Republicans refuse to blame President for falling gas prices

It seems that the Republicans are angry that gas prices are headed downwards. I read, somewhere, that one or two oil analysts think it could be down around $2.50 a gallon by November. (Not that anyone in Britain will notice; George needs to top up the coffers somehow and the petrol pump has always proven to be a reliable till.) Michele Bachmann should be happy; wasn't she the one touting two-fifty gas by edict? Instead free market forces might accomplish her goal. I've often wondered how she might achieve that price, especially as the only possible way for her would be to subsidize the cost of gas. Which would cost trillions. Oh well. I'm sure she's applauding the President's ability to wave a wand and alter gas prices.

Alan West displayed his usual remarkable grasp of facts:

“If you’re the chief executive officer of the United States of America, you should take responsibility for anything that’s occurring in this country, and you should not want to seek to get praise,” West said. “This is what the military taught me: Leaders don’t take credit, leaders take responsibility.”

He's not in the military. He's a politician. He needs to learn that grabbing credit is Job #1 for a politician; job 1¼ is avoiding blame.

So let me get this straight... The President gets blamed when gas prices go up, even though that is the direct result of global markets and the indirect result of American foreign policy over the last few decades (not necessarily European foreign policy, either!), but gets nothing when they fall. Which is also a result of global markets, demand and production and not much else.

To put it in terms a Texas Republican could understand: gas prices up, bad. Blame black Democratic president. Gas prices down? That's good. It's the free market at work or the towelheads in Arabland* finally responding to the consumers in the Good Ol' U S of A.

Yeah, that sounds about right.

Carolyn Ann

*Apparently the US imports more oil from Canada than Saudi Arabia.