Wouldn’t it be nice to roll up to a gas pump and see the price of a gallon of gas at pre-Biden prices? It may be a reality at a gas pump near you.
Americans for Prosperity (AFP) began a weeklong event in Pittsburgh on Monday. The group is temporarily offering gas at $2.38 per gallon. That was the price of gas when Biden took office. Now the price per gallon is about $3.60. That is a $1.20 difference. American families struggling to live in Biden’s America with Bidenflation could use that $1.20 per gallon difference put back into their budgets.
AFP is collaborating with gas stations across the country, rolling back prices. This week 25 gas stations will offer the rolled-back price on a first-come, first-served basis for about 150 to 200 cars. The event will include gas stations in crucial battleground states like Florida, North Carolina, and Wisconsin.
Instead of Florida, I think I would choose Michigan. The aggregated polling at Real Clear Politics has Trump up by 1 point. I think Florida is looking good. RCP has him up by 9 points. The biggest political success DeSantis has had as governor is turning Florida from a purplish state to a deep red state.
The reason cited in AFP’s event across the country is to spotlight how America’s energy policies can “unleash America’s energy abundance.”
“Biden’s war on American energy has had disastrous results and Americans are reeling from high gas prices going into the summer,” Akash Chougule, AFP vice president of government affairs, said.
Critics of the price drop like Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis, say Biden’s energy policies aren’t to blame for price increases.
“Global economics are what dictate global [oil] prices, and a president has a very limited role, regardless of political party, into that equation,” De Haan said.
The argument goes that world events like Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and the end of the pandemic, which brought people out of their homes and back into their cars, matter more than one country’s energy policies. Biden and his minions like to blame Putin for gas prices. And, supply and demand are indeed a factor when busy seasons affect vehicle usage. We are entering into the summer driving season as people hit the road for vacations. Holiday weekends – Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day – will bring additional consumer demand.
Presidential energy policies can take months or years to show up at the gas pump. Former President Trump promises to increase oil and gas drilling if he is re-elected. There is no denying that Trump was friendly to the fossil fuel industry while Biden has done everything in his power to stifle fossil fuel energy production.
The results can be a mixed bag.
During his time in office, Biden has imposed restrictions on oil and gas companies as part of his climate agenda. At the same time, the U.S. has become the world’s largest exporter of natural gas, and in 2023, domestic crude oil production hit a record high.
The price of gas at a gas station is dependent upon the price of a barrel of crude oil. That is true. However, it is undeniable that a president’s energy policies do affect energy production. For example, there is a stark contrast between Biden’s canceling oil and gas leases and prohibiting drilling on federal land and Trump’s drill, baby, drill policies.
The Biden administration last week launched their biggest attack yet on America’s energy industry and it’s a story that’s flown completely under the radar.
Last week, Biden’s Bureau of Land Management shut down federal leases to Wyoming’s Powder River Basin, which the nation’s… pic.twitter.com/1mfMiE3Ub4
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) May 22, 2024
It matters when Biden boasts about his hopes of killing coal as an energy source. And, it matters when projects like the Keystone Pipeline XL are shut down. It matters who is sitting in the White House.
Akash Chougule, AFP vice president of government affairs, calls it Biden’s war on American energy.
“From shutting down the Keystone Pipeline to banning energy leases on federal land, Joe Biden’s top-down policies have stifled our country’s energy resources and made even the things like a family road trip more expensive,” Chougule said in a statement. “This week, we are spotlighting what gas prices could be with policies that unleash our country’s energy potential.”
It may not make much of a splash with voters but it’s good for activists to present the contrast between policies favored by Trump and Biden. We know that times were better during the Trump administration. Life was easier before the pandemic. Prices were better.
We have an unusual presidential election this cycle. Both Trump and Biden have records as president. Voters can make up their minds on which is better when November rolls around.