One of Obama’s Biggest Opponents in 2012
**Written by Doug Powers
Now that it’s confirmed in the minds of all but those terminally afflicted with Bush Derangement Syndrome that rising gas prices this time around aren’t the fault of two oil men in the White House, barring the miraculous, the price of gas will be one of President Obama’s major election year opponents:
Gasoline prices are rising at an almost unheard-of pace, and painfully so in California, where the cost for a fill-up now exceeds $4 a gallon in five cities and is approaching that dreaded mark in numerous others, including San Jose and Oakland.
The statewide average of $3.96 on Friday is 25 cents higher than just a month ago and 46 cents more than this time last year. The price jumped a nickel from Thursday, a huge increase, as day-to-day changes are usually measured in fractions of a penny.
Some oil analysts predict $4.50 a gallon or more by Memorial Day on the West Coast and major cities across the United States such as Chicago, New York and Atlanta. Prices in that range could be a major issue in the presidential campaign, especially if they slow the nation’s economic recovery.
[...]
“I give $4.50-per-gallon gasoline on the West Coast better than 50-50 odds,” said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com. “Some stations could be closer to $5 in remote areas. … It’s just a matter of time before motorists are again ransacked at the pump.”The rising price of gas hasn’t escaped the notice of Washington. The Associated Press reported Friday that the threat of higher gas prices could lead President Barack Obama to authorize the sale of oil from the country’s emergency reserves, as he did once before.
“We never take options off the table,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said Friday.
The emergency reserve option will be more on the table than ever if we’re heading into autumn without a significant price drop.
While rising gas prices can be blamed on a plethora of factors, points on which the Republican nominee should be relentless are Obama’s opposition to opening up ANWR, the EPA blocking drilling elsewhere in and around Alaska, the Gulf moratorium, Keystone Pipeline denial, and the list goes on. Couple that with billions in loans to countries like Columbia so refineries there can be upgraded there while refineries in the US and Europe are being shuttered and Canada tries to send their oil to China instead of getting the runaround from US officials, and Obama is forced to deal with an election year headache that he didn’t seem to mind bringing on himself for the sake of forcing a “green economy” into existence.
On the topic of energy independence, here’s some common Democrat rationale for opposing ANWR drilling:
“There won’t be a thimble of oil for seven to 10 years,” said a spokesman for Democrats on the Senate Energy Committee.
That was said almost eight years ago. I thought Democrats were the ones billing themselves as the “forward thinkers.”
Here’s the correlation between gas prices and presidential approval going back to the days of Cap’n Malaise (h/t Powerline):
But it’s not even March yet. Amazing things can happen as elections approach. By then, if taxpayer subsidies keep getting upped on Volts, Obama might be handing them out like lollipops on the campaign trail and giving each voter a crisp $20 bill just to take one.
**Written by Doug Powers
Twitter @ThePowersThatBe
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Things are so bad that MichelleO and the two girls have to stay with friends in Aspen on their ski vacation. Ok, the friends are billionaires and their house is probably nicer than many hotels, but still, a girl needs to save where she can – especially when she is said to have spent $10 million on vacations in one year.
I guess you can thank your lucky stars mo and kids didn’t decide to come back to Hawaii and screw up your daily life? bho and mo sure do love to spend and spend taxpayers money anyway they can!
L
#98 On February 20th, 2012 at 12:21 pm, rocketman said:
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It sounds like your new Acura RL is a peach of a ride. Perhaps you could elucidate those of us who are deficient in economic theory how a vehicle manufactured in Saitama, Japan, which gets the gas mileage of a Ford 150 (17 to 24 mpg) and according to their website starts at $47,700 has improved our economy.
They never screw up my daily life.
They vacation on the other side of the island where all the other white expats live.
Let me help. No car made in Japan has involved over-paying an AFL-CIO member who then pays a percentage of his over-paid salary to his union who then gives it to Obama to run for re-election. Not enough? The dealer and the salesman both take money home, put it in the bank who loans it to an illegal alien to spend on a home which the bank forecloses on and lets you buy at a good deal. More? A $47,000 car made in Japan keeps Government Motors from selling you a comparably equipped Chevy NovaBama for $67,000. OK, the downside? Some whistling robot is probably underemployed, while a karaoke’ing robot in Japan takes his job.
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HI HANNIBAL–#104. And ALOHA_GUY–#106. AG answered most of the questions. And the pollution from the factories in Japan keeps the U.S.A. cleaner since most of the car wasn’t built here. No Gubmint design costs either!
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The car price was 20 percent below the MSRP number and was slightly higher than the far less capable American built Toyota Avalon we drove. My personal choice would have been the Acura TSX–a really great running economical 4 cylinder VTEC engine–available with a 5 or 6 speed manual transmission. However, the wife ruled in this purchase. And as the driveway auto mechanic / maintenance guy for the last 56 years–Honda and Toyota are far superior in their design, construction, and life. Ask the man who fixes them.
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John Bibb
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Obama has many enemies.
He has declared war on:
* non-cronies
* taxpayers
* Catholics
* Other Christians
* anyone who disagrees with him
Just look at his policies.
I’m so MAD, it’s better I don’t say ‘CHIT!’, about this monkey-butt-jumper in the white house.
As a resident of California all I can say about the rising price of Gasoline is… Anybody got a couple billion dollars they can spare so I can fill up my gas tank?
George Orwell pick up the Red courtesy Phone Please.