Moneybox: Out of Gas

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Moneybox Out of Gas The folly of blaming Obama for higher gas prices. By Matthew Yglesias Posted Thursday, Feb 23, 2012, at 09:11 PM ET Several months' worth of strong labor market data have put a crimp in Republican plans to run against Barack Obama as the second coming of Herbert Hoover. Fortunately for GOP candidates—if not for most Americans—gasoline prices are up about 29 cents a gallon since December, offering a bounteous new economic issue to complain about. Rick Santorum says we can blame the president's "radical environmental policies" for the pain at the pump. The White House is pushing out news stories about increased oil production to try to counter that narrative, but Newt Gingrich has upped the ante with a promise to bring gas prices down to $2.50 a gallon. John Boehner is urging members of his caucus to wield gas prices as a weapon, field-testing the line that "gas prices have more than doubled since the president took office." A good rule of thumb is that if politicians are talking about the price of gas, they're talking nonsense. This week is no exception. Boehner's line is a good place to start. Gas prices are indeed way higher than they were on Inauguration Day. That's in part because the winter of 2008-09 was the cheapest moment for gas prices that we've seen in years. Do we remember what else was going on back then? That's right—a global financial crisis that tipped the entire world into recession.  It turns out that driving to work, ferrying stuff from the warehouse to the store, hauling ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate "Romney Just Seems Tired": Voters on Why They've Switched to Santorum Yglesias: The Folly of Blaming Obama for Higher Gas Prices How Home-Brewing Has Made America Into the Most Innovative Beer Country in the World	Advertisement
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