Let’s face it: the largest single factor in the prices of anything is market conditions. Ultimately supply and demand determine prices.

Government can have an impact, and sometimes a large one. Regulatory decisions, tax policies, and other government actions can have a major impact.

When gas prices went through the roof President Biden took a lot of heat, and he did what he could to lower the prices and took a lot of credit for the results.

Gas prices are down around $1.60 a gallon from their peak this summer – and my Administration will keep working to lower costs for American families.

— President Biden (@POTUS) January 23, 2023

Joe Biden’s decision to flood the market with American oil reserves likely did drive down the price of oil temporarily, although at the expense of our national security (fewer reserves in case of emergency) and for a limited time (obviously you can only dump so much of it). It was a bad policy, but it bought Biden time before the election.

But that time is over.

Biden’s energy policies have also served to drive down supply: cutting off pipelines, restricting oil exploration and production, discouraging investment in fossil fuel companies, and in general pursuing policies he promised during the campaign designed to destroy the fossil fuel industry.

He announced he would pursue these policies, and he has.

Now that the price of oil–and gasoline in particular–has been going up again the Administration has been quizzed about what level of responsibility the Biden Administration has. The president, after all, took credit for the drop in gas prices over the past several months. If he can take credit for reduced prices, must he take responsibility for increased prices?

Well, no, of course not.

Reporter: “Gas prices are now up … The President took credit for the prices going down … Does the President get credit for the price of gas going up?”

Biden’s energy sec: “It’s obviously based upon international and climate events.”

pic.twitter.com/zjZAFFg7Dc

— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) January 23, 2023

During the presidential campaign, Biden was extremely clear about his opposition to further drilling for oil and natural gas, and his policies have been consistent with that promise, if not nearly fast enough for his extremist supporters. An inevitable consequence of restricting and eventually eliminating the drilling for oil and natural gas is increasing prices. That’s utterly uncontroversial. Even Secretary Granholm admits in the clip that restrictions on the supply caused by “international and climate events” drive up prices.

So obviously Joe is using the power of government to increase oil prices, necessarily. Restrict oil recovery, prices go up.

Biden promised for years he would get rid of fossil fuels and now he has kept it pic.twitter.com/Jh4o35jmBI

— Jack Posobiec 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) May 11, 2021

It’s unsurprising that the Biden Administration is playing this “heads I win, tails you lose” game; what is disturbing is how many Americans seem OK with politicians yanking their chains like this.

It’s not uncommon for politicians on either side of the aisle to pull stunts like this, although President Biden is unusually adept at pulling it off. He is a transparent liar, yet somehow he smirks his way through without paying a price.

I think it was the Washington Post that kept a running tally of Trump’s lies, where every bit of hyperbole was called out as if it were perjury. Yet Biden can stuff classified documents in his garage and they still run interference for him. Maybe they are as afraid of him as Corn Pop apparently was.

Or maybe they just like running their hands over his hairy legs, as he bragged those kids at the public pool did those many years ago.

Why does he say things like this? pic.twitter.com/luhRGngSXV

— Heather Champion (@winningatmylife) December 1, 2019

In any case, they never hold him accountable. He’s a Democrat, after all.