Obama Defends Energy Policy Against Gas Price Attacks
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Charles Dharapak/AP Photo
ABC News’ Mary Bruce and Devin Dwyer Report:
President Obama today defended his “all-of-the-above” energy strategy amid rising gas prices and accused his Republican rivals of using the pain at the pump to score political points.
“It’s the easiest thing in the world to make phony election-year promises about lower gas prices,” the president told students at the University of Miami. “What’s harder is to make a serious, sustained commitment to tackle a problem that may not be solved in one year or one term or even one decade.”
Admitting that rising gas prices are hurting Americans’ wallets, the president argued that his administration is not to blame for the high cost of oil.
“In 2010, our dependence on foreign oil was under 50 percent for the first time in 30 years,” he said. “In 2011, the United States relied less on foreign oil than in any of the last 16 years. Because of the investments we’ve made, the use of clean, renewable energy in this country has nearly doubled, and thousands of Americans have jobs because of it.”
While Republican lawmakers and the GOP presidential candidates have blasted Obama’s energy policy in recent days, the president said they are trying to exploit the spike in gas prices for political purposes.
“Only in politics do people greet bad news so enthusiastically,” Obama said. “You pay more, and they’re licking their chops? And you can bet that since it’s an election year, they’re already dusting off their three-point plans for $2 gas.”
The president urged the nation not to be fooled by the Republican call for increased drilling, saying it’s simply “a bumper sticker.”
“It’s not a strategy to solve our energy challenge. It’s a strategy to get politicians through an election,” he said.
Instead, the president touted his wide-ranging strategy, which includes oil, gas, wind, solar and nuclear power, as the “only real solution” to solve the nation’s energy challenges.
While the president called for an end to oil and gas subsidies and vowed not to walk away from the promise of clean energy, he did not unveil any new initiatives today.
In the short-term, Obama argued there are “no quick fixes” to bring down the price of gas. “There is no silver bullet.” he said. “There never has been. But while we don’t have a silver bullet, what we do have in this country are limitless sources of energy, and a boundless supply of ingenuity and imagination that we can put to work developing that energy.”
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In January 2008, candidate Obama told the San Francisco Chronicle that under his cap-and-trade plan, “electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket.” Steven Chu, now Secretary of Energy, told this newspaper in the same year: “Somehow, we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.” That would be, oh, $10 a gallon.”
Seems like the plan is simply going a little faster than he planned. He wanted to wait until AFTER the upcoming election for prices to skyrocket.
Posted by: wheresmymoney | February 23, 2012, 3:58 pm 3:58 pm
I used to support President Barack Hussein Obama, I really did, but with all due respect, really, Barack Hussein is a sad defeatist. Nothing you can do about high gas prices? Of course you can. You can drill for more gas. And even if that doesn’t fix your high-gas-prices problem, if you drill for gas, high gas prices would be a good thing! Look at Venezuela, Russia and Iran getting flushed with gas money. Why? Because they actually drill for gas! What if we were to drill for gas instead of buy it from the gas-drillers? Well, we, too, the United States of America, would be flushed with money! Remember: Barack Hussein himself said, and I quote, “Under my plan… electricity rates will necessarily skyrocket.” Funny, you can make prices skyrocket, but you can’t bring them down? Better yet, your policies have made electricity prices “necessarily”… Necessarily! skyrocket, but you can’t bring them back down? It is time we had a President who isn’t a sad defeatist. It is time for Romney ’12, PUMA!
Posted by: Obamacrat for Romney | February 23, 2012, 4:02 pm 4:02 pm
President Obama is doing all he can to get a common sense energy policy implemented. We can’t continue to live off the Middle East tit.
Oil companies are making record profits (the most profitable companies ever). They will fight like hell to keep the status quo because we need them to get to work every day and heat our homes. Do you really think they want more production in the USA when they can get the oil much cheaper from Saudi Arabia? Sadly the republicans believe everything the oil companies say.
Posted by: tmferretti | February 23, 2012, 4:10 pm 4:10 pm
mary bruce, devin dwyer – who are these people – interns? really! why won’t george or any other high ranking person for abc lend thier thought on the high price of gas? Oh, that’s right – thier in the tank for obama – just look at election yr 2008 – no hard ball questions – obama got a pass on everything, including his disclosure of doing cocaine, radiclism, you name it – he got a pass – oh yeah and why were democrats so adament it was GW fault high gas prices and now they are silent on the issue………total BS!
Posted by: robert | February 23, 2012, 4:18 pm 4:18 pm
Under the Republican Bush, gasoline prices climbed from about $1.35 a gallon to $4.12 a gallon before the price collapsed with the economy in 2008.
What record do Republicans have that allows them to posture and pose about gasoline prices? The answer: none.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 4:22 pm 4:22 pm
Those who claim that drilling for oil here will lower prices for consumers are simply lying. The oil drilled here is sold on the world market to the higher bidder. And the amount we have is tiny compare to world reserves, so our oil can’t really lower prices.
The Republican politicians who repeatedly claim drilling here will lower prices are counting on people not knowing that is a big fat lie.
Posted by: Librarian53 | February 23, 2012, 4:49 pm 4:49 pm
Under the Republican Bush, gasoline prices climbed from about $1.35 a gallon to $4.12 a gallon before the price collapsed with the economy in 2008.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 4:22 pm 4:22 pm
And you couldn’t turn the TV on without hearing about it from reporters. How many reports have we heard from them this time? The double standard is absolutely sickening. In 2008, Speaker Pelosi said gas prices had more than doubled under Bush. She blamed him and called it a “scam of the greatest magnitude.” Reporters gobbled it up.
It is time for reporters to report the FACTS, and stop worrying about the reprocussions from this regime if it is a negative story.
Posted by: whersmymoney | February 23, 2012, 4:50 pm 4:50 pm
“When I was asked earlier about the issue of coal…under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket…even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad, because I’m capping greenhouse gasses, coal power plants, natural gas…you name it…whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, they would have to retro-fit their operations. That will cost money…they will pass that money on to the consumers.” – Barack Obama, January 2008
Candidate Obama also said he had no problem with $4 gas.
His Secretary of Energy, Dr. Steven Chu, agreed. Prior to the General Election, Chu was even more enthusiastic about raising gasoline prices than Obama.
“Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe,” Mr. Chu, who directs the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.
Posted by: sarah | February 23, 2012, 4:53 pm 4:53 pm
Posted by: whersmymoney | February 23, 2012, 4:50 pm 4:50 pm
Most smart reporters know the only reason gas prices fell so low in 2008 was because they crashed with the economy.
Republicans are crowing about the per percentage increase, but refusing to be honest and admit the per percentage they quote looks big, because of the rock bottom, Great Recession prices of 2008.
That’s not a good way to get cheap gas – 8.5 million people losing their jobs, their businesses, their homes, their savings . . . .
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 5:00 pm 5:00 pm
Candidate Obama also said he had no problem with $4 gas.
Posted by: sarah | February 23, 2012, 4:53 pm 4:53 pm
Bush apparently had no problems with $4 gas – it hit $4.12 on his watch.
Posted by: George | February 23, 2012, 5:01 pm 5:01 pm
this may seem lame but what about a national oil company? the oil companies would hate it so it must be good. a second approach would be to drill here and now but require that oil be sold domestically?
Posted by: catman | February 23, 2012, 5:02 pm 5:02 pm
My business partner and I were laughing as we listened to Barry’s “I have a Pipe Dream” speech on line today.
I’m all for alternative energy but his fantasy-land perspective was hard to take seriously.
Wind, Battery and Solar aren’t where they need to be to be viable.
R&D would be fine to invest in but these things aren’t ready for any mass production industry initiative.
Let’s build a few refineries in North Dakota and make some inroads in using Natural Gas.
Posted by: Noz | February 23, 2012, 5:03 pm 5:03 pm
I guess Obama must have been out campaigning back when Bush was president. Maybe he should have paid attention when the gas went down from $4.00 to $1.89. He really should have gone to school that day and listened to what Bush did instead of trying to copy Romney’s health care plan for himself. Even Ben Stein is now on tv laughing at Obama’s green campaign speech he just gave.
Posted by: Rafe | February 23, 2012, 5:03 pm 5:03 pm
I guess Obama must have been out campaigning back when Bush was president. Maybe he should have paid attention when the gas went down from $4.00 to $1.89. He really should have gone to school that day and listened to what Bush did
Posted by: Rafe | February 23, 2012, 5:03 pm 5:03 pm
Really not a good way to get cheap gas – 8.5 million people losing their jobs, their businesses, their homes, their savings . . . . is that the clever Republican approach to getting cheap gasoline?
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 5:13 pm 5:13 pm
Same old bs story from Obama. Someone else’s fault, probably Bush’s gault.
Posted by: noflyzone2 | February 23, 2012, 5:14 pm 5:14 pm
Why is Obama even messing around with this stuff? He should be focusing on the many important isues confronting the gay and lesbian communities.
Posted by: Librarian53 | February 23, 2012, 5:16 pm 5:16 pm
Canada offered America the Keystone Oil Pipeline and Obama rejected their offer! So now Canada is working on a deal with China to buy the oil!! Canada’s offer also would have brought thousand upon thousands of jobs –good paying jobs and Obama rejected those also. Now he is trying to tell his supporters that his poor decisions aren’t his fault–really?? Are Democrats and Independents really this gullible??
Posted by: whathappened08 | February 23, 2012, 5:20 pm 5:20 pm
“Senator Santorum’s dishonest attack ad is a desperate attempt to distract from his long career in Washington.” – Romney campaign.
Oops, yet another example of a Republican calling another Republican dishonest. Sounds like they’re all dishonest – and name callers.
Posted by: Joe | February 23, 2012, 5:20 pm 5:20 pm
Just heard an interesting fact about our American oil companies that show their extreme greed and lack of loyalty to the U.S. They are using our inexpensive natural gas to refine gasoline cheaper than Mexico can and then selling it in Mexico. Our supplies are lower as a result so the prices for us go up!
We need price regulation to control their greed!
Posted by: Librarian53 | February 23, 2012, 5:20 pm 5:20 pm
when i see the presidential motorcade driving chevy volts and using video conferencing rather than flying all over the country campaigning on airforce one i will listen. till then let them eat cake.
Posted by: catman | February 23, 2012, 5:21 pm 5:21 pm
“Why is Obama even messing around with this stuff? He should be focusing on the many important isues confronting the gay and lesbian communities.”
Posted by: Librarian53
Definitely!
Posted by: green goddess | February 23, 2012, 5:25 pm 5:25 pm
“Same old bs story from Obama. Someone else’s fault, probably Bush’s gault.”
Posted by: Noflyzone2
It’s the only “story” they have, so they’re sticking to it.
Posted by: same again | February 23, 2012, 5:27 pm 5:27 pm
“Just heard an interesting fact about our American oil companies that show their extreme greed and lack of loyalty to the U.S.”
Posted by: Librarian53
Yes, and their lack of loyalty is only exceeded by Obama’s.
Posted by: blip | February 23, 2012, 5:29 pm 5:29 pm
“Why is Obama even messing around with this stuff? He should be focusing on the many important isues confronting the gay and lesbian communities.”
Posted by: Librarian53
I totally agree that this is VERY important, but slow and dense as he is, I still hope Obama can deal with two issues at once, as in walk and chew gum at the same time. I may be asking too much, however. LOL.
Posted by: sarah | February 23, 2012, 5:34 pm 5:34 pm
“Senator Santorum’s dishonest attack ad is a desperate attempt to distract from his long career in Washington.” – Romney campaign.
Oops, yet another example of a Republican calling another Republican dishonest. Sounds like they’re all dishonest – and name callers.
Posted by: Joe | February 23, 2012, 5:20 pm 5:20 pm
All the Democrats will have to do is run television ads of the Republican candidates calling each other dishonest liars, and the election is in the bag.
Posted by: Stan | February 23, 2012, 5:37 pm 5:37 pm
Obama hasn’t done anything, to defend. he has basically stood in the way, of energy development, and he has taken no actions, to contain the cost of transportation.
Obama is a useless figurehead, of a dictator. Nothing more.
Posted by: Rick McDaniel | February 23, 2012, 5:38 pm 5:38 pm
Now let me think if the supply is smaller causing the price to be higher could we perhaps increase the supply by taking the Keystone Oil Pipeline from Canada?? Why did Obama reject the jobs, money and oil Americans would have gotten from agreeing to the Keystone Oil Pipeline deal from Canada? Canada is our neighbor and friend– so why did Obama say NO???
Posted by: whathappened08 | February 23, 2012, 5:44 pm 5:44 pm
Obama hasn’t done anything, to defend. he has basically stood in the way, of energy development, and he has taken no actions, to contain the cost of transportation.
Posted by: Rick McDaniel | February 23, 2012, 5:38 pm 5:38 pm
You’re talking about Bush. Oil production in the U.S. went DOWN every year – every year – under Bush. It’s gone up under Obama.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 5:45 pm 5:45 pm
Why don’t you report on the blogger who discovered Obama’s Saudi Arabian cousin’s name, Abdullah al-Ahmadi, this week.
She also discovered a 2009 photo of Abdullah al-Ahmadi and the Saudi prince.
AND she also discovered Obama’s uncle’s website address from 2001 and retrieved it from archive. Org.
(check it out, Jake: obamasgarden on word press. Chapter 8)
Posted by: MT | February 23, 2012, 5:46 pm 5:46 pm
Posted by: whathappened08 | February 23, 2012, 5:44 pm 5:44 pm
Talk to the Republican governor of Nebraska who opposed the pipeline with the proposed route. He said he expects to have a proposal with a different route to the President by September of this year.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 5:47 pm 5:47 pm
Th facts are all there for any and all to see. Obama bears no blame for any of this, and I have now become almost flexible enough to pleasure myself orally. Just the last foot and a half to go. Wish me luck.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 5:47 pm 5:47 pm
For anyone who wanted the media to vet Obama, a blogger finally obliged you:
“Why don’t you report on the blogger who discovered Obama’s Saudi Arabian cousin’s name, Abdullah al-Ahmadi, this week.
She also discovered a 2009 photo of Abdullah al-Ahmadi and the Saudi prince.
AND she also discovered Obama’s uncle’s website address from 2001 and retrieved it from archive. Org.
(check it out, Jake: obamasgarden on word press. Chapter 8)”
Spread it. In the olden days, this would have been a game-changer.
Posted by: MT | February 23, 2012, 5:55 pm 5:55 pm
Obama said in his speach that you young people understand his energy policy??? WOW, so the young and dumb are with you Obama??? You may be in trouble if that is you audience.
Posted by: billy bob | February 23, 2012, 6:07 pm 6:07 pm
“How is this dude related to the relative of Obama who was the drunk driver and illegal alien, and yet got off scot free?”
He’s not. He’s married to Obama’s cousing on the Dunham side.
Virginia Dunham Goeldner is Stanley Armour Dunham’s sister. She married Cecil Dunham.
A snippet from the family’s website:
“Our daughter Debbie, graduated from Hutchinson Community Junior College before we left Kansas. Then she attended the University of Kansas at Lawrence, graduated with honors in Linguistics and became the first member of our family to receive a college degree. Today she is married, has five children all in school and is currently the Administrative Head of the English Department of an all girls school in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Her husband, Abdullah Al-Ahmadi is a Civil Engineer and a manager with Saudi Aramco. “
Posted by: MT | February 23, 2012, 6:08 pm 6:08 pm
Bravo Mr President for explaining the lies about drilling for oil.We will never get off foreign oil until we use solar,wind and other green energy sources.I liked how our straight A President explained how we can use algae as a new energy souce-too bad it went over the heads of Republicans.His energy policies have kept gas prices low; the jobless numbers continue to fall.
Posted by: Gobama | February 23, 2012, 6:10 pm 6:10 pm
Obama should know what election year political strategies are. No one does it better.
Posted by: newcountryman | February 23, 2012, 6:16 pm 6:16 pm
“Virginia Dunham Goeldner is Stanley Armour Dunham’s sister. She married Cecil Dunham.”
CORRECTION: She married Cecil Goeldner, I meant.
Posted by: MT | February 23, 2012, 6:22 pm 6:22 pm
Yes Obama has no problem with high gas prices because we are paying for his. And when it comes to green energy. They have been working on the since the 70′s. The big problem is you have to continue to subsidize it. If it really worked that would not be required. When it comes to wind, and solar since the fuel is free why do you have to subsidize it. What I am trying to say is that when the technology break through comes it will just take off on its own. You can force a square peg into a round hole.
Posted by: aforefreedom | February 23, 2012, 6:31 pm 6:31 pm
“Spread it.”——-Yep spread more vicious sophomoric lies , innuendo , half-truths and hatefulness as “facts” , heck lie about more WMDs ( Iran ) and scare the stupid sheep silly again in order to usurp / stay in power , whatever it takes obviously .We are becoming the 4th Reich politically ( and militarily ) and the American Christian Taliban faction of the Righteous Reich is ready to do their part as they have since ancient times . Those good Salem Puritan Christians didn’t mind burning innocent people they didn’t agree with , i.e. “witches and demons ” , at the stake at all , and they’d like to make that kind of thing legal again I think if they could . Hitler liked the Christians and tolerated them because they hated the Jews so much , and he used them to do his dirty work . They were ripe and ready from many many years of anti-Jew sentiment being used by the German Govt ., and Europe in general for political purposes . Convenient scapegoats are the first thing the real crooks look for , just like the GOP are lately trying to pin what OPEC and Wall St. does regarding gas prices on the president , who does not own BP , Shell , Exxon or any other oil producing entity to my knowledge. . The outrageously loony (some bordering on traitorous ) emails I’ve seen the right wingers “spreading ” are nearly if not completely and wholly false ; just more of the same old knee jerk partisan propaganda e.g. “It’s all Oblamer’s fault ! ” followed by a wall of false and misleading sophistry . Conservatives’ “facts and figures ” seem to always just be in their heads , or retrieved from some ultra partisan conservative source like FOX or the Heritage Foundation , i.e. nearly if not totally worthless in an objective discussion , but they smugly ( and rather conveniently to boot ) disregard the CBO and the BLS etc. . It’s sad that the right wing has now has lost all socio-political relevance , but it’s patently , tacitly and painfully obviously true .
Posted by: davem | February 23, 2012, 6:32 pm 6:32 pm
Tell a conservative unemployment is going down ( BLS stats ) they’ll say ” well it’s really higher than that because blah blah blah etc. ” but the next sentence they’ll cite BLS stats from the Bush2 administration as proof Bush’s unemployment numbers were “better” . It’s just beyond silly and nonsensical the level of hypocrisy far too many people on the right exude and flaunt shamelessly . Consequently , responsible objective adults need to tune these “people” and their “arguments ” out altogether , and then let’s all haul together in a smart and truthful way to fix this country the way we always have , UNITED . The right has seethed with hateful pouting sore loser indignation from the day Mr. Obama won the nomination , and they are worse today than ever . Conservatives = petulantly hateful children ready to tell any number of bold faced outright lies if it means “winning ” , i.e. beyond insipid and odious.
Posted by: davem | February 23, 2012, 6:53 pm 6:53 pm
Is “DAVEM” how all liberals sound to conservatives??? He doesn’t speak for me or any of the liberals I know. We all hate Obama and know he is a neo-lib liar who promised to end the wars just to get a vote and buck.
Posted by: MT | February 23, 2012, 7:01 pm 7:01 pm
Dave, Time to switch to decaf.
Posted by: newcountryman | February 23, 2012, 7:02 pm 7:02 pm
“Spread it. In the olden days, this would have been a game-changer.”——-yeah but thankfully we aren’t in the “olden days” anymore and the the handy internet makes you republican tea trolls look like the big liars that you really are. keep lying , every new one makes me and lots of other folks even more solid obama supporters.
Posted by: nevereveragain_R | February 23, 2012, 7:02 pm 7:02 pm
ABC monitor, the imposter is at it again. Please remove the comment at 5:16 that I did not write. Thank you.
Posted by: Librarian53 | February 23, 2012, 7:11 pm 7:11 pm
The higher energy cost us the more expensive it is to make solar panels and windmills due to all the energy intensive items that go into making them. The Germans were leading the way in Solar spending 130 billion on it to find that they were getting 3/10′s of one percent of their energy needs from all that money. They promply scaled back their ambitions.
Obama should go play patty cake with the Iranians.
Posted by: david | February 23, 2012, 7:14 pm 7:14 pm
yay ABC moderator !
Posted by: Hahaha | February 23, 2012, 7:33 pm 7:33 pm
Obama is having a hard time defending his energy policy because his stated policy have always been to increase the price of gas to $8.00 per/gal. So now that prices are moving up to new highs he is claiming success! Bravo Obama, thanks to you the middle class and the poor will not even be able to get to that low paying part time job you created for them! Or maybe you could sell them one of those $50,000 electric cars that must be recharged every 90 miles or less! Great for road trips if you don’t mind the 6 to 8 hour recharging stops!
Posted by: BIG JIMMY | February 23, 2012, 7:33 pm 7:33 pm
Posted by: david | February 23, 2012, 7:14 pm 7:14 pm
No, 3% of their electricity needs, project to be 25% by 2050. How far into the future do you look?
Posted by: Jerry | February 23, 2012, 7:39 pm 7:39 pm
Posted by: BIG JIMMY | February 23, 2012, 7:33 pm 7:33 pm
Gasoline is still lower that it was almost 4 years ago under Bush. Under Bush the average price of a gallon of gas hit $4.12 in 2008.
Posted by: John | February 23, 2012, 7:40 pm 7:40 pm
Sorry John, but where I buy gas its already at $4.19 for regular and the day Obama took office it was $1.84………Obama is on record saying he has NO PROBLEM with the price of gas at $4.00 or higher. And higher it shall go, on to set new all time records under Obama! So you just keep drinking Obama’s kool-aid and you’ll keep paying through the nose!
Posted by: BIG JIMMY | February 23, 2012, 7:57 pm 7:57 pm
WHERE IS BIG OILLLLLLLLLLLLLLL????????????
Did the President tackle BIG OIL. Or did my Ears play tricks on Me????? What !!!!! There is NO BIG OIL?????? Alot of people lied several years ago!!!!! And He was one of them!!!!
Posted by: JVG | February 23, 2012, 8:01 pm 8:01 pm
“No, 3% of their electricity needs, project to be 25% by 2050. How far into the future do you look?’
“For this massive amount of money, solar power only provides about 3 percent of Germany’s total electricity.”
Sorry Jerry old age makes dirt on the screen look like a decimal. You’re right it is 3 % and requires 1.1 millions solar systems to get this miniscule amount of power. The projections were based on their investments at the time and since they took an ax to the money spent then no doubt those projections are no longer valid. How long do you wait? I don’t know but I do know you can’t bankrupt a country trying to prove a point which is what the President seems to be doing.
Posted by: david | February 23, 2012, 8:07 pm 8:07 pm
Maybe you americans should look at the sanctions you have placed on IRAN as no matter whom is in office, this ultimately affects the price you pay. You CANT have it both ways!
Posted by: Joanne | February 23, 2012, 8:08 pm 8:08 pm
Posted by: BIG JIMMY | February 23, 2012, 7:57 pm 7:57 pm
Jimmy there’s a reason gas fell to $1.85 in 2008 – the price of gas crashed along with the economy during the great crash under Bush.
Is that a good way to keep gas prices low – 8.5 million people losing their jobs, their businesses, their homes, their retirement savings?
Is that the good old Republican approach?
Posted by: John | February 23, 2012, 8:11 pm 8:11 pm
Posted by: david | February 23, 2012, 8:07 pm 8:07 pm
Don’t scoff at renewable energy.
The share of electricity produced from renewable energy in Germany was over 20 percent in the first half of 2011. That includes wind, solar, geothermal, hydro, etc. Their targets are 60 to 80% by 2050.
The United States should be catching up, not falling behind. The future awaits us.
Posted by: Jerry | February 23, 2012, 8:20 pm 8:20 pm
The way the oil companies are allowed to change gas prices at will, purely on speculation that some nut job somewhere in the world “might” so something stupid is really called price fixing and collusion. If an industry that doesn’t donate millions of dollars to these crooks (Politicians) were to do the same thing with their prices there would be senate hearings and investigations and they would be fined and put out of business. These oil companies are so deep in these politicians pockets they are rubbing their balls and controlling our entire economy. Put a stop to political donations and get rid of lifetime medical care and full benefit pensions for the crooks (Politicians) and watch not only how few people even run for office, but also how quickly our economy would stabilize.
Posted by: naugs | February 23, 2012, 8:23 pm 8:23 pm
‘Maybe you americans should look at the sanctions you have placed on IRAN as no matter whom is in office, this ultimately affects the price you pay.’
We just like to grumble about it and have been doing it since the Carter years. Same ole story, ‘we can’t do oil because that would take too long to get to market. Carter tried solar but after we saw the unsightly mess the panel that Carter had installed for the White House where he leaned it up against the 48 Packard in the front lawn of the White House-[the car that he was going to fix up but never got around to it] most Americans nixed solar right then and there.
We also like saying things like “if you cross that line we are going to get you”.
Posted by: david | February 23, 2012, 8:24 pm 8:24 pm
Obama has an energy policy ? Oh yeah…hand out billions of our dollars to companies run by his cronies when he knows they will go bankrupt. Oh…then he said that we need to check the air pressure in our tires. What a friggin idiot!!
Posted by: Terry | February 23, 2012, 8:26 pm 8:26 pm
Talk to the Republican governor of Nebraska who opposed the pipeline with the proposed route. He said he expects to have a proposal with a different route to the President by September of this year.
POSTED BY: TRY SOME FACTS ===Idiot!!! No he didn’t. He approved of the pipeline on its original route but said that if it had to be moved to get it approved so be it.
Posted by: reality sux for dems | February 23, 2012, 8:29 pm 8:29 pm
In the late 70s and 80s, The goverment took some actions to slow consuption. Slower speeds on roads. Programs that really none of us liked, but mostly worked. FInding ways of making homes more efficent. I know not everything will work. But there was some kinda effort. Since 1983 there is there is a unbelieveable more cars on the roads then ever. The Goverments response build more and larger roads. There is no way they can control fuel cost, then how about quit building bigger roads and build better transportation solutions????? If people want to drive on clogged roads then taking mass transit that will get them there better then mybe that is the way we should go.
Posted by: JVG | February 23, 2012, 8:29 pm 8:29 pm
Gasoline is still lower that it was almost 4 years ago under Bush. Under Bush the average price of a gallon of gas hit $4.12 in 2008.
POSTED BY: JOHN |—Gas has never been higher at this time of year. The record will be broken within a month. 4.08 will look like a good buy by summer. Enjoy..
Posted by: william | February 23, 2012, 8:31 pm 8:31 pm
There is no way this one can be blamed on the President. No Keystone isn’t affecting the price of gas. It wouldn’t have any affect for years and it isn’t even our oil. Domestic oil production has increased under Obama.
Posted by: jock59801 | February 23, 2012, 8:36 pm 8:36 pm
Don’t scoff at renewable energy
No one is scoffing at it but it has to be done sanely and sensibly. How much does a German family have to spend now to get this source of power?There is a lot of projects going on right here in our own country and more ways to do it than solar and wind .Smart men and women are coming up with wonderful ideas but you can’t bankrupt a country and expect to make progress.The private sector will do it if the Government doesn’t hamstring them.
I say we put a dome on DC and drive turbines from the hot air and gas coming from these brainiacs. After all these smart men and women who try to plan and be visionaries for the future do so because of power and money. The schemes being done today by todays politicians for the “sake of our future” are nothing more than pure balaoney and we have 15 billion in debt to prove it.
Posted by: david | February 23, 2012, 8:40 pm 8:40 pm
The Canadians want that pipeline built so they have easier access to world markets. That oil isn’t going to go just to us. It’s another scam.
Posted by: pipeline hostages | February 23, 2012, 9:00 pm 9:00 pm
Talk to the Republican governor of Nebraska who opposed the pipeline with the proposed route.
He said he expects to have a proposal with a different route to the President by September of this
year. POSTED BY: TRY SOME FACTS ===Idiot!!! No he didn’t. He approved of the pipeline on its
original route but said that if it had to be moved to get it approved so be it. POSTED BY: REALITY
SUX FOR DEMS ********************** HOLD ON, Gov. Heineman, last year rejected TransCanada
Corp.’s TRP initial plans for the pipeline with the backing of the GOP-controlled legislature as it
would have run through the environmentally sensitive Sand Hills area above the Ogallala aquifer.
SUX FOR DEMS is right on track. the ALTERNATIVE proposal was approved. What really
matters is that the majority of supply material will be manufactured in China!! Boy that cuts the
labor projections in half.
Posted by: michael | February 23, 2012, 9:17 pm 9:17 pm
Yep! There goes that big $40 a week tax break Obama just gave to the middle class at the expense of Social Security and Medicare! Its okay, he can just blame Bush!
Posted by: BIG JIMMY | February 23, 2012, 9:18 pm 9:18 pm
Talk to the Republican governor of Nebraska who opposed the pipeline with the proposed route. He said he expects to have a proposal with a different route to the President by September of this year.
POSTED BY: TRY SOME FACTS ===Idiot!!! No he didn’t. He approved of the pipeline on its original route but said that if it had to be moved to get it approved so be it.
Posted by: reality sux for dems | February 23, 2012, 8:29 pm 8:29 pm
Lies come so easily to the right wing lemmings . ..
______________________
Dear President Obama and Secretary Clinton:
I am writing to you today regarding a very important issue to the State of Nebraska and to our citizens- the Keystone XL Pipeline. I am opposed to the proposed route of this pipeline.
Gov. Dave Heineman
_________________________________
You should do some research before you call other people ‘idiot’.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 9:28 pm 9:28 pm
Even Hineman of Nebraska supports the Keysone Pipeline and there is already a pipeline that runs through the middle of Nebraska. Just another bad decision by this president
Posted by: just the facts | February 23, 2012, 9:38 pm 9:38 pm
Sorry John, but where I buy gas its already at $4.19 for regular and the day Obama took office it was
$1.84………POSTED BY: BIG JIMMY***********JIMMY, where the heck did you get a price of
$1.84 in 2008 ?!?, Did you siphon it? Beside this was the average price around the country. I do
remember Bush being on his knees, pleading with the Arabs to increase more oil output. And it
WAS at the $4 mark at our location.
Posted by: michael | February 23, 2012, 9:43 pm 9:43 pm
Production on the average has dropped from 11 million barrels to 7 million barrels under Oblamers watch
Posted by: try some facts | February 23, 2012, 9:44 pm 9:44 pm
Even Hineman of Nebraska supports the Keysone Pipeline and there is already a pipeline that runs through the middle of Nebraska. Just another bad decision by this president
Posted by: just the facts | February 23, 2012, 9:38 pm 9:38 pm
Wrong again right wanger.
Dear President Obama and Secretary Clinton:
I am writing to you today regarding a very important issue to the State of Nebraska and to our citizens- the Keystone XL Pipeline. I am opposed to the proposed route of this pipeline.
Gov. Dave Heineman
The Governor advised the President he should have a proposal ready for an alternative route by September of this year.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 9:44 pm 9:44 pm
Even Hineman of Nebraska supports the Keysone Pipeline and there is already a pipeline that runs through the middle of Nebraska. Just another bad decision by this president
Posted by: just the facts | February 23, 2012, 9:38 pm 9:38 pm
Wrong. Gov. Heineman of Nebraska opposed the Keystone Pipeline as proposed.
Posted by: Try Some Facts | February 23, 2012, 9:49 pm 9:49 pm
Michael on Jan. 26, 2009 the average price for gas was $1.84 after 3 years of Obama its now pushing $4.99 in some states like California! – Sorry but this time its not Bush’s fault, as he hasn’t been president for over 3 years! – When will Obama stop blaming everyone but himself for his failed policies!
Posted by: BIG JIMMY | February 23, 2012, 10:56 pm 10:56 pm
Posted by: BIG JIMMY | February 23, 2012, 10:56 pm 10:56 pm
The average gas price had been rising all through Bush’s presidency – from about $1.35 to $4.12 in 2008.
Then the economy crashed and took the price of gas with it to a rock bottom of $1.84.
This is what Big Jimmy sees as a big accomplishment – crashing the price of gas by 8.5 million people losing their jobs, their businesses, their homes, their invested savings, etc.
It’s now 4 years later and of course the price of gas rebounded from that crash – and STILL the average price of gas in lower than what it hit under Bush.
Posted by: truth | February 23, 2012, 11:14 pm 11:14 pm
If a intelligent mad man wanted to destroy the mighty USA…how would he do it?
He would destroy it from the inside out.
He would raise taxes on job creators.
He would raise the costs of living through inflation.
He would keep industry from growing and smother it with regulations.
He would keep the country form utilizing its own natural resources
He would reduce the military and cripple its power.
He would spend until we were so deeply in debt that we could never get out.
He would allow foreigners to infiltrate our borders and drain our system
He would turn rich against poor and poor against rich.
Why do Americans not see what is really going on.
Posted by: joAmerican | February 23, 2012, 11:15 pm 11:15 pm
JOAMERICAN:
I see what’s actually going on.
Republicans are destroying the country from inside out.
Republicans lower taxes for Corporations that move jobs overseas.
Republicans lower the cost of living for the rich by making them richer.
Republicans want only regulations that favor them.
Republicans want drill baby drill without considering the consequences of long term effects on the environment.
Republicans equate military to power.
Republicans spend all 240 billion surplus gained during Clinton Administration.
American is a country of immigrants. Do not forget that early Europeans were once foreigners.
Obama speaks of unity where as Republican speak of division.
I was blind, now I see!
Posted by: Ordnry1 | February 23, 2012, 11:57 pm 11:57 pm
Posted by: -+- | February 24, 2012, 1:57 am 1:57 am
“Obama speaks of unity where as Republican speak of division.”
POSTED BY: -+-
Still buying that teleprompted hot air from Obama? Wise up. Get new spectacles.
Posted by: captain obvious | February 24, 2012, 8:39 am 8:39 am
“All the above” is an out and out lie. He has no energy policy but to spend taxpayers money paying back his big donors. Algae…really!
Posted by: Freedom | February 24, 2012, 10:53 am 10:53 am
oBama said: “what we do have in this country are limitless sources of energy, and a boundless supply of ingenuity and imagination that we can put to work developing that energy”
.
We also have a limitless supply of excuses from the so-called president. Too bad that can’t be turned into some type of energy for this country.
Posted by: Michelle Shu Jas | February 24, 2012, 11:01 am 11:01 am
“We also have a limitless supply of excuses from the so-called president. Too bad that can’t be turned into some type of energy for this country.” – Michelle Shu Jas
BamaHotAir or the unit of energy called BHA is able to power two small inner city homes as long as the inhabitants are on food stamps and have less than 2 gaming systems, less than 4 cell phones and Cable instead of Direct TV..
Posted by: Noz | February 24, 2012, 12:27 pm 12:27 pm
We all know big business runs this country and with obama stating nothing can be done about the high price of gas shows me the gas companies are donating to his relection fund. If exxon can make 30 billion dollars profit in one quarter then they could cut the price of gas in half to $2.00 a gallon and still make 15 billion profit. So you cant blame it on the saudi’s anymore.
Posted by: Jim Desantis | February 24, 2012, 3:34 pm 3:34 pm
Obama has a chance to run the pipeline from canada but the oil companies donating to his re-election fund shows me he is on their side by giving us excuses as to why he cant do anything about gas prices.. And dont give me that bull about the pipeline ruining the habitant of the spotted owl or any other animal that will be extinct because of it. The dinosaur is extinct and we get along with out them very well. Thank God.
Posted by: Jim Desantis | February 24, 2012, 3:39 pm 3:39 pm
I am now a Republican and I am licking my chops to replace the WPE (worst president ever) and get the gas prices down, get unemployment down to the levels Geo. W. Bush had, get the home building industry cranking again and get the money back that is being wasted on legal fees for WPE’s cronies at Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac.
Posted by: 8 The Man | February 24, 2012, 4:32 pm 4:32 pm
This man is really erratic….last one to do anything about a problem…first one to yak about it….that’s his style, I guess……..folks are really starting to wonder what we have done by putting him in the Oval Office………
Gingrich has it right………………he is dangerous!
Posted by: justj jofey | February 26, 2012, 4:57 pm 4:57 pm