Gas prices who is at fault

Robert Rapier, a writer for Forbes, explained the rise in prices like this in an article titled, "Revisiting the blame for high gas prices," published in September. That rise started in May Between the first week of May and the last week of December , oil prices had tripled. Was President Trump to blame for this? Those shutdowns had negatively impacted a couple of million barrels of U.

It is convenient, especially in a "red" state, to blame the Democrats for high gas prices, but the real villain is OPEC and the reawakening demand. While presidential policies can have long-term effects on gas prices, they apparently have little effect in the here and now.

I remember during one presidential election, I think it is was for Bill Clinton's second term, it was reported that he asked the Saudis to help keep crude oil prices low until after the election, and it created a small firestorm until it came out he was not the first president to make such a request of them. That list included plenty of Republicans.

When Biden shut down the Keystone pipeline project, many conservatives cried foul and now blame that for the increase in gas prices; however, the pipeline was many years from ever delivering the first drop of oil. Likewise, his administration has limited drilling permits, but, in the same article, Rapier said companies knew this was always a possibility and had stockpiled drilling permits that will enable them to keep drilling for years to come.

Knee-jerk reactions are easy, especially when a commodity such as gasoline becomes more expensive. Higher gas prices affect so many other prices, driving them up as well.

And make no mistake, whether or not he deserves it, Biden will pay a political price for the rising gas prices. He predicted that pump prices will soon ease in the West, Southwest and Rocky Mountain states. Biden's energy policy, said prices reflect demand that came back stronger than expected from the pandemic and lower U. Energy economist Philip Verleger said gasoline prices are being propped up by U.

There already are some signs retail gasoline prices have peaked, with the Energy Information Administration reporting last week that gasoline prices are likely to decline in coming months. Biden joins a rich tradition of presidents who express frustration with high gasoline prices. World cannot take a price hike - fragile!

Biden tried that approach himself last month, when he urged OPEC members to increase oil output just as concern was rising that higher energy prices could slow the U. Biden said at the time. They need to stop raising gas prices, he insisted. That may be a good slogan, but the truth is more complicated than the man with the petition, or politicians would have you believe.

Maybe gasoline politics will go away when everyone drives electric cars. None of this is new. In , a Vermont legislator named John Hancock ran for governor, putting ads in local papers promising to investigate gasoline prices for you. Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from.

By choosing I Accept , you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. This always makes for dramatic blame-casting among politicians. David Zalubowski, Associated Press. Filed under: Opinion. Reddit Pocket Email Linkedin. Not exactly.