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Thursday, May 1, 2008
Gas Tax Nonsense
and Fundamental Energy Industry Change
by Stephen Crockett, co-host of
Democratic Talk Radio
The idea being promoted by both John McCain and
Hillary Clinton of canceling the federal gasoline tax for the summer
is a terrible idea. It fails to address the real issue of runaway fuel
prices. It has negative consequences for the safety of our roads and
bridges. It is essentially a campaign stunt and distraction. The oil
profiteers have already gobbled up any benefit consumers might gain
from the cut far in advance of the proposed summer suspension.
Runaway fuel prices are largely the result of
market manipulation by speculators and oil companies combined with a
“nod and wink” approach to government regulation and law enforcement
from the Bush Administration. We need serious government intervention
instead of cosmetic window dressing.
Gasoline inventories are rising at the same time
that prices are skyrocketing! Oil companies have been intentionally
closing refineries to raise prices. The Bush administration has been
taking huge quantities off the market by continuing to fill a
strategic reserve when the federal government should be releasing the
reserve to drive down the prices and breaking the power of
speculators.
The federal taxes on fuel are a very tiny
percentage of the total price. Gasoline prices rose nationally last
month by nearly twice the amount of the federal gas tax. While the
suspension of the gasoline tax sounds good, it does nothing but slow
the price rise for a couple of weeks while gutting our ability to
maintain our roads and bridges.
We already have bridges collapsing and citizens
dying. Our transportation safety issue is really important. It is
already in a crisis situation without following this irresponsible
proposal. We need a huge increase in transportation infrastructure
spending by the federal government instead of a dramatic decrease. We
need to spend hundreds of billions of dollars over the next few years
on rebuilding our national economic infrastructure. We should be
training millions of new construction workers by giving our
construction unions support for their apprenticeship and training
programs. The money has to come from somewhere.
McCain and Clinton are pushing a proposal that is
irresponsible and will not even occur under their terms if elected.
Neither will be in the White House this summer.
There are some ideas that will help. Aggressive
investigations and prosecutions in the oil industry are certainly in
order. Illegal price manipulation is likely. Strengthening laws and
penalties for market manipulation should be a top priority. All
profits derived from illegal market manipulation should be surrendered
to the federal government along with huge additional penalties. The
law should immediately be changed to make this the standard.
All oil imports should be done through the
federal government. The federal government should negotiate the price
from a position of strength. Oil companies should not be able to drive
up prices by bidding against competitors for imports and using the
process as an excuse for price-gouging.
We need a strong “windfall profits tax” on the
oil industry. This tax should be used to promote alternative energy
and to subsidize the trucking industry fuel costs, which is driving up
consumer inflation on other products like food.
Oil refinery closings should only be permitted by
the federal government when they do not result in huge price
increases. If necessary, the federal government should build their own
refineries to supply the American military and feral government
vehicles. We should end the Iraq War which is wasting huge quantities
of fuel needed by the homeland.
If all else fails, the federal government should
consider price controls on fuel and/or nationalizing the oil industry.
The oil industry cannot be permitted to control the entire American
economy for the benefit of the very, very few.
McCain and Clinton should stop playing politics
with the gas tax issue. They should be aggressively pushing for
alternative energy solutions like solar, wind, conservation,
bio-fuels, Green jobs and technology along with much more federal
regulation of the oil companies.
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Written by Stephen
Crockett (co-host of Democratic Talk Radio
http://www.DemocraticTalkRadio.com ).
Mail: P.O. Box 283, Earleville, Maryland
21919. Phone: 443-907-2367. Email:
midsouthcm@aol.com .
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