It’s very similar to saying that the overall cost of energy for people in Rwanda is lower than in the USA.
If you depress the economy enough, yes the amount of energy used does go down drastically.
That was kind of my take on what Tim (New Math) Geithner was pitching when he was talking about 'overall costs of energy for consumers being down' ...
There very well may be some bizzaro case where he can make that statement. Like you mentioned: less money is now spent on energy by consumers because unemployment as gone from 4% to >10% ... or some similar contortions of book-keeping.
The bottom line is that this Administration has been a disaster for all aspects of the Economy, but they've excelled in their zeal to destroy the Energy producing industry. They've squandered billions on dead end greenie projects. They have shutdown drilling. They have shutdown large segments of the coal industry. They stop the building of pipelines. They impede exploration and development of practical sources of carbon based energy resources.... And, of course, they run out to the front of the parade regarding any advancements that were launched under the Bush Administration. They are clowns that would be the source of hilarity if they weren't causing so much pain to the Nation.