From WashingtonTimes.com…
The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline topped $4.80 on Sunday, twice as much as the day President Biden took office.
It is a staggering milestone that underscores both the everyday pain inflation inflicts on Americans and the difficult months ahead for Democrats seeking votes in November.
Based on an average of the leading fuel-monitoring services, the average price per gallon was $2.40 on Jan. 20, 2021, when Mr. Biden was inaugurated.
The AAA automobile owners club and GasBuddy, which tracks gasoline prices, pegged the national average at $4.84 on Sunday.
The average American drives 13,476 miles per year, according to the Department of Transportation. That means owners of the Ford F-Series — the most popular truck in 2021 — on average would spend roughly $3,060 per year at today’s price point compared to about $1,540 per year at $2.40 per gallon. For Honda Civic drivers, that would mean roughly $1,950 compared to about $980 in 2020.
Mr. Biden last week conceded there is little that his administration can do in the interim to provide relief on rising energy costs and other everyday items. He warned Americans that inflation across the economy is — at least for now — here to stay.
“There’s a lot going on right now but the idea we’re going to be able to click a switch, bring down the cost of gasoline, is not likely in the near term,” he said. “We can’t take immediate action that I’m aware of yet to figure out how we’re bringing down the prices of gasoline back to $3 a gallon.”
The gloomy outlook marked a change in tune for Mr. Biden, who has previously expressed optimism — at least publicly — that administration actions would blunt costs. The president has struggled with messaging on energy prices, pivoting from downplaying the spikes as temporary to blaming price-gouging corporations or Russian President Vladimir Putin.
