Gas Price Drop Silences GOP Critics

A hush has fallen over the land. The stillness is deafening. Just a few short
weeks ago, Republicans were loudly blaming President Barack Obama for increases in the price of gasoline. Now, we hear nary a peep of complaint from the GOP or anyone else for that matter. What happened? Nationally, the price of gasoline has dropped 18 cents in the past month. It has decreased 23 cents in the past year.

Just as people criticized Obama a short while ago, shouldn't we be applauding him now for the decrease in gasoline prices? Well, actually, we shouldn't be blaming or congratulating President Obama for changes in the cost of gas. Presidents have
nothing to do with it.

Robert B. Semple Jr. writes in the New York Times (3/18/12), "The issue of gas prices has not only been misunderstood, but thoroughly distorted by relentless
ideological spin from industry and its political allies, mainly Republican.  .  . If only the president had the power to give us $2.50-a-gallon gasoline, as Newt Gingrich promised to do if he got to the White House. It is ridiculous to think that a president can." 

Semple continues, "But the fundamental truth is that those prices are tied to the price of oil, set by world markets. There are peaks and valleys, but their causes - a worldwide recession, an embargo or conflict in the Middle East - are beyond the
control of any one country."

Nevertheless, Republicans feel that the price of gas could be driven down, if only President Obama would encourage more domestic drilling for oil. According to the GOP, Obama's alleged obstinacy and refusal to do so leaves the United States heavily dependent on foreign oil and keeps the price of gas high. Whoops! Surprise! Surprise! During the Obama administration, oil production in the United States has increased.

Semple notes, "On this score, America is doing much better than Republicans will admit. In 2005, oil imports accounted for nearly 60 percent of America's daily
consumption . . .last year imports were only 45 percent . . . There are two
reasons for this welcome shift:  production is up and oil consumption is down. Production of crude oil and other liquid fuels, onshore and offshore, reached about 10.3 million barrels daily in 2011, its highest levels since the late 1980s." 

As a matter of fact, the culprit in this drama is more likely the oil industry,
than President Obama. Oil companies are not fully using all the drilling permits
they have been issued by the government. Semple refers to comments made by U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman. "Mr. Bingaman notes that 7,000 approved on-shore drilling permits have been sitting unused by the companies that own them, and that millions of acres under lease in the gulf remain unexplored."

So, what energy policy provides the best chance for the United States to meet its
energy needs while trying to keep gasoline prices under control? Do you remember those multiple-choice tests that you took in school? If "all of the above" was included among the possible alternative answers, it stood a pretty good chance of being correct. Life is complicated, and, more often than not, what happens is due to a combination of influences, not any one thing. So it is with energy. Oil alone won't meet our needs. Neither will coal alone or nuclear or gas or wind or solar or biomass, but all of them together combined with the efficient use of energy stands the best chance of solving the problem. And, if you hadn't noticed, that is precisely the energy plan being backed by President Obama.