July 23, 2008
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The President, the Economy and Gas Prices
I was talking to a friend the other day and we were talking about high gas prices and the economy in general.
My friend made the statement, “The president doesn’t have much impact on the economy. He really can’t do anything about gas prices.” He went on to say, “These guys (McCain and Obama) will claim they can do something about the prices of gas but it is outside their control.”
Can the president do anything about the price of gas?
Comments (129)
Probably little to nothing in the short term.
That president in particular… well, ha. He can’t do anything about anything, really
I also doubt any single president has as much control over various important situations such as gas prices as we like to think. I do think this president’s actions did facilitate gas prices increasing… but he’s not the only person creating the mess
I do not believe he can anything about the price. it seems that the gas price is a combination of a week dollar and the hedge fund managers betting on higher oil prices……I am not economist, but I would guess that weakening the Euro may have a bigger impact than the president……How can we do that? Easy, tax everything that is imported from Europe and Asia?
my two cents…
..:: dante
Yes and no… I don’t think he can snap his fingers and make it go down, but he could give the oil companies deals to allow for some price control… like a tax break or something…
He can’t do crap about gas prices, really.
He can stop giving OPEC blowjobs and start better funding alternative fuels that actually fucking work, if that’s what you mean.
Sorry…we just filled up our tank. $63.
He could get us the hell out of Iraq!
Not directly no. He can put out grant money for cheaper, cleaner fuels, authorize more drilling for domestic oil, and promote plans to lessen the current consumption of fuels, but he can’t say “I want gas to drop to $3.50 today.” and make it stick.
Only if he’s got enough money to control the petrol companies. But, he doesn’t. So, uhm… no.
Don’t you know? Money makes the world go around.
(And oil companies happy.)
I agree with Dante- we need to put higher taxes on foreign goods so our own national brands can better compete- it’s not that our domestic goods lack quality- it’s that our domestic companies must charge higher prices because they actually pay their employees like they should- how are we supposed to compete with foreign companies that can drop their prices through the floor because they treat their workers like slaves? we set up our government so that its power remains minimal and most foreign nations have some sort of socialist governmental setup that allows companies to drop their prices below our domestic goods.
we also need to stop depending on foreign oil. we’re basically funding our own terrorists by buying off the Middle East. the big guns we buy our oil from are most certainly turning over some of that profit to the purchasing of weapons and influence among terrorist groups such as Al Qaeida… the money has to come from somewhere ya know…
but as to the president’s involvment, I doubt he’s really got anything to do with the poor economy…
No. Yet everyone complains…..
The president is just a figurehead.
But yes, he could do something about gas prices, and the economy in general. What he could do, is sit down and educate the American people of how they’re getting fucked in the ass EVERY SINGLE DAY by our government.
@PreciousOnyx - Because making people pay more for things is exactly what we need in this economy. Brilliant.
A lot of people here say the president can’t do anything about. Isn’t it his job to make things better for us in this country? Isn’t that why we elect a head of state? If he can go to war all by himself, why can’t he lower gas prices?
He already has by lifting the presidential moratorium on off shore drilling. Crude oil prices went down immediately, and now congress needs to follow suit.
We cannot drill our way out, for ever, but we can buy some time, so that we are not being held energy hostage by foreign governments and develop alternative sources.
Anyone who thinks one single man has complete control over the oil situation, even if he is the president of the United States, is delusional. Obviously he can take measures to help. But it is not his ultimate decision.
To make another point: Oil is not a renewable resource. It will eventually run out, and we will be screwed. You think the price of gas is high now? Wait until there are a few precious drops left. If we keep consuming it at the rate we are going now, we will have bigger problems until we find an alternative.
I still say people should quit driving so damn much. Ride a bike. Walk. It won’t kill you. Maybe it will lessen obesity and help the environment while we’re saving all that gas money and spreading out what’s left of our resources.
There may be some things he can do, but he certainly can’t magically fix everything overnight.
He has more important things to worry about. Like…um…??
nope. they really really can’t. using all their powers and even getting congress to lower taxes and deregulate and still that woudl only have minor short term effect. We have to deal with this as it is.
what the government can do is LEAD and INSPIRE people to develop and switch to cheaper alternatives. Also some money to help out with that wouldn’t go amiss. More tax breaks for high fuel efficiency vehicles and the likes.
@lotta_valdez - wow you must have a little car. I just filled up my tank yesterday to the tune of 81.00 I could have cried.
Yes, the president can influence policies regarding drilling. If oil companies are permitted to drill in previously restricted areas of the U.S., it will increase supply causing prices to drop.
nope. neither yours nor mine can.
not without the co-operation of congress.
They shouldn’t do anything about the price of gas.
Well, he is trying, but your friend does have a point. He has to get thru to Congress.
I have to say I honestly don’t know. Could he declare a “Nation of Emergency” so to speak and then do something about it?
I’m ashamed to say in this case I’m clueless.
@nochorus - i completely agree! The government really should not get involved in this. High gas prices can have their advantages.
@lotta_valdez - I was wondering what you meant by “alternative fuels” “that actually work”
I just hope that within the next few years the economy starts getting better..
@la_faerie_joyeuse - for foreign goods, absolutely…….not taxing foreign goods is what ultimately made the economy weak……the week dollar is driving up the cost of oil………weakening the Euro is the key to fixing the problem…..
@nephyo - and those advantages are?????
They can indirectly or with the help of congress, but they should just stay out of the free market.
They can make it go UP…IE the GAS TAX they are talking about. Bringing it down is another story. If there were other sources of energy, it would create competition for the oil companies.They are all in it together right now, there IS no competition. Even if some other source comes along that is easy to get our hands on, the money will control the price because those running it will be DOING it to make big money, NOT help the economy. It’s all about the money no matter how you slice it!
@wearywalden - Hydrogen is too unstable. So far, hydrogen is the only thing the Bush admin is promoting or supporting. It’s crap, and it will never be widely used.
jimmy carter artificially lowered the price of gas, and caused one of the greatest economic blunders in our history.
they only thing the president needs to do is deregulate the oil industry.
@Lobos_Photos - YEA CAUSE THAT WILL LOWER GAS PRICES
@lotta_valdez - What would you suggest they invest in instead?
also, a minimal amount of the worlds fossil fuels goes in to producing energy.
HE OWNS OIL FIELDS! OF COURSE HE CAN!
Also how about we start using our own oil for a change.
@wearywalden - Better batteries for electric cars. Currently, oil companies hold the patents for the long-lasting batteries. The more they hold onto those patents, the longer they can beat us to death with high oil prices.
All-electric cars are very possible.
@somthingsgottagive - He does? Which ones?
Yes, you can, but it takes time to fix things.
@lotta_valdez -better batteries definitely seems like a good investment. It sounds like something everyone should be willing to get behind.
Americans want three things…high standard of living, low gas prices, and their guns. mess with any of those things and you pay dearly politically…even if politics plays a nominal role. oil prices are set by the open market…all these people who say that the oil companies are being greedy at $149 a barrel need to know they have little to do with that price. If they are being greedy at 149, what were they being in the 90′s when it was $20 a barrel, generous? Many things must be done to bring prices in line with public opinion but when the entire world’s excess oil supply per day is only 1.5 MM barrels it becomes pretty difficult. ~ jack
@wearywalden - If you watch “Who Killed The Electric Car”, it should answer a lot of your questions, and show you how congress is in collusion with Big Oil.
very little in the short term — but bush’s decision last week to repeal the executive ban on drilling in ANWR dropped the price of crude oil futures nine bucks, leading to the temporary reprieve of the past week from spiraling prices (third paragraph of this link). if Congress would repeal their ban, maybe prices would even drop…
while generally a mccain supporter, his idea of dropping the gas tax is bad economics. we’re yet to reach the equilibrium price, so dropping the tax just puts more money in the coffers of oil companies. i’m not a fan of either, but i like the federal government more than oil companies.
@valis10 - it encourages people to drive less, to take jobs closer to their work, to telecommute, to walk to bike to use public transportation, to conserve energy and to make better decisions. That means people end up healthier, there’s less congestion and pollution and people are safer.
Furthermore clamoring over high gas prices encourages government action to reduce dependency on foreign oil and to encourage investment in alternative energy resources, which improve the environment and our quality of life and makes us safer. Lastly the money companies and governments make off of high prices and high gas tax revenues can also be reinvested in clean energy and public transportation.
All in all it can be a good thing. It’ll be a hard and long road for a great great many people, especially the most poor in the society, don’t get me wrong. But we’re going to have to go through this forcible separation from our foreign oil addiction at some point. And letting the high prices stay are actually an easier slower transition than more drastic measures we could implement (like really crazy regulations, huge new taxes on gas guzzling vehicles or gasoline, or forcibly cutting off the supply). Think of it as sort of withdrawal symptoms.
@nephyo - your idea is great in theory, really, but it is just not doable.
I work with different clients all over two cities. I must drive. I do not have the option of changing my job for something closer to home. The people I work for are disabled and need round the clock care.
You can’t hop a bus in rural Washington at three in the morning.
And you can’t leave these people to fend for themselves.
Don’t pin all drivers as lazy or complacent. Some jobs just require cars.
It’s not impossible. All he has to do is tweak the way we handle our refineries. Obama will strive for this, McCain will pander to the oil companies.
@lotta_valdez - Oh I’m not. I know a LOT of people are in similar boats to you. And that’s because our infrastructure has been built up really badly for a long long time. People just thought oil would be super easy to get forever. We were wrong.
I’m just talking about the theoretical economic pressures. I’m not trying to insult anyone. Over time… and it maybe a really long time for a lot of people, everything will change over to more sane systems. Because everyone will be making their best decisions that they can possibly make given the high prices. Eventually lots of tiny better decisions will add up.
maybe sleeping with the iman of every middle eastern country will get him some brownie points? your friend is right, there is nothing the pres can do about it.
questionable. what IS true is this one stands to make a load of money when they’re high.
He could raise the price of grain and corn signifigantly going to forign countries that supply oil as “encouragement” to lower the oil price.
@thinmanii -
@somthingsgottagive - using our own oil won’t really solve anything in the long run. We need a more permanent solution. Not that I have one to offer…
@nephyo - I agree with you on the benefits. thanks for being more articulate than I am
I think the president can do anything he/she wants about anything, if he/she really tries.
the rise in gas prices has nothing to do with America. More or less, it’s mostly a result of china and india becoming more fuel dependant.
I don’t know, I wont know till I return to college and get educated.
Today’s personal message? Admin team? Eat a DICK!
I have no idea anymore. It makes my brain hurt.
Can and Will are two very different things.
no. my history teacher explained that to us last year.
The government can put a cap on the price of gas, but ultimately all that will do is discourage suppliers. They could take any applicable taxes off to increase the profit margin and encourage people to become suppliers, but ultimately I think they put the taxes on there in the first place to discourage people from driving so much and encouraging the development of technologies that will lower our dependence on the industry. Ultimately, its not a renewable resource, and we should be slowly phasing it out.
@askdante - And taxing foreign goods will weaken the Euro? I don’t think so. It will merely mean more money in the pockets of our politicians.
@la_faerie_joyeuse - What do you suggest as the solution? How you suppose we strengthen the dollar?
@lotta_valdez - Hear hear.
It’s ironic that it’s that President and the prices of oil and gas are way up.
I don’t believe that they really can. At least no directly. What is left that can be done is in the hands of congress.
As for the economy, I blame Bill Clinton for the Economy since he was encouraging policies from the Fed that would keep the economy running full tilt without any breaks all through his tenure. Any reasonable person should be able to see that such a policy is not effective in the long run and I believe that Clinton knew and understood that but that he simply did not care because he knew that it would help him get reelected and probably help Gore get elected if the economy was roaring along. If you look at it the economy was starting a down turn when Bush took over and he had the Fed try valiantly to keep it from turning further downward but it was a losing battle from the start.
It is my honest belief that we simply have to ride through this recession as payment for the great economy we had in the 90′s. I know most Americans thought it was great at the time and never saw any problems with the economic boom but most Americans are complete idiots who are incapable of seeing anything other than themselves in the here and now.
@valis10 - That’s true. I think I read it dropped by what…ten dollars a barrel right away? I saw gas for $3.66/gal! Now if we could just get the money-hungry idiots in Congress to lift the other ban. I think drilling our own oil could buy us some valuable time while we try to figure out a better fuel solution.
I haven’t yet seen anyone mention the fact that the Bush and Cheney families ARE BOTH OIL FAMILIES! They’re getting rich off of this — besides, can’t some of his cronies change the import taxes on the gas barrels?
But seriously, do people really think this man is running the country? http://seacat.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/bush_confused2.jpg
If you look at all the ancient Babylonian imagery everywhere in the US and the Pope’s Philistine Dagon hat, something’s a bit fishy, no pun intended.
Yes, the president can subsidize. Of course, with all the money being spent on Iraq, maybe that’s not very easy…then again, if the president didn’t make the decision about going into Iraq, subsidizing would be much easier, wouldn’t it?
Oh, I’m sure there’s a “bigger” and more “scandalous” reason why the prices are up too….
People who say, “The president fucked up the economy” make me laugh. Yes, he turned off the little “Economy” switch under his desk to “Imminent failure”
nothing effective
@lotta_valdez - In my neck of the woods, there are people who take weekend workshops to convert their vehicles to run on vegetable oil. This guy up the road has a stretch H3 that has a big decal on the side that says, “Powered by corn!”
There are so many ways to do this, but ignorance and propaganda would suggest we are completely dependent on oil.
I’d like to take this opportunity to say that even though Bush probably has no direct control over foreign oil dependance, he’s still a fucker.
@ficklemistress - I am dying to convert my car to vegetable oil… we’ll always have an abundance of the stuff, seeing as how we’re all addicted to fast food.
@lotta_valdez - alternative energy has a lot to do with yield, it takes approx 1 gallon of gasoline energy to produce 19 gallons of fuel, that is a very high yield, it takes 1 gallon of hydrogen energy to produce 4 gallon of hydrogen fuel, not so good, that is why we will be dependent on oil for a long time, lucky for us we have so much tucked safely away in Alaska…..
Just the Gas Fairy…
@askdante - seen Alaska lately? Looks like Swiss cheese. Err. We are all pretty much screwed for a very long time.
I wishhh
Gas prices are so high that I resulted to riding my bicycle!
@nephyo - you have articulated a very laudable social agenda, that ignores the realities of local, national and international realities. Turning the clock back 100 years would be suicidal.
Locally only major metro areas have viable mass transit systems and it will take years to even begin to provide mass transit to the rest of the country. Bicycles, walking and rickshaws are not the answer.
Nationally for the short term our economy is dependent on fossil fuels. With cleaner technology and careful extraction we can exploit our natural resources for the short term, so that we can make the transition without bankrupting the economy.
Internationally your “withdrawal” prescription leaves us vulnerable militarily and economically. We will need at least 20 years to make the transition (I know Al Gore says 10 years) to a minimal dependency on fossil fuels. In the mean time we must be prepared to be able to compete on the international field.
@lotta_valdez - so what do you think we should do? Should I walk from NJ to NYC to work so I can pay my mortgage….and not lose my home…..
If not him then it makes you wonder who the real power people are.
Those people saying that the president can’t do anything about the price of gas are thinking strictly economically. The way our government works is based loosely on the theory of lassiez-faire capitalism. The president has a little bit of interference and control-ability, but he is regulated by the House and the Senate. And guess how many members of the House and the Senate have stock in oil…
So of course, in the economic sense, the president really has very little control. He needs approval. He needs to interfere, and he can’t do that.
But- if he would only work on our international relations, in a different way than we’re going about it now… If we were to even attempt to cooperate, we might be able to tap into the ring of countries where gas is less than $1.15/gallon.
@ldjucb3 - Tweak?? what the hell does that mean? Do you mean build more refineries. Every dumb ass democrat in congress would vote against it.
@ELBOWpasta - Thats great, more begging.
@ryoma136 - hahah, funny.
I can just see that picture now.
@valis10 - What did I suggest we beg for?
the mess we are in now is a product of the choices many of those in power have made over years–even decades. there is no quick fix or magic bullet and there is no individual that can make this mess go away anytime soon.
the good news: if things keep getting worse, than developing renewable resources won’t seem like such a huge problem–it will be a necessity and we might actually get somewhere with it.
we are also in a global market economy now, so things that have been useful to do in the past may have little impact if we try to do them these days. i seem to recall insanity being described as continuing to do the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results…
Anyone can get SOMETHING started, especially someone in his position.
No. But s/he can invest more time, thought, and money into renewable resources.
@ELBOWpasta - We have asked (begged) OPEC to increase production and they cannot or will not. It has nothing to do with cooperation or goodwill. We are in control of our own destiny, and we can either ring our hands and feel guilty, or get off our asses.
Buckminster Fuller had a saying “the thing to do is that which needs to be done” and I would say it is time. We have the resources, we have the know how, we can raise the money, but the problem is we have a bunch of self serving Fucking bureaucrats in Washington.
We could always use….. ethynol! HAHAHAHA I couldn’t resist. The real joke is that we keep funding it.
The president has a huge impact on the price of fuel costs. He can lower the taxes on incoming oil or help supplement the cost of incoming oil. He could also stop buying oil from those countries in the middle east that keep raising the cost of their oil, even though there is no proof of how much oil they have left in stock. It is all speculation, just like global warming. There is no fact, except that oil will not last forever. There are just theories on how much oil is left. The reason that oil is going up in the first place is because there are developing countries that how have a greater need for oil and there is a constant auction going on to determine who will get the oil. Not to mention China and their oil needs lately.
He can send me some money so I can afford to buy some.
How is the weather in Houston Dan?
well, the president can influence Congress, but they make the decisions. Bush has been for drilling off the coast of Florida & in Alaska for a long time. For a while, no one listened to him.
Obama and McCain have both promised things that they alone won’t have the power to do. They have also shifted on issues to try to accomodate the public. they’re politicians.
so even though presidents are steadily gaining more power, they can’t just enact whatever policies they want.
<3
@la_faerie_joyeuse - LOL
@Lobos_Photos - agreed.
Only indirectly, and even that’s a long shot.
Hi, not sure really. Guess gas prices could be his domain, isn’t a president supposed to control everything !!
the president can’t do anything that will turn around gas prices right away, but he was a major reason why gas prices are where they are now.
It’s all about the law makers, not the law enforcer
The question is, should he?
Blaming Bush for the gas prices is like blaming Ronald MacDonald when you get a bad cheeseburger! Neither of them run the company!
No, the world band has control of that.
@askdante - Eliminate the income tax, the IRS, and the Fed.
No, but they can push United State to another direction. The one that does not depends on gas to run cars or something else that can also work.
They aren’t supposed to have any control. Hell, the government as a whole shouldn’t have any control over it. Doesn’t “laissez faire” mean anything to anybody anymore?
And besides, don’t people know that when you’re paying for gas, the majority of what you are paying is taxes FOR the gas.
Also, people talk about how the “evil” gas corporations have huge profits [that they don't deserve], but their profit margin isn’t actually all that big; Mickey D’s and computer software companies have bigger profit margins.
Depends on how the president would go about it. Directly? No.
one word: halliburton.
The presidential office is very powerful when it wants to be… and utterly helpless when it doesn’t wanna do something.
he can. too bad he doesn’t care enough to do the right thing.
He can encourage congress to put a heavy tax on oil companies that refuse to run their refineries at 100% capacity.
That would solve a HUGE problem right there.
@memorablememo - ”And besides, don’t people know that when you’re paying for gas, the majority of what you are paying is taxes FOR the gas.”
Actually, “As of April 2008, 11% of the price of gasoline was derived from taxes.” That’s prettttty far from a majority. It also goes to pay for all the roads and highways and transportation infrastructure we have. They are critical pieces of public infrastructure our economy would really be in trouble if we allowed them to collapse.
The President doesn’t have much control over gas prices. It’s high b/c supply is tightly controlled by the anti-free-market OPEC (hey it could be worse, they could tighten supply even more like De Beers does with diamonds). Also, demand is surging due to the rise of the middle class in India and China – 2.45 billion people between the two of them. The President can’t do anything to stop either of these factors.
Congress could try to open up ANWR for drilling but that would take 7 years to start delivering any supply and even then it would be so small it would only reduce the cost by about 2 cents per gallon.
Not really, he’s not in control of the oil companies so it’s really not in his power. I agree with whoever it was that mentioned part of the gas prices could be to due to the decrease in the value of the US dollar. Yea, that’s gonna hit us where it hurts and it has.
@nochorus - I agree because little-by little, people are becoming independent upon gas. Lately, I have seen a lot of people biking, riding their scooters, hybrid vehicles and smart cars. If the price of gas is cheap, it will only increase air pollution and other damages to the environment because people have money to buy more of it.
you are asking the wrong person.
i don’t know i just hope they try to fix it but i doubt they will they are hopeless.
Yes, they can help get more reserch done on new forms of energy. Which will bring down the demand of oil.
Also reading some of your other posts a lot of people are saying the president can help pass offshore drilling policies. Which will bring up the supply
Yes the president could do that, but the only thing it would do is pulte the earth a little bit more and bring down the price of gas in the 2020s. NOT NOW. There is no quick fix for the energy crisis, and people who still think there is are annoying. >_<
He can do a little bit, but the biggest reason gas prices are so high is because of hedge fund traders creating a false demand.
What people so often forget is that he has Veto power. That’s a lot of power! So much so, that congress will specifically word bills in order to keep them from being vetoed, thus watering down what good they could do. So next time someone says the president doesn’t have any power to help, say “perhaps, but he has all the power to further harm our nation.”
The president can’t really do much of anything that powerful.
He mostly is a signature and a symbol for the country.
He’s a diplomat.
A face.
And most of the decisions a president does make….
are actually made by a large group of people
@lotta_valdez - I so hear you!!
biofuels! lithium ion whatever whatever technology!
We don’t NEED oil! Currently to get to work, yes, you have to fill your car up. And no, the president can’t say Ta Da! The gas price is down. But they can invest and give incentives to alternative fuel companies..
As soon as the talk about lifting the ban of off shore oil drilling……The price of oil started to drop…. I did notice that….
Yes he can
Invade… Columbia. For the oil. With a side effect of completely curbing the drug trade.
That, and have police officers hand out mad cash to bicyclists.
@PreciousOnyx - uh,,, can you name something produced in the us??? besides perishable food products??? something useful??? i cant.
every time he pledges x number of billions of dollars to give to some starving nation,,, that is new money,,, backed by nothing,,, he has a lot to do with the falling dollar,,,,
i believe he could stop the printing presses if he wanted to.
that would make him (us) look evil tho to our enemies,,,,,
you may care,, i dont,,, there comes a time when you have to just stop and take care of your own family,,, i guess our fearless leaders real families live abroad,,,,,
(i just picked you at random on the fist page of comments here,,, hahahahahaha,,, sorry)
I believe strongly that George W. Bush is the one person mostly responsible for gas prices going up to what they are now. …Love, Sande