Like Jerry Seinfield reviving his famous “Soup Nazi” to sell Acuras, the Republican National Committee is pushing a recent video of top Obama aide David Axelrod declaring that, no, there will be no more cheap gas. He said it last June when gas prices were $3.57. 19-cents cheaper than today.
Bidding to make gas prices the focus of today’s White House press conference, the first by President Obama since November when gas prices averaged $3.31 for regular, 36-cents cheaper than today, the GOP distributed the video in hopes of undermining the administration’s recent discussion of gas prices.
Axelrod appeared on a panel at the Aspen Ideas Festival June 28. 2011, when a questioner asked him, “When is Barack going to tell the American people the era of cheap gasoline is over?”
Axelrod took the bait and answered, “Well, first of all, I think people have gotten the message that the era of cheap gasoline is over. I filled up my tank the other day, people seemed to get it.”
In addition, the RNC is passing around a statement from Energy Secretary Steven Chu on the the same subject back in 2008 when he was being considered for the Obama job. He’s quoted wishing for European-level gas taxes.
The surge in gas prices is already dinging the president’s reelection campaign. A new CBS poll found that the higher prices are hurting consumers and they believe the president has the power to cut prices.
