The reasons that gas is high:
1. A cartel that controls crude oil production and manipulates supply to keep prices high. This is much less effective today than it was 30 years ago as the cartel members operate on pure greed and so will routinely buck the group and increase produciton in order to cash in on higher prices.
2. Government failure to develop domestic sources. Democrats and some Republicans bow to the “environmental” lobbies and refuse to do anything to help the USA become less dependent on foreign oil or to augment the supply and keep prices down. I would not be surprised to learn that money from the aforementioned cartel has an influence on this as well.
3. Government regulation preventing the building of new refineries. Last I read we haven’t built a new refinery in about 30 years. The price of gas is up due to an inability to refine oil fast enough to keep up with demand. We have a gas shortage - not an oil shortage.
4. Government regulation that mandates “boutique” formulations of gasoline. These are tailored to different regions of the country. The result is added cost, delay and shortages when demand outstrips the refinery dedicated to the particular blend and no other refinery can step in and fill the demand because their product doesn’t fit the regulated formula for the region.
5. Government regulation making the building of nuclear power plants virtually impossible. Government types yak away about “alternative” energy sources then work overtime to prevent using the one alternative source we know works.
6. Government taxes at both state and federal level.
7. Price gouging. This one does happen but only rarely and apparently only at individual stations. No one gets away with this one for long as the local media jumps all over it and the person who does it is quickly pounded into submission. No major oil company does it as they simply cannot get away with it - unlike our semi-criminal and wholly irresponsible government “leaders” who are the primary cause of high energy prices, foreign dependency (with all that implies these days) and a total lack of any coherent or effective energy policy and who, with media support, get away with their stupidity and so are reelected over and over and over again thus perpetuating their stupidity to the detriment of the country they profess so much to “love”.
I’d add to that the fact that two of our five largest refineries that can handle sour crude, the cheaper stuff, are partially down and having to use sweet crude, which is expensive.