Rebutting MAGA Republican Zombie Lies On Gas Prices
In the last few months, gas prices have been rising again with no end in sight. The cause for this spike was a decision on July 3 by Russia and Saudi Arabia to reduce oil production.
In response, the Republicans have blamed Joe Biden for higher gas prices. The likes of Don Bacon and Mike Flood are repeatedly spreading disinformation on this issue on their social media accounts.
What is the truth? In this piece I will rebut and fact check MAGA four common Republican zombie lies about gas prices.
- The President of the U.S. controls gas prices.
During the summer of 2008, gas prices spiked to $4.11 per gallon, which would be a whopping $5.86 per gallon today. The Republicans sang a very different tune about the cause of higher gas prices since there was a Republican president.
George W. Bush said on April 29, 2008, that there was no “magic wand” to reduce the record high fuel prices. “I firmly believe that, you know, if there was a magic wand to wave, I’d be waving it, of course,” he said during a news conference.
At about the same time, Fox “News” said that “no President has the power to increase or to lower gas prices.” In 2008, Fox conceded that expanding domestic oil drilling would not significantly reduce prices and that the only way to reduce our vulnerability to gas price spikes was to use less oil.
Bush and Fox “News” were right in 2008. However, the GOP has now done a 180 on gas prices since Biden is a Democrat. One of the great things about the internet era is that you can easily research previous positions taken by the Republicans. Their propaganda relies heavily upon bad memories. My job is to refresh memories.
2. Senator Tim Scott (R-SC): Biden “has shut down energy production in America.”
Scott should be ashamed of himself. His statement here is simply a flat out lie. And the mainstream press considers Scott be one of the more moderate GOP presidential candidates.
The reality is that domestic U.S. oil production is currently at an all time high. “U.S. oil production is forecast to average an all-time high of 12.8 million barrels a day this year and keep growing to 13.1 million in 2024, the federal Energy Information Administration said in its latest forecast. That’s up from the most recent trough of 5 million barrels a day in 2008, and probably enough to help the U.S. to keep its title as the number one global crude oil producer.” Politico on August 28, 2023.
3. The U.S. was energy independent under Trump and is no longer energy independent.
The U.S. has remained energy independent during the Biden years. I have the receipts.
“The U.S. produced more petroleum than it consumed in 2020, and the numbers were essentially in balance in 2021, according to the Energy Information Administration.” Axios on Feb 19, 2022
“In conclusion, 2022 marked the highest level of US energy independence since before 1950. This milestone was achieved through a combination of factors, including the shale boom which led to a steady decline in net energy imports, rather than being solely attributed to any specific presidential administration.” Forbes on May 2, 2023
4. Biden is preventing the oil companies from drilling more.
One of the many phony GOP talking points is that somehow the Biden Administration is preventing the oil companies from drilling even more oil. The reality is that the oil companies are mainly using their massive profits for stock buybacks and dividends, rather than investing in more production. The oil companies have no incentive to drill more because they prefer a tight market where they can manipulate the prices.
“U.S. oil producers overall are increasing their budgets for new energy projects this year, but the expenditures will be dwarfed by the amounts paid to shareholders. Chevron said it would triple its spending on share repurchases to $75 billion over five years at current guidance. Other oil companies are expected to follow suit.” Reuters on January 27, 2023.
“Companies clearly have everything they need — record profits and thousands of approved permits — to increase production. The only thing getting in the way is their own decision to keep plowing windfall profits into the pockets of executives and shareholders instead of using them to boost supply.” White House spokesperson Abdullah Hasan said in a statement earlier this year.
5. The Truth.
Like I said earlier in the piece, Russia and Saudi Arabia decided to reduce oil production on July 3, 2023. Subsequently on September 5, Saudi Arabia and Russia, in coordinated statements, announced that they would extend their cuts in oil supplies through the rest of 2023.
Despite that reality, the Republicans have refused to condemn or otherwise criticize these countries for raising gas prices. The Republicans are lying to the public because they believe they can get away with it since our mainstream press continues to fail the American people. The mainstream media’s coverage of economic issues is simply inexecrable.
The MAGA Republicans also won’t criticize Russia and Saudi Arabia due to the Trump family’s extensive business connections to those countries. In 2014, Eric Trump said that: “ Well, we don’t rely on American banks. We have all the funding we need out of Russia.” Six years earlier in 2008, Donald Trump, Jr. boasted that: “In terms of high-end product influx into the US, Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets.”
Donald Trump and his family also have significant investments in Saudi Arabia. Shortly after Trump left office, Jared Kushner grabbed a $2 billion investment from a fund headed up by Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman. This lucrative deal is a corrupt pay for play scheme to reward Kushner’s actions in the White House and a down payment for future favors if Trump wins the 2024 election.
In a recent civil deposition in the fraud case filed against him, Trump argued that he could fix any value he saw fit to any property in question, for the reason that he could always “find a buyer from Saudi Arabia” to accept his price.
And that’s not all. On November 20, 2022, Saudi Arabian real estate developer Dar Al Arkan made a deal with Donald Trump’s company to use the Trump brand for its $4 billion project that includes a hotel, villas and a golf course.
It is increasingly obvious that Russia and Saudi Arabia are raising gas prices in an effort to sabotage Joe Biden and elect Donald Trump. They have billions of reasons to support Trump. The reality is that Trump is a compromised man and our enemies want him back in the White House. They know that Trump would destabilize the U.S. and blow up our alliances with our allies in the free world.
It’s America or Trump in 2024. Choose wisely.