MSNBC guest tells Americans to 'calm down and back off' about high gas prices
An MSNBC guest demanded that many Americans stop complaining about high gas prices because many others are doing far worse economically.
Errin Haines made the comments talking about a proposed gas tax holiday with Chris Jansing on her MSNBC show Wednesday.
"You know, I'm just gonna say this and if I get banged for it, I don't care," said the editor-at-large of 19News.
"There is a great deal of Americans where it is uncomfortable that they're spending more, but they are not gonna go under. You've got to stop complaining when there's so many people who literally, the inflation rate means they may only have two meals instead of three," Haines continued.
"There are Americans who did extremely well in last two years in the market. You still have your job. And yeah, it's costing you more for gas, but guess what, you still gonna take that holiday, that Fourth of July vacation, you could till gonna eat out," Haines added.
"So I'm gonna need you to calm down and back off," she said.
"Because it feeds into this fear, and this fear feeds into people making decisions that creates the very thing that they are fearful of!" she concluded.
President Joe Biden was to call for a gas tax holiday in order to provide some relief to Americans at the pump, but economists and others criticized the relatively infinitesimal effect of the policy.
“A federal gas tax suspension alone won’t fix the problem we face, but it will provide families a little breathing room as we continue working to bring down prices for the long haul,” said a senior administration official about the proposal.
Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia heavily criticized the plan, signaling that it would not have enough support in the U.S. Senate to defeat Republican opposition.
On Tuesday, ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods predicted that the global gas market would continue to stay "tight" and result in high gasoline prices for years.
"How that manifests itself in price will obviously be a big function of demand, which is difficult to predict," he added.
Here's the video of Haines' comments on MSNBC:
\u201cMSNBC guest: "There is a great deal of Americans where it is uncomfortable that they're spending more, but they are not gonna go under. You've got to stop complaining ... you still have your job ... so I'm gonna need you to calm down and back off."\u201d— Washington Free Beacon (@Washington Free Beacon) 1655921186
Biden threatens to use 'Federal Government tools and emergency authorities' to force oil companies to lower gas prices
President Joe Biden sent a letter to oil companies on Wednesday threatening to use the tools and "emergency authorities" of the federal government to make them increase oil output and lower gas prices.
“At a time of war – historically high refinery profit margins being passed directly onto American families are not acceptable,” wrote Biden in the letter.
″[C]ompanies must take immediate actions to increase the supply of gasoline, diesel, and other refined product,” he added.
The letter was sent to oil companies including Exxon Mobil, Shell, BP, and Chevron.
Biden added that the administration was ready to use “all reasonable and appropriate Federal Government tools and emergency authorities to increase refinery capacity and output in the near term.”
He went on to point out an "unprecedented disconnect" between the price of gas and the price of oil.
“Since the beginning of the year, refiners’ margins for refining gasoline and diesel have tripled, and are currently at their highest levels ever recorded,” he wrote in the letter.
Biden's approval rating continues to plummet as Americans blame his green energy policies for exacerbating the oil crisis. His unpopularity is a further problem for Democrats who face devastating losses in the upcoming midterm elections.
“The crunch that families are facing deserves immediate action. Your companies need to work with my Administration to bring forward concrete, near-term solutions that address the crisis,” Biden claimed.
The administration has attempted to blame Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin for gas prices, but that has fallen on the deaf ears of Americans suffering from high inflation.
Many critics of the Biden administration have noted that he has previously threatened to end the oil industry entirely before being forced to ask for its help after gas prices skyrocketed.
Here's more about Biden's threats to the oil companies:
Biden demands oil companies explain lack of gaswww.youtube.com
National average price for a gallon of regular gas soars to new high as Americans get soaked by inflation
As of Tuesday, the AAA national average price for a gallon of regular gas reached $4.374, a staggering figure that marks a new record high when inflation is not taken into account.
Gas Buddy also reported that the the national average price of gas had hit a new high, though it pegged the price at $4.36 per gallon.
While the prices mark fresh highs, reports indicate that when inflation is factored into the equation, the new record still does not eclipse high prices experienced in 2008.
High gas prices not only cost drivers dearly when they fill up their vehicles, but the fuel costs also drive up transportation expenses, which can lead to higher prices for various goods and services throughout the economy.
Americans have been getting hammered by soaring gas prices and high inflation, and if they keep experiencing pain at the pump and witnessing the purchasing power of their hard-earned savings erode each month, those economic issues could hurt Democrats during the 2022 midterm election cycle.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is slated to release April consumer price index data on Wednesday. The all-items index rose "8.5 percent for the 12 months ending March," the agency reported last month.
President Joe Biden said in a speech on Tuesday that inflation is his "top domestic priority." He attributed inflation to the COVID-19 pandemic and to Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
The U.S. has prohibited the importation of oil and other products from Russia in response to that country's invasion of Ukraine.
"We have the biggest inflation spike in 4 decades, record high gas prices, a massive border crisis, incompetent foreign policy, endless attacks on liberty and personal safety, and now even a baby formula shortage. The Biden presidency has truly been a epic disaster from the start," tweeted GOP Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York — the lawmaker is currently running for governor in the Empire State.
"Liquid fuels have turned into liquid gold, with prices for gasoline and diesel spiraling out of control with little power to harness them as the imbalance between supply and demand globally continues to widen with each passing day. Russia's oil increasingly remains out of the market, crimping supply while demand rebounds ahead of the summer driving season," GasBuddy head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan said. "There's little, if any, good news about fuel prices heading into summer, and the problem could become worse should we see an above average hurricane season, which could knock out refinery capacity at a time we badly need it as refined product inventories continue to plummet."
Ted Cruz hammers Biden for claiming the Russian invasion is solely to blame for high gas prices: 'This is a flat-out lie'
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) ripped into President Joe Biden (D) for attempting to pin all of the blame on higher gas prices on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Cruz was referring to comments from Biden to reporters on Tuesday saying that gas prices would get worse, but he was powerless to do anything about it.
"They're going to go up," said Biden about gas prices.
"Can't do much right now. Russia's responsible," he added.
Cruz took to Twitter to refute the claim from the president.
"This is a flat-out lie. Gas prices have increased 48% under Biden—BEFORE RUSSIA INVADED UKRAINE. Biden did that," Cruz tweeted.
This is a flat-out lie.\n\nGas prices have increased 48% under Biden\u2014BEFORE RUSSIA INVADED UKRAINE.\n\nBiden did that.\n\nThat\u2019s bc Biden:\n\n- killed Keystone pipeline.\n- froze federal leases.\n- shut down ANWR\n\nAll, while Biden waived sanctions on Putin\u2019s pipeline.https://twitter.com/mj_lee/status/1501299210469191694\u00a0\u2026— Ted Cruz (@Ted Cruz) 1646775936
He went on to list the policies that Biden pursued which have led to higher gas prices prior to the Russian invasion, including his opposition to the Keystone pipeline, freezing federal oil leases, and shutting down drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Cruz explained his criticism in a guest appearance on CNBC Tuesday morning where he hammered away at Biden's energy policies.
"It really is striking, in 2019 the United States became a net energy exporter, we are an oil and gas superpower, and yet under Joe Biden last year, for the first time since then America stopped being a net energy exporter, as our production went down," Cruz said.
"And the result of Biden's presidency has been that the enemies of America, countries like Russia, like Iran, like Venezuela are all getting stronger, getting richer, getting more aggressive, getting more hostile," he continued, "because the president is simultaneously weakening our own ability to produce energy and strengthening their ability to produce energy."
NBC reported that the shift in messaging was purposeful by the White House after taking the blame for gas prices and increasing inflation before the invasion.
Here's Cruz ripping into Biden on CNBC:
Sen. Ted Cruz weighs in on Biden's response to Russia, Ukraine, U.S. oil productionwww.youtube.com
MSNBC's Chris Hayes gets torched for suggesting the US turn to Iran for help to relieve gas crisis
MSNBC host Chris Hayes got lambasted on social media for suggesting that the U.S. alleviate the skyrocketing price of gas by turning to the Iranian regime for help.
Hayes linked to a proposal to buy gas from Iran in response to increased prices as caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine as well as from growing inflation.
"If you’re a) devoted to cutting off Russia’s oil revenues and b) worried about inflation and spiking oil prices, this is one possible solution…," Hayes Tweeted.
If you\u2019re a) devoted to cutting off Russia\u2019s oil revenues and b) worried about inflation and spiking oil prices, this is one possible solution\u2026https://twitter.com/ryanlcooper/status/1499446638062018571\u00a0\u2026— Chris Hayes (@Chris Hayes) 1646331035
Critics excoriated Hayes and the suggestion to seek oil from one murderous regime in response to the military aggression of another murderous regime.
"Actually, giving billions to American-murdering terrorists is a really bad idea," responded Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.
"Oh great, give our money to Iran instead of Russia. Much better than revamping domestic production," read one popular tweet.
"Maybe start producing more of our own oil and gas? You know, like we were doing until Joe happened?" said another critic.
"Or, you know, we could just let Americans make lots of money producing it domestically instead of funding a terror state," another user offered sarcastically.
"Buying oil from Russia and Iran after cutting our own supplies is the act of an imbecile or a traitor. There is no logic to any Democrat environmental idea," responded another detractor.
"Funding terror to end terror?" asked Ian Haworth.
Others pointed out that Hayes had been against the Keystone XL pipeline in 2014, which could have relieved some of the lack of oil supply.
The Biden administration had blamed inflation on everything from supply chain issues related to the pandemic to the "greed" of "meat conglomerates." The pain of high inflation has been cited among the many causes of the very low favorability rating for President Joe Biden ahead of the midterm elections.
Here's more about the soaring price of gas:
Gas prices expected to rise even morewww.youtube.com
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