Data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the average price of unleaded gasoline was 50% more in July 2024 than in January 2021.

During the second year of the Biden-Harris administration, gas prices broke record highs more than once.

The highest average price for unleaded gas, recorded on 14 June 2022, was $5.016, with diesel reaching an all-time high five days later, at $5.816.

Last Thursday, the average price of gas was $3.361, almost a full dollar more than the price when Trump left office in 2021. At its peak under Biden-Harris, gas was $2.62 more than when Trump left office.

The Democrats have blamed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, COVID supply-chain issues, and oil and gas companies.

In an interview, Nancy Pelosi said the “fossil-fuel industry” was to blame and the public knows it, adding that the public will “blame all of us if we don’t do something” about price rigging by oil and gas companies.

Breitbart notes that America’s auto-related woes don’t end there either.

“Car insurance premiums are up 54 percent since President Joe Biden and Harris took over in January 2021. New car prices jumped 19 percent since Biden and Harris took office, used cars and trucks rose 20 percent, and the average price of motor vehicle maintenance and repair has gone up 30 percent since January 2021.”

In recent days, including in her sit-down interview with Dana Bash on Thursday, Kamala Harris has indicated her renewed commitment to transitioning away from reliance on fossil fuels and the so-called Green New Deal.

“You mentioned the Green New Deal,” Harris told Bash.

“I have always believed—and I have worked on it—that the climate crisis is real, that it is an urgent matter to which we should apply metrics that include holding ourselves to deadlines around time.”

After the interview, the Harris campaign put out a statement saying that Harris does not support the Green New Deal.

In addition, oil infrastructure could be destroyed in Iran and other nations in the Middle East as the fighting rages, and that could substantially reduce global oil production for an extended period of time.  Our way of life depends on cheap oil, and so if a major regional war in the Middle East causes the price of oil to go skyrocketing that is going to deeply affect all of us.

On Monday, the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the United States was just $3.63…

The average price for a gallon of regular gas in the U.S. was $3.63 as of Monday, according to AAA, up almost 4 cents from a week earlier and 22 cents from a month ago.

Even though the average price of a gallon of gasoline has risen more than 20 cents in a month, I would still consider it to be at a very low level, especially compared to what is eventually coming. One expert that was interviewed by MarketWatch is warning that the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the U.S. could hit $5.40 this summer…

Colas estimated that a spike in oil prices pushing U.S. gasoline to $5.40 a gallon this summer would make a recession later in 2024 “a genuine possibility.” U.S. gas prices averaged $3.634 a gallon at the pump on Monday, according to AAA, at last check.

And that same expert also warned that if the price of oil reaches $125 a barrel it could push the U.S. economy into a recession…

“Crude prices are our chief concern, but we are a long way” from $125 a barrel — a level of West Texas Intermediate oil that “would almost certainly cause a recession if sustained,” said Colas. “Gasoline prices are the transmission mechanism between Mideast conflict and the US economy: when pump prices increase quickly, consumers must cut back on other spending.”

Personally, I think that such a projection is wildly optimistic.

If Israel and Iran start lobbing thousands of missiles at one another, we could easily see the price of oil surpass $150 a barrel, and it is likely that the average price of gasoline in the U.S. would shoot past $7.00 a gallon.

And if nuclear weapons are used in the Middle East, there is no telling what might happen. Right now, the financial markets are waiting to see if Israel chooses to retaliate.

If the Israelis strike Iran, and oil infrastructure is targeted, that will definitely “send oil prices up”…

If Israel does retaliate, and it becomes a full-fledged conflict, that’s a different story. “And maybe Iran’s oil platforms, refineries are taken out,” he said. “That would send oil prices up.”

I think that is what is going to happen. At this moment, it is being reported that Israel is preparing to retaliate.

When that occurs, the price of oil will go nuts, and people all over the U.S. will blame Israel for the high price of gasoline.

But instead, they should blame Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran. If they would have just left Israel alone, things could have turned out much differently.

Iran could have lived in peace.  The Iranians are one of the largest producers of oil in the world, and during the Biden administration they have been able to dramatically increase oil exports…

Iran has steeply raised oil exports, its main source of revenue, during the Biden administration after they were severely reduced due to measures taken by the Trump administration.

The White House has argued it isn’t encouraging Iran to raise exports and is enforcing sanctions. Lower Iranian exports would lead to a further rise in oil prices and the cost of gasoline in the U.S., which would be a politically sensitive issue ahead of this fall’s presidential elections.

Instead of using their oil money to fund terror organizations, the Iranians could have lived in luxury.

To be honest, Iran could have been one of the most prosperous countries on the entire planet.

But instead they have foolishly chosen a much different path.

If an all-out war between Israel and Iran erupts, it is probably inevitable that the Strait of Hormuz will be closed, and that will be catastrophic for the entire global economy…

Potential impacts on the shipping transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for about one-fifth of the world’s total oil consumption, will also factor into markets’ pricing.

The commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard’s navy said on Tuesday that Iran could close the strait if deemed necessary, and earlier on Saturday Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency said an IRGC helicopter boarded a vessel, the Portuguese-flagged MSC Aries, and took it into Iranian waters.

Just think about that.

One-fifth of all the oil the world uses goes through the Strait of Hormuz.

We are in uncharted territory, and we could soon see a level of panic in the financial marketplace that we haven’t seen in a very long time.

Meanwhile, economic conditions in the U.S. just continue to deteriorate. Earlier today, I was saddened to learn that even Tesla has decided that mass layoffs have become necessary…

Tesla has announced layoffs of “more than 10%” of its global workforce in an internal company-wide email. We exclusively reported yesterday that Tesla was prepping a massive layoff.

For the last few months, it has looked like Tesla might be preparing for a round of layoffs. Tesla told managers to identify critical team members, and paused some stock rewards while canceling some employees’ annual reviews. It also reduced production at Gigafactory Shanghai.

Things are definitely not good now, but they will get a whole lot worse if a major regional war does erupt in the Middle East.

It takes energy to make products, transport products and sell products.

The price of oil has an enormous impact on literally every sector of our entire economy.

If an apocalyptic war in the Middle East were to cause the price of oil to double, it would send us into a horrific economic tailspin.

So let’s hope for the best, but let’s also prepare for the worst.

Michael’s new book entitled “Chaos” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can check out his new Substack newsletter right here.

The Energy Information Association expects the price of a barrel of oil to rise almost $10 above the current average, which will have a massive impact on gasoline prices all over the country.

In some states, drivers are already paying over $4.90 per gallon, but the shock could be even bigger as seasonal demands pick up, according to Bloomberg. Adding to the worrying outlook, new research has found that US gas pipelines are at risk of outages and regulators are urging officials to take precautions before a nationwide disruption occurs.

To make things worse, national gasoline inventories dropped for the third straight week to their lowest levels for this time of the year since 2014. Furthermore, total US fuel oil production is on track to decrease this month after output fell last week by the largest amount since February 2022, data from the EIA reveals. Gulf Coast and East Coast refiners have led the decline and produced 15% and 9% less fuel oil so far this month, respectively.

Though a gallon of gas costs less than a year ago, those averages may not hold for much longer. Analysts say prices can double in the near term and put a crimp in people’s budgets. Summer gas produces fewer emissions and is more expensive to produce, whereas cheaper winter gas ignites more easily to start your car in cold temperatures. Warm weather typically draws out more drivers, too, significantly increasing the demand for gas.

“Usually when demand is up, gas prices go up,” said Anlleyn Venegas, spokesperson for the AAA.

When inventories start to dwindle and people notice that prices are rapidly skyrocketing, they tend to hoard fuel before stations run completely dry. That’s what happened in 2021 when Americans witnessed huge lines outside gas stations due to supply disruptions and higher costs. This year, one single extreme weather event left seven states without fuel, according to CBS News, including Virginia and North Carolina, which even declared a state of emergency to prevent the crisis from escalating. More recently, the entire Miamo-Fort Lauderdale area faced massive gasoline outages after a historic storm caused flooding and triggered a wave of panic buying by drivers filling their gas tanks.

More than half of gas stations in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area were without gasoline Wednesday after flooding from last week’s massive storm caused a wave of panic buying by drivers topping off their gas tanks. And just a few weeks ago, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University published a study in The Electricity Journal that found that US gas pipelines are at risk of facing widespread outages.

They urged US officials to take action before supplies dropped to dangerously low levels. The scientists investigated vulnerabilities at production sites and outage risks at major US stations.

In new research, scientists investigated the vulnerability of power generation to outages at U.S. pipeline compressor stations. They found that at least 10% of such stations are facing serious threats of shortages, and thus are vulnerable to widespread energy supply outages. In the short term, Americans should expect more unpleasant surprises at the pump, and in the longer term, we should all prepare for unprecedented outages and a downturn unlike anything we’ve ever experienced.

Article and video via Epic Economist.

Usually, this entails taking numbers and torturing them until they say whatever the regime wants. It’s funny math, but it’s usually not outright incorrect. Biden’s latest statement about gas prices enters a new level of blatantly bad math.

He said, “In 41 states plus the District of Columbia, the average gasoline price is less than $2.99.”

Biden claims that the average price of gas in 41 states plus DC “is less than $2.99”

According to the AAA, there is not a single state with an average gas price under $3.

pic.twitter.com/YqSS31bYMh

— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) September 24, 2022

As The Post Millennial pointed out, NO state has an average gas price under $3.

Did he misread the teleprompter? Is it another senior moment for Dementia Joe? No. They’re outright lying to the American people in hopes that muddled statements will not be fact-check. Unfortunately, they’re usually right about that.

As the old saying goes, time is money. It takes 40+ minutes to charge a Tesla using a Supercharging station. That’s far worse than the four or five minutes it takes to fill up a gas tank. All things being equal, this might still be a worthwhile tradeoff, but there’s one major problem that California residents are quickly learning. When there aren’t enough charging stations available, you’re not just waiting 40+ minutes. You’re waiting for the people ahead of you who are also taking 40+ minutes for their vehicles.

Here’s a recent Tweet and video depicting this problem in real life:

Yep! An 8 hour wait to charge an Electric Vehicle in California! That’s what you want Joe? Add more cars and it will be a 24 hour wait!

Yep! An 8 hour wait to charge an Electric Vehicle in California! That’s what you want Joe? Add more cars and it will be a 24 hour wait! pic.twitter.com/nqf9tyvo90

— Mr. Potato Head (@America1Scotty) July 3, 2022

This is what Gavin Newsom, Joe Biden, and the vast majority of Democrats want for us. Imagine what it will look like as more people buy electric cars and outpace installation of charging stations. This is a disaster now and it’s likely to get much worse.

The Biden regime used his Twitter account to post this:

My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril. Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you’re paying for the product. And do it now.

Bezos replied correctly:

Ouch. Inflation is far too important a problem for the White House to keep making statements like this. It’s either straight ahead misdirection or a deep misunderstanding of basic market dynamics.

Ouch. Inflation is far too important a problem for the White House to keep making statements like this. It’s either straight ahead misdirection or a deep misunderstanding of basic market dynamics. https://t.co/XgKfEICZpk

— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) July 3, 2022

Bezos wasn’t the only one who went after the original Tweet, but he may be the most noteworthy as he has been a friend of the Democrats for his entire public life. In recent weeks, he has soured on the regime with this latest Tweet being the clearest indicator that he’s willing to put reality ahead of allegiance.

They decided to do it on social media, which is about as ludicrous as it sounds. People can respond, and their responses have been some of the most brutal this failed regime has seen. Here’s the Tweet:

“My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril. Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you’re paying for the product. And do it now.”

My message to the companies running gas stations and setting prices at the pump is simple: this is a time of war and global peril.

Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you’re paying for the product. And do it now.

— President Biden (@POTUS) July 2, 2022

Gas station owners across the country have struggled through the Biden economy as much if not more than most small businesses. They are conscious of the rising costs of fuel and have cut the minuscule profits they used to get to non-existent levels. Some stations have gone in the red with their gas prices in hopes of making it back on other purchases. THESE are the people the Biden regime has decided to target.

Responses were ugly:

Shay Patrick Cormac: “They are charging a price that reflects what they are paying for gas. The US government makes more on each gallon of gas sold than the oil companies do.”

https://twitter.com/ShayCormac_1/status/1543292505298436099

Catturd: “OMG … this idiot is unreal.”

OMG … this idiot is unreal. https://t.co/3bORx5DMwU

— Catturd (@catturd2) July 2, 2022

Greg: “Thank you for this tweet mr president. My local gas stations all dropped their prices $2 instantly because they had your tweet notifications on”

Thank you for this tweet mr president. My local gas stations all dropped their prices $2 instantly because they had your tweet notifications on

— greg (@greg16676935420) July 2, 2022

David Giglio: “My message to the @POTUS running the country who cancelled domestic pipelines, drilling, and oil leases on Day 1 is simple: Stop gaslighting the American people with lies & stop putting America Last. And do it now.”

My message to the @POTUS running the country who cancelled domestic pipelines, drilling, and oil leases on Day 1 is simple: Stop gaslighting the American people with lies & stop putting America Last. And do it now. https://t.co/4FcKKqknNa

— David Giglio (@DavidGiglioCA) July 2, 2022

Me (I had to get in on the action): “Somebody in the regime thought it was a good idea to play tough guy against small business owners in a collapsing economy that the regime created. BRILLIANT!”

Somebody in the regime thought it was a good idea to play tough guy against small business owners in a collapsing economy that the regime created.

BRILLIANT!

— JD Rucker (@JDRucker) July 2, 2022

Helaine Olen: “I’m sorry, but this is just sad.”

https://twitter.com/helaineolen/status/1543291698557554688

Libertarian Party: “You know as well as everyone that the Federal Reserve actually sets the prices – through rampant inflation. When 40% of the dollars in the world was printed in one year, inflation sets in and prices skyrocket. Just yesterday you were blaming Putin. We see through your scam.”

You know as well as everyone that the Federal Reserve actually sets the prices – through rampant inflation. When 40% of the dollars in the world was printed in one year, inflation sets in and prices skyrocket.

Just yesterday you were blaming Putin.

We see through your scam.

— Libertarian Party (@LPNational) July 2, 2022

Dan Lyman: “Spoken like a communist dictator”

Spoken like a communist dictator https://t.co/Kmwk3xkJIT

— Dan Lyman (@realdanlyman) July 2, 2022

Jon Root: “Gas prices rose the moment you signed this executive order on day 1, Mr. President… The problem isn’t Russia, Russia, Russia. It’s you, you, you.”

Gas prices rose the moment you signed this executive order on day 1, Mr. President… The problem isn’t Russia, Russia, Russia. It’s you, you, you. pic.twitter.com/KIubGUVBHQ

— Jon Root (@JonnyRoot_) July 2, 2022

The Last Refuge: “You do know the E15 mandate made gas more expensive right? The EPA enforces the biofuel standard by requiring refineries to submit purchase credits (known as Renewable Identification Numbers, or RINs) to the EPA proving the purchases. The price of those RINs is in the gas.”

You do know the E15 mandate made gas more expensive right? The EPA enforces the biofuel standard by requiring refineries to submit purchase credits (known as Renewable Identification Numbers, or RINs) to the EPA proving the purchases. The price of those RINs is in the gas.

— TheLastRefuge (@TheLastRefuge2) July 2, 2022

Tom Fitton at Judicial Watch may have nailed the most important aspect of this Tweet, posting: “Fact check: This person has no lawful authority to threaten or order a gas station to set a price. This tweet is an abuse of power.”

Fact check: This person has no lawful authority to threaten or order a gas station to set a price. This tweet is an abuse of power. https://t.co/IrToTxnszO

— Tom Fitton (@TomFitton) July 2, 2022

This regime will try anything and everything at this point. They will NEVER admit they made a single mistake. They will NEVER do what it takes to solve the problems they created. This is the worst administration in modern history, and it isn’t even close.

For many, rising prices bring times of sacrifice. When Americans are pinching pennies, it’s hardly a comfort to hear that high gas prices can be avoided by simply buying an electric vehicle, as transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg recently advised.

As administration officials stubbornly push for a government-driven energy transition, escalating fuel prices often leave families in a bind, where they must choose between meeting energy needs such as heating, cooling, and filling up their gas tank or purchasing essential goods such as clothing, school supplies, and food. This dilemma, commonly known as “heat or eat,” makes all the difference between keeping a home warm or providing nutrition for little ones. The stakes are especially high for low-income, elderly, and minority groups, who spend a more significant portion of their budgets meeting energy needs.

Unfortunately, high energy prices will eat away at their finances in more ways than one. Price hikes at the pump will likely translate into rising prices in supermarket aisles, retail stores, and more. To understand the relationship between fuel and the prices of other goods and services, consider the classic illustration by Leonard Read, “I, Pencil.”

An economic lesson in the form of a short essay, “I, Pencil,” explains how even a seemingly simple pencil is the end product of a vast and intricate network of supply chains. Read argues that while a pencil may seem unremarkable, no one on earth knows how to create one from start to finish. He demonstrates this by tracing the pencil’s complex “ancestry.”

Read relates, in the voice of the pencil itself:

“My family tree begins with what in fact is a tree, a cedar of straight grain that grows in Northern California and Oregon. Now contemplate all the saws and trucks and rope and the countless other gear used in harvesting and carting the cedar logs to the railroad siding.”

Much of the “gear” Read refers to (trucks, logging machinery, etc.) runs on fuel. Suppose for a moment that fuel supplies decrease in Read’s illustration. The lower supply of fuel leads to more competition for fuel among logging and trucking firms, which pushes up the price of fuel. To economize on fuel, loggers may need to slow production, making lumber less abundant and more expensive for businesses that rely on lumber, like pencil manufacturers. With a reduced supply of wood, pencil production will drop, making pencils less plentiful and more costly, too.

These economic principles extend far beyond just pencils. All consumer goods—from food to clothing to housing to electronics—have “family trees” of their own, and one “ancestor” they all have in common is energy. Machines must be powered, materials must be shipped, and many workers still need to commute. Energy shortfalls, then, make goods and services more expensive across the board, reducing living standards for everyone, especially families in need.

While a market-driven energy transition would be welcome, as economic and technological realities stand now, fossil fuels are an indispensable source for these energy needs. Fossil fuels are a key link in innumerable supply chains. By hampering fossil fuel production, the government is hampering the entire economy in its attempts to force and rush an energy transition. That is leading to painfully high prices, not only at the pump but everywhere, and that pain is sharpest for the poor.

The disproportionate harm that rising energy costs inflict upon our most vulnerable communities foreshadows the challenges many of the rest of us will face if we stick to disruptive policies such as these. Any truly just energy transition campaign will refrain from tipping the scales in favor of specific technologies, but instead allow consumers freedom of choice. Through market forces, we can achieve clean, abundant, and affordable energy.

This article was originally published on FEE.org. Read the original article.

Sub-$3 gas is coming soon? @EIAgov projects prices at the pump will average $2.88 in 2022.

Sub-$3 gas is coming soon? @EIAgov projects prices at the pump will average $2.88 in 2022.https://t.co/czqXms3SyR

— Matt Egan (@MattEganCNN) December 8, 2021

From the article:

Prices at the pump have finally started to creep lower, and that trend should significantly accelerate in the coming months, according to new government forecasts.

The US Energy Information Administration said Tuesday the national average for regular gasoline will probably drop to $3.01 a gallon in January. For 2022, gas prices are expected to average $2.88.

That call is based on projections by the EIA for global oil production to increase more quickly than demand next year — especially given the emergence of the Omicron variant. This would be a reversal of the past 18 months, when output has been slow to meet surging demand as the world reopens from Covid-19.

The EIA, which is an arm of the Energy Department, cited risks that the new variant dents global consumption of energy and expectations for stronger supply from OPEC+, US shale oil companies and other major producers.

The agency also pointed to the impact from the US-led intervention in energy markets, highlighted by the biggest-ever release of barrels from America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Brent oil, the main driver of prices at the pump, is expected to average $70 a barrel in 2022. That’s down from the average of $84 in October and $81 in November.

Many economic factors are influenced by public perception. This is why leftist corporate news outlets like CNN used to try to paint peachy pictures. Today, even they can’t make lemonade out of Biden’s fiscal lemons.

Hat Tip: Jack Posobiec