory the oil industry for being slick, I was left wondering:  what is gouging?

The consumer rip-off.  Since allegations of oil company price-gouging have become topical, let's look at real price manipulation.

How congress pumps up prices.  At the same time oil companies were blistered in Senate hearings because their companies earned hundreds of millions of dollars in the recent quarter of 2005, the Tax Foundation's Scott Hodge reported that in the last 25 years, oil companies paid more than $2.2 trillion (that's right trillion) in taxes to federal and state governments.  That's more than threefold the oil companies' profits in the same period.

How Big is a Hawaiian Gallon?

Oil industry resists adjusting gas pumps for hot climates.  The Hawaiian gallon contains nearly 234 cubic inches of fuel — about 3 cubic inches more than is dispensed in the rest of the United States.  The extra volume, required by state law, helps offset the higher temperature in this tropical climate, which causes the gasoline to expand.  If the gallon weren't temperature-adjusted, Hawaiians would receive less energy per gallon than called for under the government standard.  That's because for nearly a century, gasoline and diesel have been measured across America as if they were being dispensed at a temperature of 60 degrees, a more condensed gallon of 231 cubic inches.

The Editor says...
I see nothing about a Hawaiian gallon in 15 USC Chapter 6, or in NIST Handbook 130, and I'm waiting for a reply from the weights and measures people at NIST.  Of course, it's a lot hotter in Texas than in Hawaii, but keep in mind that most gasoline storage tanks are underground, where the temperature is closer to 60 degrees.  Smart gasoline pumps could measure the temperature of the fuel as it is delivered and adjust the price accordingly, but I doubt if that will ever happen.

But again, gasoline expands as it heats, which is good news for the consumer.  The expansion means that as gasoline comes out of the cold underground storage tank at the gas station, it occupies less space than it will when it warms up in your gas tank.  On a hot day, you may end up with two percent more gas (by volume) than you paid for.

Updated 8/30/2006:
Upon further reflection, I'm starting to have my doubts about this Hawaiian Gallon story.  First of all, gasoline has a coefficient of expansion of 0.00060/°F.*  So, if my calculations are right, gasoline expands by one percent for every sixteen degrees of temperature increase.  That's not much expansion.  And in any event, if Hawaii really is so hot -- consistently hot year round — the way to accommodate the difference is to adjust the price, not the definition of a gallon.

Updated 6/19/2007:
When it's hot, you lose at gas pump.  Almost a century ago, the industry and regulators agreed to define a gallon of gasoline as 231 cubic inches at 60 degrees. … During the energy crisis in the 1970s, tropical Hawaii decided to set a base fuel temperature of 80 degrees, meaning that consumers there get more bang for their buck because retailers now dispense 234 cubic inches of gas per gallon rather than 231.

[That's only 1.3 percent.]

Basic economics:  In the wake of the spike in fuel prices, many Americans demand that politicians do something.  You can bet the rent money that whatever politicians do will end up harming consumers.

The Left Caused Higher Gas Prices.  Because of environmania, the left has prevented domestic exploration of energy sources such as those to be found in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  But the fear by a myopic but noisy few with poor science on their side that caribou would be upset or displaced by exploration, is inhibiting the growth of our national economy and requiring us to beg for mercy from [OPEC] dictators who have no reason to offer any.

"Fueling our enemies' engines".  In order to "feed their habit," addicts must pay out mountains of cold hard cash to very unsavory characters who are often as deadly as the addiction itself.  That's always been the case with heroin or crack and today it's increasingly true of petroleum.

On the other hand...
We're Not Addicts!  It's a confused and confusing debate but it can be boiled down to this:  On one side are those who believe the answer is for us to slash our demand for energy.  On the other side are those who believe the answer is to greatly increase our supply.

Gas price vapors:  Now that the gasoline price has plummeted across the country, shouldn't the Senate committee that berated oil company executives when prices were up now praise them?  If the price of gas can be so easily manipulated by the oil companies, shouldn't the senators give those corporate execs medals instead of tongue-lashings?  Fair is fair.

EPA Rules Raise Gas Prices.  While it is possible to expand domestic refinery capacity without constructing new refineries, current and planned EPA rules act as disincentives to refinery expansion.  In 1997, the EPA made air quality standards across the country more stringent. … These standards were not based on sound science and, consequently, aren't likely to produce benefits commensurate with their $100 billion annual cost.

Katrina Reveals Gas Price Folly.  A new oil refinery has not been built in the United States since 1976.  During that time, our gasoline use has increased over 25 percent.  The nation's 149 existing refineries have been running at maximum capacity trying to meet record demand and, as a result, not only do we import oil, we actually have to import 10 percent of our daily gasoline from refineries overseas.

The Petro sky is not falling.  This "crisis" will push us — finally — to tap America's significant reserves in ANWAR and offshore California and Florida.  Fanatical tree huggers' silly politics for years have blocked development of huge fields which will finally come online during the next 10 years. … The petroleum sky is not falling.  We have and will continue to have enough energy resources.  Current upward price swings have little to do with current and projected supply.

No Easy Answers For Post-Katrina Gas Prices.  The hurricane's impact on already-high gasoline prices is hard to ignore.  Politicians are coming up with the usual list of easy answers to ease pain at the pump, but unfortunately, they are the wrong answers.  Setting price caps, pumping lots of oil out of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and going after industry "price-gouging" and collusion will not have much of an impact, and each comes with problems of its own.

Ignoring economics:  Part II.  What all this boils down to is that prices higher than what observers are used to are called "gouging."  In other words, prices under normal conditions are supposed to prevail under abnormal conditions.  This completely misunderstands the role of prices.

Running out of gas.  Everyone knows what the problem really is.  It's Economics 101:  increasing demand and precariously tight supply.  Yet for three decades we have done criminally little about it.  Conservatives argued for more production, liberals argued for more conservation, and each side blocked the other's remedies — when even a child can see that we need both.

Oil Company Executives Defend Profits.  The chiefs of five major oil companies defended the industry's huge profits Wednesday [11/9/2005] at a Senate hearing where lawmakers said they should explain prices and assure people they're not being gouged.

Windfall for the dimwitted.  Sen. Byron Dorgan, the North Dakota Democrat, … recently got 34 colleagues, none of them Republicans, to vote for his measure to punish oil companies for earning profits that, relative to revenue, were unimpressive.

High Taxes Cause High Gas Prices.  Americans everywhere have felt the impact of higher gasoline prices during the past year.  In response, our government officials have offered up the usual "solution":  greater regulation of the oil industry.  Administration officials have ordered an FTC antitrust probe, while vote-seeking politicians have condemned the oil industry and called for an investigation into collusion and price gouging.  The truth is that costly federal taxes and regulations largely are to blame for high fuel prices, not convenient scapegoats like OPEC and the oil companies.

High gas prices aren't as bad as some think.  Our immediate spike in gas prices was brought on by the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused in the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico.  But even if this had not happened, and even if there were not a war in Iraq, the price of gas was bound to rise.  China and other highly populated countries are developing rapidly and will demand gas as they join the "I love my car" club.

Feds' Gas Tax Has Lived Too Long.  The federal gas tax was levied back in 1956 with the promise of finishing the interstate highway system.  Well, that system was completed by 1982.  To no one's surprise, the tax didn't stop then.

Overtaxed at the Pump:  What's Behind the High Gas Prices.  Federal and state taxes make up the largest component of the retail price of gasoline beyond the cost of a barrel of crude oil.  Taxes can add between 26 cents and 53 cents to the retail cost of a gallon of gas.  The total annual gasoline tax bill for motorists is $53 billion per year.

The Burden of Hidden Taxes:  When you buy a gallon of gasoline, the government receives the largest chunk of your money.  According to one report, for a dollar's worth of gasoline, 34 cents are accounted for by exploration and production, refining takes up 6 cents, wholesalers get a nickel, and the service station owner gets 12 cents.  Taxes take up the rest.

 Here's a Hint:   100 - 34 - 6 - 12 = 48

High-gas-price blues?  Blame the greens.  Americans have every right to be angry, as they watch the rising price of gasoline take a bigger bite out of their paychecks.  But their anger should be directed toward the real cause of the unnecessary price increases:  irresponsible reverence for the environment.

Global Warming and the Price of a Gallon of Gas:  You may want to give credit where credit is due to Al Gore and his global warming campaign the next time you fill your car with gasoline, because there is a direct connection between Global Warming and four dollar a gallon gas.  It is shocking, but true, to learn that the entire Global Warming frenzy is based on the environmentalist's attack on fossil fuels, particularly gasoline.

What's the Answer for High Gasoline Prices?  Nothing.  At the end of the day, the best remedy for high gasoline prices is… high gasoline prices, which provide all the incentives necessary for motorists to conserve, for oil companies to put more product into the marketplace, and for investors to look into alternatives fuel technologies.  Government has never demonstrated an ability to do better.

Local, State and Federal Gas Taxes Consume 45.9 Cents Per Gallon on Average.  Record gasoline prices are constantly in the headlines, which leaves many asking why prices are so high.  While supply and demand are the primary determinants of gasoline prices, a significant portion of the price consumers pay at the pump can be attributed to gasoline taxes.  In fact, the federal gas tax alone equals 18.4 cents for every gallon purchased.

Oh, Those 'Enormous and Unreasonable' Oil Profits.  Convenience store operators make their profits from merchandise sales and gaming machines, not gasoline sales.  The gas pumps are there just to get you into the store.  [On the other hand,] the federal tax on gasoline is 18.4 cents per gallon.  The State of Nevada levies an additional 33.7 cents.  That's 52.1 cents a gallon going to the government.  Residents of the Silver State pay the third highest gasoline tax in the nation, behind only New York and Hawaii.

Chafee Votes to Keep Gas Prices High.  Environmentalists opposed [Chairman Jim Inhofe's Gas PRICE Act (S 1772)] for its provisions to expand refinery capacity, streamline refinery permitting and simplify so-called boutique fuel requirements.  It also would have provided federal assistance for the construction of refineries on closed military bases, which could have been producing gas in about two years, Inhofe said.

Statement of Jonathan Adler before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works:  Gasoline markets' ability to respond to supply disruptions and price changes have been severely hampered by federal fuel content mandates under the Clean Air Act.  Imposing various boutique fuel mandates on different regions of the country has balkanized domestic gasoline markets and increased prices for consumers for minimal environmental benefit.  By segmenting national gasoline markets, these requirements have made some regions more vulnerable to supply disruptions and volatile gasoline prices.  Some boutique fuel requirements have further strained gasoline supplies by reducing the volume of saleable product that can be produced.  Yet since passage of the 1990 Clean Air Act, such mandates have been expanded, not reduced.

Congressional Mandates Contribute to Higher Gas Prices.  Four major components drive the retail price of gasoline:  the cost of crude oil, refinery processing costs (including environmental regulations), distribution and marketing costs, and taxes. … Distribution and marketing costs [account] for 11 percent of the retail price of gasoline.  The wide variety of specialized regional gasoline formulas required by federal and state regulators make storage and distribution more difficult and increase the potential for supply disruptions and short-term price spikes.  Moreover, specialized blends required for one area of the nation may not be suitable for another area.  Furthermore, not every refinery can produce every grade of gasoline and pipelines have limited flexibility to move different grades of gasoline to different places.

The Gas PRICE Act:  A Modest Step Forward in the Post-Katrina Energy Debate.  Sen. James Inhofe's (R-OK) new energy bill … contains several sections that could help reduce motor fuel prices over the long term.  One would allow states to streamline refinery permitting, transforming a process that now drags on for years into one that must be completed in months.  This should encourage expansions of existing refineries.  By reducing some of the costs and uncertainties involved in undertaking such projects, these provisions would facilitate bringing badly-needed additional capacity online.

The case for more uniform fuel standards:  An even bigger concern may be the effect that this market segmentation has in combination with two other developments.  The first is the fact that over the last quarter century, half the refineries in America have shut down and no new ones have been built.  The second is the number of mergers and acquisitions that we have seen in the petroleum industry over the same period.

Map of US Gasoline Requirements.  This map shows the nature of the proliferation of fuel standards.  It indicates that you could drive through seven contiguous counties in Arizona, California, and Nevada, and be required by law to put a different formulation of regular gasoline in your vehicle in each one.

A Nice Overview of the Problem with Boutique Fuels.  Boutique and reformulated gasolines have balkanized our nation's gasoline markets, creating virtual islands of gasoline blends that are subject to more severe price spikes than the rest of the nation.

NACS Voices Fuel Price Volatility Concerns to Congress.  The overlapping federal, state and local regulations that dictate specific fuel formulations for distinct markets must be replaced with a more uniform system.  A reduction in the number of boutique fuels is essential to stabilizing both supplies and prices.  This need not result in a reduction in environmental protections.

Chart shows Boutique Fuel Requirements Across the U.S..  There are more than 300 local and state fuel regulations in the U.S.  These regulations result in a patchwork of gasoline zones across the country where only certain fuels can be sold, creating price disparities across the country.

Don't Increase Federal Gasoline Taxes — Abolish Them.  Many experts believe that gasoline taxes should be increased for a variety of reasons.  Their arguments are unpersuasive.  Oil is not disappearing, and when it becomes more expensive, market agents will substitute away from gasoline to save money.  The link between oil price shocks and recessions, although real in the 1970s, has been much more benign since 1985 because of the termination of price controls.  Market actors properly account for energy costs in their purchasing decisions absent government intervention.  Pollution taxes, congestion fees, and automobile insurance premiums more closely related to vehicle miles traveled are better remedies for the externalities associated with automobile travel than a simple fuel tax.  Gasoline consumption does not necessarily distort American foreign policy, impose military commitments, or empower Islamic terrorist organizations.

The Factors Influencing the Price of Gasoline.

Chart:  U.S. Gasoline Distribution System.

Where Does Your Gas Dollar Go?  Most consumers don't know that 90 percent of the price of gas is determined before it even reaches their local convenience store.

Gasoline prices:  Some Americans are demanding that the government do something about gasoline prices.  Let's think back to 1979 when the government did do something.  The Carter administration instituted price controls.  What did we see?  We saw long gasoline lines, and that's if the gas station hadn't run out of gas.  It's estimated that Americans used about 150,000 barrels of oil per day idling their cars while waiting in line.

Why High Gas Prices?  When three socialist amigos like Senators Charles Schumer of New York, Barbara Boxer of California and Harry Reid of Nevada all urged the Bush administration recently to help ease gasoline prices by releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), you know what's up. … You'd think that Martha Stewart owned Exxon the way [Senator Reid is] acting.  Reid forgets that Bill Clinton tried that trick in 2000 and the effect at the pump was negligible.

See which U.S. cities have been hit the hardest and the least hard by rising gas prices.  Ironically, New Orleans is #2 on the list of cities that have been hurt the least by rising gas prices.

Hillary's hurricane rule.  Sen. Hillary Clinton sometimes talks as if she wants oil and gas to be cheap and abundant, but she never stops working to make them expensive and scarce.

Are We Out of Gas?  Let's get a little historical perspective.  In 1914, the U.S. Bureau of Mines predicted American oil reserves would last merely a decade.  In both 1939 and 1951, the Interior Department estimated oil supply at only 13 years.  "We could use up all of the proven reserves of oil in the entire world by the end of the next decade," declared President Jimmy Carter gloomily in 1977.  In fact, the earliest claim that we were running out of oil dates back to 1855 — four years before the first well was drilled!

Outdated Car-Mileage Tests Steer Buyers Off Course.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's test for mileage hasn't changed since 1974.  Consequently, the tests likely overstate the actual mileage, note observers.  The EPA's "current" mileage tests assume that no one drives more than 60 miles per hour when many states have set the limit at 65 or higher since 1995.  And they assume that no one uses air conditioning, which can cut mileage by as much as 21 percent.

High Pump-Price Fairy Tales:  Gasoline markets today are increasingly global rather than regional in nature.  For example, European governments tax diesel fuels less than gasoline and European motorists have responded by using diesel.  Accordingly, European refineries make more gasoline than they can use and it's cheaper for us to import that gasoline than to produce it here at home.

National Security and Energy:  While most of us suffer from the escalating cost of filling our gas tanks, some "public interest" activists likely don't share our concern.  After all, increasing the price of natural resources, mostly by curtailing domestic energy production, has been a longstanding goal of environmental elitists.  They think this is the best way to reduce supposedly rampant automobile pollution and force development of "alternative" fuels.

$1 billion wasted on study of efficient cars.  American taxpayers have forked out more than $1 billion over the last nine years helping the Big Three automakers develop cars efficient enough to travel 80 miles on a single gallon of gas.

 Editor's Note:   Ask yourself this question — What would an 80 mpg car look like?  It would probably make a Yugo look like a limousine by comparison.  Even the smallest motorcycle on the road today doesn't get that kind of mileage.  There is a finite amount of energy available from the combustion of one gallon of gasoline, even with pure oxygen fed into the air intake of an automobile engine.  Eighty mpg is an unreachable goal.

Government Policies Make the Gas Situation Worse.  Since the OPEC oil embargo of 1973, personal income has gone up twice as fast as the price of gasoline.  The role of taxes in keeping prices high cannot be neglected.  Start with the federal tax of 18.4 cents per gallon.  Add to that state taxes of various sorts.

Don't be fooled by that 9/10th in price at gas pumps.  As millions of Americans make the filling station the first stop on their Memorial Day vacation this weekend, the traditional start of the busy summer driving season, some may wonder:  "Why does the price for gasoline always have that 9/10 number at the end of it?"

Natural Gas Needs No Dinosaurs to Form.  Credible scientists have now demonstrated that methane, the main ingredient of natural gas, can form inorganically, as a result of natural processes that involve no biological material whatsoever — no dead dinosaurs, no rotting ancient forests, not even any little plankton trapped in the soil.

Drillers target huge natural gas field under Appalachia.  Geologists and energy companies have known for decades about the gas in the Marcellus Shale, but only recently have figured out a possible — though expensive — way to extract it from the thick black rock about 6,000 feet underground.  Like prospectors mining for gold, energy executives must decide whether the prize is worth the huge investment.

Gasoline Expected to Remain Cheap This Summer.  Gasoline prices are expected to be relatively low this summer, so motorists might want to take to the road despite the dismal economy if the federal government projections hold.

This subsection now resides here.

Editor's note:
In an attempt to combat high gas prices, you may be tempted to purchase a hybrid vehicle.  But before you do, you should look at the information on this page.

Note:  The automatic gas price graphic was removed 4/19/2011 because it was wildly inaccurate.  If you own a car, you probably know what the price of gas is, in your neighborhood, this week.

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