Gas prices down for the 24th straight day; Update: GOP keeps the heat on
Thanks for nuthin’, Nan!
This is a small relief and we need more access to American oil ASAP to bolster our energy independence and security, but it is good news nonetheless:
Retail gasoline prices fell on average almost a penny overnight, extending declines for the 24th straight day, a survey of gas station credit card swipes showed Sunday.
The national average price for a gallon of regular gas fell to $3.818 from $3.826 the previous day, motorist group AAA found. That’s down more than 7% from the record high of $4.114 that gas prices hit on July 16.
…Oklahoma and Missouri remained the states with the lowest gas prices. The average price in these two states is $3.58 a gallon, down a penny from the previous day. South Carolina is next lowest, with average prices of $3.61 a gallon, down a penny from the day before, AAA found.
Meanwhile, gas prices fell nearly 15 cents in the past two weeks, the publisher of a national survey of self-serve regular gasoline prices said Sunday. The latest Lundberg Survey, carried out on Friday, tallied prices at thousands of gas stations across the country. Publisher Trilby Lundberg put the average price at $3.8472. The average from the previous survey, from July 25, was $3.9959.
The last time gas prices fell by such a margin was in July of last year, Lundberg said. The survey from July 27, 2007, showed that self-serve regular gas prices fell more than 17 cents from the previous survey to $2.8843. Lundberg attributed the recent 14.87-cent drop to a decline in the prices of crude oil. On Friday, crude oil closed at $115.02, down more than $30 from its peak price of more than $145 last month, she said.
Indur Golkany and Jerry Taylor add some helpful perspective:
By June of this year, disposable income had risen by an average of $1,627 per person over last year’s figures, according to the Department of Commerce, while the average person’s real expenditures on gasoline increased by about $490. Our incomes are still outpacing gasoline price increases. The problem is that our incomes aren’t outpacing the increase in gas prices lumped together with increases in everything else — air conditioning, food, etc. Our homes, meanwhile, are losing value.
But gasoline is more affordable than it was during the early 1960s, an era fondly remembered by many as halcyon days of cheap fuel and gas-guzzling American cars. We’re overlooking that context because it’s easier to remember 1998, when we saw the lowest inflation-adjusted gasoline prices in recorded history.
Politicians would do well to remember these historical facts, as well as consumer psychology, when discussing gas prices with voters. Failure to do both will likely result in a government eager to score political points with the electorate by doing exactly the wrong thing.
Are you listening, Gang of 10?
***
The House GOP revolt continues into its second week.
Wanna sign this open letter to Pelosi?
An Open Letter to Speaker Pelosi
Dear Speaker Pelosi,
On Friday August 1, 2008, at 11:23 a.m., your Democrat majority in the House of Representatives adjourned the House for five full weeks.
House Republicans believe that Congress should not go on vacation until we take action to lower gas and energy prices for struggling American families.
For the last two months we and our House Republican colleagues have used every tool at our disposal to try and get you and your Democrat majority to vote on legislation to lower gas and energy prices by expanding environmentally sound domestic production of oil and natural gas, improving energy efficiency, and encouraging the development of alternative energy technologies.
Many of the proposals we have asked you and your Democrat majority to allow us to vote on are bipartisan proposals that we believe would enjoy the support of a majority of the Members of the Congress. Yet because you and your Democrat Leadership personally oppose these proposals, you are not allowing them to come up for a vote. This past Sunday, you even told George Stephanopoulos that you will never allow this vote to occur….
In protest of you and your Democrat majority not allowing an up or down vote on producing more American energy, we and our House Republican colleagues were prepared to take to the floor on Friday, August 1, 2008, and speak to the nation. Rather than allowing that to happen you and your Democrat majority adjourned the House, turned off the television cameras, shut off the microphones and turned out the lights. Nearly 50 House Republicans remained on the floor of the House in defiance speaking to those citizens gathered in the galleries and to the media.
Today we have again returned to the Capitol to continue speaking to the thousands of Americans from all across our country who are visiting the Capitol. We would have preferred if instead we were joined by our colleagues to have a true debate on this issue that ended in an up or down vote.
We think it is unconscionable that Congress has gone on vacation before we have addressed the high gas prices that are crippling our economy and hurting millions of families. We are asking that you reconvene the House from your five-week vacation and schedule a vote on legislation to increase American energy production. Let us be clear, we are not asking for a guaranteed outcome, just the chance to vote.
Signed by: John Boehner, Republican Leader; Roy Blunt, Republican Whip; Adam Putnam, Republican Conference Chairman; Eric Cantor, Chief Deputy Whip; and Members of the House Republican Conference
***
Update 11:23am. Keeping the heat on. Just got e-mail notification…GOP Rep. Mike Pence will be on the Rush Limbaugh Show at 12:30 p.m. EDT to discuss Republican efforts on the House floor to bring an up or down vote on a comprehensive energy plan that includes domestic drilling.
c
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- Nightly Ramble:We GET it, Andrew; Gas down again;Rain; Oh,Reille?; More | BitsBlog
- Michelle Malkin » The Dems’ Drilling Rhetoric Just Ain’t Cutting It
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Categories: Enviro-nitwits, GOP, Nancy Pelosi
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KevoTron said:
Just the threat of drilling is driving down oil prices. The reason that this works is basic economics; if the price of oil is high enough, then areas where drilling wouldn’t make much economic sense with cheaper oil make a whole lot of sense.
Once we talk about drilling, it causes a panic among those with plenty of oil (the Saudis) who want to keep any new supplies from coming on the market. The only way to do that is to lower the price and make it economically inefficient to start up new drilling.
Awwwww. Don’t fret. Just replace “Polar Bear” with “babies” and everything will be all right again in your world, sweetie.
Abstract and Spencer. Thanks for the crash course in “Econ 101″. Shucks, nobody ever told me about Supply and Demand before.
In regards to ANWR, honestly I don’t care that much. I want to support the environment but if it would stop all the GOP kvetching… go for it.
I still don’t believe that this will help the price of oil. How can we ensure that the US will receive the new supply and not China? How can we know that they won’t reap the profits and keep the prices steady?
The theory that the grandstanding that the GOP has been doing is the reason that oil has dropped is complete bunk.
Still, I enjoy watching the GOP Representatives stammer and grandstand in the dark. I look forward to Inhofe’s little charade of dumping the Gas receipts he’s been collecting on Reid’s desk like a scene out of “Miracle on 34th Street.”
I can’t wait until his challenger Andrew Rice supplies him with the invoice for the over $1 million he’s accepted from the Oil and Gas industries.
Abstract: what I mean by “I support Democrats…” is that I wish they would agree to drilling.
In my mind the best solution is to allow them to drill with the promise that ALL of the new oil goes to the US and that any additional profits they make are matched by contributions to finding alternative energy solutions.
In one regard, I hope the Democrats don’t cave in. That way the Republicans will have this issue to hold against the Dems come November.
Oil and gasoline prices retreating is ordinarily a good thing, but I wonder about the possibility of gas prices declining to a level where they are no longer an immediate concern of the electorate, thus letting the donkeys off the hook for their refusal to make more supplies available.
What weighs against that possibility, though, is the near-certainty that oil prices will shoot skyward as soon as somebody in the middle east starts talking or behaving provocatively again:
- The Iranians make another remark about “Wiping the Zionist entity off the map:” $120 -> $125 for a barrel of oil.
- The Israelis talk about defending themselves from the second Holocaust: $125 -> $130.
- The Iranians threaten to close off the Straits of Hormuz if attacked: $130 -> $135.
- The Americans say that such an act by the Iranians would be considered hostile: $135 -> $140.
– And note that through it all, nobody’s actually “done” anything but talk.
Enjoy your “cheap gas” while you can, ladies and gentlemen: because it won’t last…
Ahh, there’s the rub. (And you’re welcome for the econ lesson *grin)
I believe a large problem, as i’ve said on other threads before, isnt really drilling more as much as keeping more. Drilling more is important. but we need to keep what we produce.
I would contrast Iran on this. Look at how deep in the sewer their economy is, and they have a huge reserve. But they have no way to process what they drill. So they sell it off to others, and then have to re-purchase the refined product. Imagine if they had kept the original crude and refined it themselves.
While obviously we’re in a different boat, the same could be applied here. If we kept more of what we produced and put less on the world market, that would most certainly push the price down. But generally increasing the supply (and for TOS, reducing the demand likewise increases supply, which is a good thing) and stablizing the demand is whats going to win the day.
As far as the grandstanding…perhaps its all one big dog and pony show…but its attention to something important, regardless. And as long as there’s an effect, Joe Consumer doesn’t really care.
On August 11th, 2008 at 2:56 pm, Buy Danish said:
I aint your ’sweetie’ and I don’t plan on engaging you with sophomoric attacks and trite little jabs. Oh gosh why not, you’re right. All liberals and Democrats hate babies and the flag and the troops and baby jeebus and we’re a bunch of ‘Merica hating antisemitic traitors who won’t wear flag pins (that are made in China.)
I think there’s a Budweiser on your porch that’s calling you. Shouldn’t you be watching American Gladiator reruns or something?
On August 11th, 2008 at 3:14 pm, abstractmind said:
Thank you for your measured and polite response. I’ve been reading this board for close to a year and you are one of the posters I’ve looked forward to discussing things with because you have a good way about your arguments.
I’m less impressed with others here who insist on debasing others who disagree with them. Several commenters here canibalize fellow conservatives over miniscule differences in opinion and are too quick with the terms ‘marxist’ ’straw man’ and ‘traitor’.
I do find your argument compelling and I think you make a strong point by saying that we need to reduce demand as well as increase supply.
The reason that I’m posting on this thread is to shed some light on the fact that not all Democrats are opposed to drilling. What worries me personally is giving more power to the Oil Industry. These companies are making record ($11 billion in one quarter) profits while the rest of us suffer. Personally, I haven’t owned a car in eight years and have survived quite happily on public transportation and FlexCar services. Obviously these aren’t available to everyone but I’m an urban dweller and take advantage of these systems to great benefit. Even still, the price of Oil affects many areas of our economy including the price of food, air travel and, well, you name it.
Yes, the Democrats are on a “vacation” (campaigning and visiting with constituents) but I think they’re too wise to engage the GOP in political stunting when the political winds are blowing their way. Furthermore, when the freaking President agrees that it’s grandstanding and most of the GOP has left DC as well… why would the Democrats feel compelled obey the call of the sinking GOP?
On August 11th, 2008 at 3:07 pm, Wildcatter1980 said:
That’s exactly my point.
You gotta miss the Clinton days of .99 gas.
perks of Royalty.
#88 Lionheart.
Let me answer for the gasoline retailers. They are limited by law to the markup over wholesale price, which is a function of price from the refineries which is determined by the price of crude oil. When the price of crude goes up, the retailers raise the pump price immediately in anticipation of increased replacement. When crude price goes down, retail price stays up while they deplete inventory at markup from the price paid.
Another example that even a blind pig finds a truffle every now and then. Shame on those people commenting on this blog who say you don’t know your a$$ from a hole in the ground.
Thanks, lgm, for admitting the truth. Oh, that was sarcasm? Don’t you know that to be effective, sarcasm must be based on a true statement? So you’re either 1) telling the truth or 2) lousy at sarcasm. I’ll let you decide which, then you can report back to the class.
Yeah, but I’m also glad to be missing the Clinton days of 99% gas.
In reference to #102 by KevoTron
First you write “I don’t plan on engaging you with sophomoric attacks and trite little jabs.” and then you write “I think there’s a Budweiser on your porch that’s calling you. Shouldn’t you be watching American Gladiator reruns or something?”
That last part about Bud and American Gladiator was what? Deep, philosophical, and relevant as opposed to trite and sophomoric?
What? Abstract! White wine sauce! Are you nuts!
Well, now I know you’re EVIL!
Repeat aftr me:
“White wine with foul devine;
When thy meat is red;
So be thy wine be, its said!”
———-
On an odious note:
Sen. Gramnesty has seen the light. The way for that shallow shadow of McCarbonTax to get the notice of the Repub. Establishment is to maveric it up.
Regardless of how it goes this fall, if we want to keep the Rs from withering away, we’ll have to nip this in the bud. If McTax&Grab had had a rolled newpaper across his nose just prior 2000, when he started in earnest his Leftward trek we’d not be in this fix.
McGramnesty needs enforced retirement, next time his seat is up. This regardless of any rightward movement he may start to make from this point on, to in order to lull us.
And, we need to do that for each larval-lefty in the flesh of the body politic.
Let’s take a look at our situation and see if it makes our collective blood run cold (conservative blood, that is). Our worthless “elected things” have sold us down the river. We’re $54 trillion in debt to COMMUNIST CHINA and hundreds of millions of Americans are being held energy hostage to a few whacked-out “environmentalists” who own those policitians.
Meanwhile, Russia’s on the march to regain superpower status. They’ve scrapped income tax in favor of a 13% flat tax, and their economy is booming. Russia is subsidizing their oil companies because they realize that it’s their future. They’re laying claim to every drop of oil and natural gas they can. And when they control it all, they’ll bring Europe to its knees — and the rest of us as well.
And no one in our government can find the wherewithall to drill?
Our politicians are signing our death warrant.
I wonder if our situation would change if a real, live news organization (that would be the Enquirer these days) tracked down every one of these militant environuts and published their names. If they’re so proud of their stance, they shouldn’t object to being identified. These people should be publicly villified and shamed into admitting their true traitorous outlook to America.
On August 11th, 2008 at 4:05 pm, Hannibal said:
In reference to #102 by KevoTron
Yes, exactly. Let’s all go back to holding hands and posting in the famous Malkin Blog bipartisan kumbaya spirit now.
Hannibal: your point is well taken and you won’t see me instigating attacks on commenters in the way that Buy Danish did. If he wishes to stereotype me as a “baby-killer” then I’ll stereotype him. It’s not pleasant and I don’t like it but that’s the way it is around here. My line about “not engaging” was sarcasm. If somebody wants to play that way I’ll go along with it until a point. (that point being maybe two responses.) Best wishes and let’s have an honest debate.
KevoTron #102 & 113-
Gosh, I’m so sorry to have called you “sweetie”. I figured that since Obama uses it, it’s okay, seeing as he is the super coolest hipster ever to run for President and all.
I apologize also for lumping you in with all the Dems (like your candidate!) who don’t oppose drilling into babies skulls, but are nevertheless deeply concerned about polar bears.
You must be very special since you seem to be saying that you oppose drilling into the skulls of both polar bears and babies. Good for you!
P.S.
All of the above is sarcasm, as was my original response to you. You left the proverbial door very wide open by making an unfortunate reference to drilling into skulls. You may want to avoid that in the future.
On August 11th, 2008 at 4:41 pm, Buy Danish said:
Yes and I’d love to call you some of the names that McCain calls people but it would get me banned, and I just got here.
If you read my posts you would see that I don’t really care about where we drill. I think it’s ineffective but who cares. More money for the oil companies! Hurray!
KevoTron #115,
Really? Then why did you make the comment about drilling into polar bear’s heads if you don’t care where we drill?
As for reading all your posts, no thanks KT, life is short.
I’m bored with you. bye.
#93 TOS said:
I don’t object to your example. Mkt. conditions are mkt. conditions. Oil fell around $35 per barrel over the same period that our President reversed the executive ban on offshore drilling (another potential source of increased supply.)
In other news, China’s demand has lessened over the past few weeks as well.
In other news, $150 per barrel might have been a resistance level indicating a completely overblown run up of speculation.
If you can accurately quantify the exact breakdown of each of these variables to mkt. reaction over the past four weeks and moving forward, I have a couple of friends on the NY MERC Exchange who would probably hire you.
Goober Lindsay and the other four rinos in the gang of ten are the ones who really disgust me.
I’m Trying to help the good GOP guys in the House. I’m looking for Speaker Nancy at one of her book signings. I would like to ask her why she is there and not back at work trying to help the working class? By the way, we working class, drive cars in America. Let you know if I find her back here in California.
To all of you who insist on making this a Republican vs Democrat issue let me remind you that not too very long ago (2005) the Free Market Globalists wearing both party labels were all for letting the ChiComs buy UnoCal. What they wanted was to strip all the rich Asian oil leases from the company and dump the remains back in our laps. It wasn’t until alternative media ignited a firestorm of protest that Congress was forced to nix that. Gas would probably be in double digits by now. Keep your hands on your wallets and your eyes on their lies.
China’s thirst for oil will resume after the Olympics…they’ve shut down driving to lessen the pollution…be assured it will resume and they will do what they need to get it….
Let’s get to the drilling yesterday. Quit being stupid. We got lots of oil right here at home. Who cares if a few caribou have to walk around a small pipeline. The caribou and the polar bears sure the hell don’t. Someone should make a law against stupid people.
san fran nan is so transparent hopefully others see that…can you imagine nan, harry and hussein in charge scary
Glad to be aboard. Love this site.
Also glad to see that Pelosi is feeling the heat.
Way to go DeMint.
Pelosi: a box of rocks
Democratic controlled Congress: nail meets coffin
Game over.
Patronedheart,
I am more than a reader around here than a writer, but I wanted to say hi to a neighbor and someone from around my growin up places in South Texas. Its nice to hear from the oil patch. So many folks, including that stubborn ignoramus O’Reily could learn a thing or two from the “Patch”. Good to hear from ya guy. From the Hill Country and the ever lovin Guadalupe…goodon ya for doing the hard and risky work of drilling.
oops that was for gonesouth150. You can ignore that patronedheart.
My bad….and on my first try. Practice practice practice