Is it worse to think that Team Biden actually thinks this will help, or that they know the consequences and are pursuing this course anyway?
Wall Street Journal (10/31/22) reports: "Mr. Biden’s approval ratings have been hampered by high prices for energy, among other things, ahead of the midterms. U.S. gasoline prices hit a record national average of about $5 a gallon in early June, then slid lower for months. In recent weeks, prices have stopped their rapid descent, with the U.S. average at $3.76 a gallon, according to AAA. The White House has for months been weighing endorsing a proposal to tax what the president and his advisers call the windfall profits of oil and gas companies, according to administration officials. A group of progressive Democrats introduced legislation earlier this year that would impose a per-barrel tax equivalent to 50% of the difference between the current price of crude oil and the average price between 2015 and 2019, the lawmakers said in a statement summarizing the bill. The American Petroleum Institute, an oil and natural gas industry trade group, criticized the president’s remarks. 'Oil companies do not set prices—global commodities markets do. Increasing taxes on American energy discourages investment in new production, which is the exact opposite of what is needed,' said Mike Sommers, the group’s president. Mr. Biden’s comments Monday marked his latest rhetorical attack on the oil- and-gas industry."
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"Biden tells oil industry to lower prices and increase volume, or else he’s going to raise prices and decrease volume… by increasing taxes and imposing restrictions. In what universe does his threat make sense or help Americans?"
– Rep. Thomas Massie (KY-R)
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