Gasoline

I'm not one for holding presidents responsible for the price of gasoline. I'm a conservative who believes in the power of the market--as opposed to a liberal who believes that "government", personified by the president, need merely pull a lever or pass a law to "fix" things.

On the other hand, I am a big fan of hoisting people by their own petard:

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.

Already, pump prices are higher than they've been in previous years, suggesting they will top $4 soon and possibly reach an unprecedented $5 this summer. link

In his book Earth In The Balance, Al Gore called for higher gas prices (via taxation) in hopes of making gas so expensive that other technologies would become economically feasible. Our current energy secretary has said the same thing:

In 2008, Steven Chu, Obama's (and, sadly, our own) future secretary of energy (sic) lamented, "Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe." The president, when asked whether he thought $4-a-gallon gas prices were good for the American economy, said, "I think that I would have preferred a gradual adjustment."

How gradual? Like, what, four years? Or is it eight?

Gas was under $2/gallon when President Obama was inaugurated.

Above I quoted Candidate Obama's view on oil prices. What is President Obama's view?

Under fire from Republicans over rising gasoline prices, the White House on Tuesday highlighted factors beyond its control for gains in global oil markets, as it sought to deflect blame over a potentially damaging election-year issue...

Obama, a Democrat, acknowledged the risk posed by higher gas prices as he welcomed congressional approval of a payroll tax cut extension. The White House later argued that it was unfair to single out the administration over prices at the pump.

Unfair? Really? I'd have more respect for the guy if he would just admit he was wrong--as he's been wrong on so many things. His supporters elected a guy who was going to provide peace in our time, was going to close Guantanamo Bay, was going to stop trampling the Constitution, was going to pay everyone's mortgage and put gas in their car, and was going to conduct smart diplomacy. None of that has worked out. He knew nothing when he was running for president, and he's learned nothing after three years of being president.

I hope he's a one-termer, and for so many more reasons than just the price of gasoline. But if that's what turns him out, I'm ok with that.

By the way, here's the cheapest gas I saw yesterday:


Update: Looks like I should have bought gas yesterday, as here's today's price:

Update #2: Now this is a bit extreme:

The swiftness at which those gas prices continue to climb was crystal clear Wednesday night during the broadcast of ABC News' "World News with Diane Sawyer."

As ABC News' Cecilia Vega introduced her piece on high gas prices, the sign at the downtown Los Angeles gas station behind her showed the price of regular gas at $4.99 a gallon. However when the piece concluded nearly two minutes later the price of regular gas had jumped 10 cents to $5.09 a gallon.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Even Vega seemed truly surprised to see such a drastic change in such a short period of time, telling Sawyer that "it is almost too unbelievable to believe."

"It went up 10 cents?" asked Sawyer, herself shocked at what just had occurred.

"Ten cents during that two minutes while we were on the air," confirmed Vega.

Update #3, 2/24/12: Good that Nancy Pelosi is so consistent:

Pelosi 2008: Bush to Blame for High Gas Prices; Pelosi 2012: Wall Street to Blame for High Gas Prices

She's consistent, all right--the Democrats are never at fault.

Update #4, 2/27/12: Here's video from 6 years ago, with Obama, Pelosi, and Clinton attacking President Bush because gas was $3/gallon. But Darren, you say, that was 6 years ago, and gas is (only) $4/gallon now! To which I reply, most commodities--at least the ones I buy!--haven't gone up by 1/3 in 6 years.

Update #5, 2/28/12: It wasn't just those knuckleheads.

Update #6, 3/4/12: Yesterday I bought gas at Sam's, whose sign is in the pictures above, for $4.089/gallon. If the $69.38 I spent wasn't the most I'd ever spent on a single fill-up in any vehicle I've ever owned, it was darned close.