Thinking about taking the kids away for a long weekend on the 4th of July?
With the national average for a gallon of gas now eclipsing $5, you need to be prepared to pay more, and research shows that it will only continue to get worse. Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis doesn’t see this changing any time soon. “It’s been one kink after another this year, and worst of all, demand doesn’t seem to be responding to the surge in gas prices, meaning there is a high probability that prices could go even higher in the weeks ahead.”
AAA on June 9th declared $4.98 a gallon as their official price, but they are almost always 3-9 cents a gallon cheaper than the average most people are seeing. With their figures even showing a minimum of 20 states where the average is about $5 a gallon, the writing is on the wall. The problem is what is being written.
If you listen to the left, the organizations that are nipping at their heels, and a few gas executives, this is all the fault of Russia and their conflict in Ukraine. They claim that it has upset the global economy in a way that will only improve once their aggression stops. Refineries and the oil market across the globe are in total disarray because of this conflict in their eyes. Those who haven’t been paying attention to the prices since Biden took office are in total agreement too.
Those who don’t have their heads in the sand realize that this has been a problem since Biden took office. President Trump had opened drilling, encouraged refineries to run at full output, and finally had the US officially listed as an oil-exporting nation. We had finally made it, and the American people were happy to have a reason to get back out there after dealing with COVID for so long. Then President Biden came along, narrowed the refinery regulations, and refused to sign off on drilling permits, land leases, and production.
This idea that the sitting President has zero influence on the way gas prices work is absolute nonsense. The person sitting in that position has more authority, power, and influence than most people are willing to give them credit for. Sadly, that is something the left is unwilling to concede to when they are the ones with the power and control. This refusal to even admit to the American people that they can do more is simply shameful.
Gas at this price is where Americans have the instinctual mindset to stop traveling as much. To get a more fuel-efficient vehicle, make changes in their travel destinations, and stop driving as much. With how reliant the US economy currently is on the service industry, a drop in air travel, eating out less, or taking a shorter trip to the beach can have long-reaching ripples.
De Haan touched on this too. “It’s a perfect storm of factors all aligning to create a rare environment of rapid price hikes. The situation could become even worse should there be any unexpected issues at the nation’s refineries or a major hurricane that impacts oil production or refineries this summer.”
What he means is that once the hurricane season picks up, we should all grab our ankles. A storm impacting the oil rigs in the gulf or refineries along the Gulf Coast is not only a good possibility but also quite probable as it happens nearly every year. So when it (most likely) happens, we should all be prepared to pay an extra 5-75 cents a gallon. Depending on the strength and size, maybe even more. With a prediction for an “above-average” hurricane season on the way, things aren’t looking so good.
