Democrats want Republicans to pay for high gas prices

The Mercury News ^ | Aug. 18, 2005 | STEVEN THOMMA

[Sybeck1]

WASHINGTON - (KRT) - Americans are mad as heck about soaring gas prices, and Democrats hope they'll take it out on the Republicans who control the federal government in next year's midterm elections. "Bush does nothing to combat rising prices," the Democratic National Committee said this week in a new attack seeking to link President Bush, his party, gas prices and oil-company profits in the public mind. "Republicans are in the oil companies' pockets and Bush is in the oil companies' pockets." The White House responds that no one can turn around gas prices instantly, that Bush fought for years to enact an energy bill and that the new plan, signed into law earlier this month, will take years to produce results. "This is a problem that took decades to develop; it's not going to be solved overnight," Deputy White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said. Polls suggest that most Americans tend to blame oil companies and foreign oil producers more than Bush or other politicians. But if gas prices inflame inflation enough to drag down the economy, that could be the straw that breaks the Republican grip on Congress. Polls show voters are already deeply unhappy with their lawmakers. Approval ratings for Congress now rival the lows that preceded the 1994 voter revolt, which ended a 40-year Democratic House majority. The news from Iraq isn't brightening the public mood. Throw in resentment of high gasoline prices, topped perhaps by a resulting weak economy, and it could be a rough election year for incumbents of the governing party. That's exactly what Democrats want. (Excerpt) Read more at mercurynews.com ...

[trubluolyguy]

"No-the chart lists the tax in cents not percentage."


I know! Between Federal and other taxes, gas prices in my state are 87 cents higher than they would be without those taxes.

[End Times Sentinel]

I didn't read it closely enough before I posted it, it's actually cents not percent like I said.  However, that doesn't include local taxes, which in some places is significant.

Owl_Eagle

(If what I just wrote makes you sad or angry,

 it was probably sarcasm)

[Doogle]

Don't people even bother to perform the most perfunctory analysis of any issue before swallowing it wholesale?


NO....unless your a democratic,then you believe UBL's a legal matter,clinton can say opposite things about his knowledge of UBL,but.....(here's the one that gets me)..clinton lied,but no body died. (except for Somalia,the USS Cole,Waco,92 attack on WTC, and a few embassies)...but hey if your a liberal democrat,who's counting
...I won't get into Ron Brown,Vince Foster and others

Doogle

[netmilsmom]

>>Or maybe it is a secret plan they will only reveal if elected. <<

Oh isn't THAT the truth!!!

[Hermann the Cherusker]

Pittsburgh, unfortunately, accounts for a disproportionate amount of the rouhgly 2% of new lane miles constructed in the past 25 years, even as its population shrinks.

Please note though, all those new roads out your way are toll roads built by the Turnpike without gas tax money.

The gas tax also pays all the reconstruction heavy maintenance of roads.

[netmilsmom]

>>I don't know where you live, but they are building and rebuilding interstates all over the place here in W. Pa....<<

I started dating my Hubby in 1994. We then had a commuter marriage where I would drive up to see him in Detroit from Cleveland. When I started coming up, they were redoing 280 in Toledo.
They are still redoing 280 in Toledo. Actually, it is now closed for a while.

[FlipWilson]

Wansi't it taken out of the budget and the energy bill?

[tobyhill]

I believe it's going to be in the budget recommendation coming up this Sept. or Oct. where the budget will pass by one or two votes unless the Rats won again against chicken liver Republicans? It was taken out of the energy bill because the Rats were claiming they would filibuster the bill if it was included.

[msjhall]

Funny, I have always blamed the democrats and OPEC.

[Almondjoy]

Still way below inflation. The way I look at it we were grateful for having low gas prices for so long.

Now people will have to deal with the real world.

[Brilliant]

If the Dems don't like high gas prices, then why have they been pushing them higher by blocking the energy bill and drilling in ANWR?

[Bulwark]

If the dems want to have this debate I say, BRING IT ON!!! We will be happy to discuss gas taxes, the refusal of the democrat's environmental whacko friends to allow the building of more refineries, nuclear power plants and an entire array of wonderful contradictions such as not allowing drilling in ANWR. Bring it on dems, its your funeral.

The next person who blindly spews that the democrat's environmental whacko friends don't allow the building of refineries should have to read the crude oil bible as a punishment. Trust me, it's not fun.

I hate to tell you this, but the oil companies themselves don't want to build refinieries. The ROI just isn't there I'm afraid.

[upchuck]

How long has it been since a new refinery was built in the USA?

Why?

Who decided the EPA should demand "designer" gasoline blends specific to different parts of the country? While at the same time preventing the expansion of refining capacity?

Who is opposed to drilling in ANWAR?

Who is opposed to extending the oil leases off the Kali coast?

Who is preventing oil drilling off the coast of Florida?

Who is preventing new drilling off the coast of Texas?

Who has opposed windmill farms off the coast of Massachusetts?

There is one answer to all these questions. And they are mainly to blame for the high oil prices and the current shortage.

These questions and the single answer can effectively blunt the attack against the Republicans.

[FlipWilson]

Oh really. Why, I wonder isn't the ROI not there. Liability. And where does the liability come from?

[FlipWilson]

Quote: "The next person who blindly spews that the democrat's environmental whacko friends don't allow the building of refineries should have to read the crude oil bible as a punishment. Trust me, it's not fun.

I hate to tell you this, but the oil companies themselves don't want to build refinieries. The ROI just isn't there I'm afraid."

Ok, first off, perhaps the ROI wasn't there, but now that demand has increased, you don't see it as being there? Just look at oil sand and shale. Its expensive to extract oil from this, yet the demand has driven the oil companies to begin extraction.

Secondly, from a political standpoint, whether the oil companies wanted more refineries or not, you KNOW the environmentalists didn't and ACTIVELY work against more being built. In short, they are the vocal one's while the oil companies just silently smirk. Thus, it doesn't matter if the oil companies worked against them. All Bush has to do is call for more to be built. The enviros will instinctively and loudly oppose this and Bush can say, "See, the enviros are at it again, the close allies of the democrats."

Finally, there is more to the high price of oil than just oil. A great deal of oil used in this country goes to generating electricity. I wonder who has kept us from building more nuclear power plants or from burning coal?

[Bulwark]

Ok, first off, perhaps the ROI wasn't there, but now that demand has increased, you don't see it as being there? Just look at oil sand and shale. Its expensive to extract oil from this, yet the demand has driven the oil companies to begin extraction. Secondly, from a political standpoint, whether the oil companies wanted more refineries or not, you KNOW the environmentalists didn't and ACTIVELY work against more being built. In short, they are the vocal one's while the oil companies just silently smirk. Thus, it doesn't matter if the oil companies worked against them. All Bush has to do is call for more to be built. The enviros will instinctively and loudly oppose this and Bush can say, "See, the enviros are at it again, the close allies of the democrats." Finally, there is more to the high price of oil than just oil. A great deal of oil used in this country goes to generating electricity. I wonder who has kept us from building more nuclear power plants or from burning coal?

There's so many things wrong here I just don't know where to begin, and before you ask, I worked in the energy industry (specifically petroleum) for a while so I do know of what I speak.

It's not liability that makes a new refinery so expensive. It's *infrastructure*. You need pipelines, holding tanks, monitoring systems, processing tanks, and so on... it's *not* cheap at all. And if you increase output, price drops. If price drops you don't recoup your cost quickly.

Second, the oil industry knows that supply is going to be tighter and tighter. The main suppliers of oil aren't exactly stable companies. China and India have increasing demands for oil. Even when (notice I didn't say if) we start extracting oil from sand and shale, it's not going to be available in the quantities that it is today. Why build it when you're not convinced you'll need it in the future?

The majority of electricity in the US comes from coal, not oil. And it's time for that to change to nuclear, in my opinion. China is rapidly taking the lead with nuclear power, and we need to stay competitive here.

And as to who wants the refineries not built... sure it's environmentalists. And most republicans and democrats also suffer from some sort of NIMBY-syndrome where they don't mind new refineries, but just not where they can see them. But, trust me on this, the oil companies like that just fine.

[mtnwmn]

Speaking of AL, our roads are so bad the truckers have to use the left lane! I don't care if we ever get any new roads, I just wish they would maintain the ones we already have.

[FreedomNeocon]

I wonder how long it will take for 'the media' to point out to their face, Dems fought tooth and nail to get ALL references to Anwar Drilling removed from the energy bill just recently.

What do they think.... we'll wave a magic wand, say 'algore' and POOF... gas is cheaper?!?

[yooper]

"Since when have gas taxes gone to pay for the roads we drive on?"

Since a very long time.

You weren't serious with that question, were you?

[xzins]

This is a real issue that can be exploited. Better to be prepared.