HOW HIGH THE PRICE?

by Steven Thomma
San Jose Mercury News
08-18-05

Americans are mad as hell about soaring gas prices, and Democrats hope they'll take it out on the Republicans who control the federal government in next year's midterm elections.

"Bush does nothing to combat rising prices," the Democratic National Committee said this week in a new attack seeking to link President Bush, his party, gas prices and oil-company profits in the public mind. "Republicans are in the oil companies' pockets and Bush is in the oil companies' pockets."

The White House responds that no one can turn around gas prices instantly, that Bush fought for years to enact an energy bill and that the new plan, signed into law earlier this month, will take years to produce results. "This is a problem that took decades to develop; it's not going to be solved overnight," Deputy White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said.

Polls suggest that most Americans tend to blame oil companies and foreign oil producers more than Bush or other politicians. But if gas prices inflame inflation enough to drag down the economy, that could be the straw that breaks the Republican grip on Congress.

Polls show voters are already deeply unhappy with their lawmakers. Approval ratings for Congress now rival the lows that preceded the 1994 voter revolt, which ended a 40-year Democratic House majority. The news from Iraq isn't brightening the public mood. Throw in resentment of high gasoline prices, topped perhaps by a resulting weak economy, and it could be a rough election year for incumbents of the governing party.

That's exactly what Democrats want.

"Voters who are paying more at the pump are going to make their voice heard in the `06 elections," said Josh Earnest, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee.

Democrats note that average gasoline prices were 39 percent higher this week than when Bush was sworn into his second term seven months ago and 75 percent higher than when he first took office in January 2001. They complain that the new energy measure "gives billions in tax breaks to oil companies" that already are enjoying record profits. They said Republicans had received $67 million in contributions from the oil and gas industry since 2000.

What would the Democrats do to curb prices? They'd investigate the oil companies and their profits, Earnest said. They also would take some of the oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to the marketplace in an effort to ease prices.

Democrat Al Gore urged tapping the reserve in the 2000 presidential campaign, and President Clinton reluctantly agreed, but it had a negligible impact. In 2004, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry again urged dipping into the reserve to ease gas prices, but Bush refused. He says the reserve should be saved for the purpose it was created for, as an emergency supply in case foreign oil sources are disrupted.

Americans by 2 to 1 think Bush isn't doing an effective job handling energy problems, according to a recent survey for the Associated Press. But when they were asked who they blame for high prices, 52 percent listed oil companies or foreign countries, while 21 percent blamed politicians.

"There's no question gas prices are being felt," said Ed Patru, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, the party's arm for races in the House of Representatives. "But it's pretty difficult to assign blame to one party or the other for rising gas prices."

To get voters to abandon Republicans and turn to them, Democrats may need to lay out a detailed outline of what they'd do differently on energy and other issues, notably including the Iraq war, some analysts suggested.

"So far the president has dodged the bullet," independent pollster John Zogby said. "If we see gas prices stay as high as they are, Democrats will probably get some sort of message together and Americans may be in a punishing mood. "


Snave's note: I would suggest that the Republicans are not the only party which receives money from oil companies. Democratic politicians are also beholden to various special interests and surely must also receive at least some funding from "Big Oil".

On the other hand, I would have to say the Republican party is much easier to connect with the oil companies than our lefty leadres, and that people who would suggest otherwise have their heads in dark places. It seems as if a lot of Bush's crew are ex-oil execs, and of course we know about Bush's history in the oil industry.

For a while, I was predicting that once people get mad enough about gas prices and complain enough to their Reps and Senators (who will be leaned on by GOP leadership to comply), those elected officials will vote for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge... and once that is approved, we will see at least some decrease in gas prices.

Now I would have to back off on that, because I don't think the Bush administration was expecting something like Hurricane Katrina, which has put a huge kink in our ability to refine oil. I think that before Bush tries to give the environmental movement the slap in the face he has wanted to give it for the last five years (that's all it would be, after all... otherwise, why bother to drill for about 2 years worth of oil that would take up to ten years to deliver?), he will need to get busy at rebuilding the central Gulf Coast and the refineries that are inoperable.

Then, he will probably try for the ANWR drilling approval. If he gets pushy about it now, during the present catastrophe, he will do nothing more than paint a large bulls-eye on himself and the GOP.

Thanks once again to friend Joe for the above article.