Before Obama: Gas was $1.84 a gallon in 2008

[_Analytics]

And you knew who you were then,
Girls were girls and men were men,
Mister we could use a man like George W. again
Didn't need no welfare state
And everybody pulled their weight
Gee our old Le Salle ran great,
And gas was a buck-84 in 2008

Those were the days!

[_Jason Bourne]

Nice fiction there bcspace, but here are the facts. A detailed analysis of the up and down gasoline prices for the year 2008: http://www.treehugger.com/corporate-res ... eview.html

And here is Fox News back in 2008 insisting to its audience that the President has absolutely no control over gasoline prices. http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/03/05 ... 008/157979

Too funny. They've been saying exactly the opposite ever since Obama has been in office.

I agree with Kevin on this one. The only thing I would add it a weak dollar will increase gas prices since much of our oil is exported. The weak economy, the spiraling debt and the looming fiscal cliff all add to a weak dollar. These are issues that the President can and should deal with along with our dysfunctional congress.

[_palerobber]

speaking of 2008....

Reuters 04/29/2008:

U.S. President George W. Bush said on Tuesday there was no "magic wand" to bring down record-high fuel prices [...]

bcspace, could you just one time start an anti-Obama thread that isn't based on white hot stupid?

[_MsJack]

I listened to all of them. None of them claim that Obama will control gas prices.

[SNIP]

The third one is too short to draw any conclusions as to its point.

The third video displays a graph of rising gas prices next to a cartoon pump, then states:

"I'm voting because I make two gallons of gas an hour."

Then the following message flashes on the screen:

"DON'T GET MAD GET REGISTERED VOTEFORCHANGE.COM" (The "O" in "DON'T" is a version of the Obama logo, and voteforchange.com is a Barack Obama for President site.)

Then the add continues:

"Register to vote | Request to vote absentee | Find your polling location"

"In less time than it takes to fill up your gas tank"

And the point of that is unclear to you? Really?

Because I'd like to know why Obama thought the prices at the pump should provide motivation for citizens to get out and vote for him if he knew that he would have little to no control over the matter.

[_beastie]

I listened to all of them. None of them claim that Obama will control gas prices.

[SNIP]

The third one is too short to draw any conclusions as to its point.

The third video displays a graph of rising gas prices next to a cartoon pump, then states:

"I'm voting because I make two gallons of gas an hour."

Then the following message flashes on the screen:

"DON'T GET MAD GET REGISTERED VOTEFORCHANGE.COM" (The "O" in "DON'T" is a version of the Obama logo, and voteforchange.com is a Barack Obama for President site.)

Then the add continues:

"Register to vote | Request to vote absentee | Find your polling location"

"In less time than it takes to fill up your gas tank"

And the point of that is unclear to you? Really?

Because I'd like to know why Obama thought the prices at the pump should provide motivation for citizens to get out and vote for him if he knew that he would have little to no control over the matter.

Are you conceding that the other ads you linked don't claim Obama can control gas prices? Good.

No, it's unclear, particularly since he wasn't making that claim elsewhere. The ad could also mean that minimum wage sucks. It's certainly the best example you can find, but it still falls short as far as Obama claiming he can control gas prices. But certainly both parties are open to manipulating stupid people, there's no doubt about that.

[_Analytics]

Because I'd like to know why Obama thought the prices at the pump should provide motivation for citizens to get out and vote for him if he knew that he would have little to no control over the matter.

It is interesting to apply this logic to the essence of the Romney campaign--the slogan--Are you better off now than you were four years ago? Does Romney really believe that President Obama deserves the blame or the credit for whether people are better off now than they were before?

For my part, I take personal responsibility for my own life and continue to be better off regardless of who is president. It’s breathtaking that the standard-bearer of the Republican party apparently takes issue with my approach to life and wants Americans to be victims who blame the president for whatever happens to be bad in their world.

[_beastie]

If I recall correctly, one of the accusations launched against Obama was that he wanted HIGHER gas prices. Now he's being accused of claiming he can lower gas prices.

“President Obama said he would prefer a gradual adjustment to near $4 a gallon gasoline. President Obama said that. And, unfortunately, the president has put policies in place that have gotten us now to $4 a gallon, or almost, in gasoline prices. We’ve seen it. It was $1.83 when he started as president; it’s over $3.70 now. So the president’s got his wish, and people are furious about it.”
— Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) during hearing of House energy committee, March 8, 2012

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fac ... _blog.html

[_beastie]

Even Mitt claims Obama "promised" to raise gas prices.

MOLINE, Ill. – Mitt Romney doubled down on his critique of President Barack Obama’s energy policy at a campaign stop in western Illinois on Sunday, accusing the president of keeping a campaign promise to raise gas prices if elected.
"There's one promise he's kept. One promise he's kept. When he campaigned he said he wanted to raise the price of gasoline. He said that under him, energy costs would skyrocket. And then he brought in a trio of people to help him implement those policies," Romney said at a pancake breakfast here.
An independent fact check by the Washington Post awarded three Pinocchios – the newspaper’s measure, on a scale of one to five, that measures accuracy – to a similar claim by a Louisiana congressman that the president "got his wish" with $4-per-gallon-gasoline. The Romney campaign did not respond to a request to clarify when Obama made such a claim.

http://firstread.nbcnews.com/_news/2012 ... ice-of-gas

[_krose]

No he didn't. At least not in that first video, which is about beco[m]ing energy independent.

Energy independence is itself another pipe dream that politicians like to talk about. Unless we are willing to force oil companies to sell all their products domestically, it doesn't matter if they produce more than enough to supply the USA's needs.

[_Gadianton]

Interesting videos, i think that's the most I've ever listened to Obama. Can't say I was impressed, but, I will offer one apologetic in his favor. His first video mentioned something about countering a claim by McCain about him and gas prices that didn't make sense either. Maybe that's how he got started?