by DAVID STROM at hotair.com
Let’s face it: the largest single factor in the prices of anything is market conditions. Ultimately supply and demand determine prices.
Government can have an impact, and sometimes a large one. Regulatory decisions, tax policies, and other government actions can have a major impact.
When gas prices went through the roof President Biden took a lot of heat, and he did what he could to lower the prices and took a lot of credit for the results.
Joe Biden’s decision to flood the market with American oil reserves likely did drive down the price of oil temporarily, although at the expense of our national security (fewer reserves in case of emergency) and for a limited time (obviously you can only dump so much of it). It was a bad policy, but it bought Biden time before the election.
But that time is over.
Biden’s energy policies have also served to drive down supply: cutting off pipelines, restricting oil exploration and production, discouraging investment in fossil fuel companies, and in general pursuing policies he promised during the campaign designed to destroy the fossil fuel industry.
He announced he would pursue these policies, and he has.
Now that the price of oil–and gasoline in particular–has been going up again the Administration has been quizzed about what level of responsibility the Biden Administration has. The president, after all, took credit for the drop in gas prices over the past several months. If he can take credit for reduced prices, must he take responsibility for increased prices?
Well, no, of course not.