Surge In Gas Prices Squeezing American Families

Gas Prices From Hell Squeezing Americans

The House and the Senate are NOT in session today. The Senate will resume consideration of H.R. 3606, the bipartisan House-passed JOBS Act on Monday afternoon.

Yesterday, the Senate voted 95-2 to confirm Gina Groh as US District Judge for the Northern District of West Virginia and 91-6 to confirm Michael Fitzgerald as US District Judge for the Central District of California.

Surging Gas Prices:
Bloomberg News writes today, “The surge in gasoline prices now squeezes middle-income families again as President Barack Obama approaches the election. Gasoline prices are up almost 17 percent, or 54 cents, this year through March 14, according to the American Automobile Association. . . . While gasoline accounted for just 3.8 percent of consumer spending in January, fuel prices have a disproportionate impact on both the psychology and actual finances of middle- and lower- income families. . . . The national average retail price of unleaded regular gasoline climbed to $3.821 a gallon on March 14, according to a daily survey by the American Automobile Association. That’s 7.5 percent higher than a year ago, according to AAA’s survey. Recent polls show public unhappiness with the president over energy costs. Americans by 65 percent to 26 percent disapprove of how Obama is handling the price of gas, according to an ABC News/Washington Post poll conducted March 7-10. . . . Thirty-six percent of Americans say the increase in gasoline prices has been a ‘serious hardship’ and 48 percent of those earning less than $50,000 per year say so, the same poll found.”

USA Today reports, “Nearly one-third of the nation’s drivers now fork out $4 or more for a gallon of gasoline. After a 31-cent jump in the past month, regular gasoline averages $3.82 nationwide. But price analysis of major metropolitan areas and 10 states — home to more than 65 million of the nation’s 210 million drivers — shows even more pain at the pump, especially in heavily populated California, New York and Illinois.”

Little wonder, then, that following President Obama’s combative and arrogant speech on energy yesterday, the National Journal responded, “President Obama is in full crisis-control mode as gasoline prices continue to rise. On Thursday at Prince George’s Community College in Largo, Md., he gave his third speech on energy in two weeks . . . . The problem is that for many voters, Obama’s more detailed, nuanced, long-term message on energy is harder to wrap their heads around than the GOP's short, simple idea that more drilling equals lower prices. So Obama is using repetition in hopes of drilling his own message home. . . . Don’t expect the messaging to let up: The writing is on the wall that high gas prices are hurting Obama. Historically, presidential approval ratings have fallen as gas prices have climbed, and the trend is playing out now as it has in the past.”

And yet the president continues to encourage policies that are making things worse. He rejected the Keystone XL pipeline that would have allowed the U.S. to get more oil from Canada instead of Saudi Arabia (the latter of which seems to be Sen. Chuck Schumer’s [D-NY] preferred solution), created 20,000 jobs, and allowed more American oil to get to refineries.

Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell has repeatedly laid out the Obama’s administrations poor record on energy:

• Limited offshore areas to energy production
• Granted fewer leases on public land for oil drilling
• Encouraged countries, like Brazil, to move forward with their own offshore drilling projects
• Imposed burdensome regulations on the domestic energy sector
• Raised taxes on the energy sector
• Rejected the Keystone XL Pipeline
• Continued and increase dependence from Middle Eastern oil
• Prevented tens of thousands of private sector jobs
• Pushed gasoline prices higher

The president can lecture others by saying, “a lot of politicians talking a lot but not doing much,” but the facts speak for themselves. This White House’s energy policies are making things worse.

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Tags: Gas prices, American families, House JOBS Act, judicial confirmations, Gina Groh, Michael Fitzgerald, energy policies, White House, Obama Administration To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!