The White House keeps "trotting out the old playbook" such as calling for a gas tax holiday to lower the price at the pumps rather than employing creative thinking, such as stressing mass transit, to help Americans save money, Tim Stewart, the president of the U.S. Oil and Gas Association told Newsmax on Saturday.
"When it comes to energy policy, I would suggest, [as] an example, rather than tinker with the market manipulation of gasoline prices, why don't you make mass transit fare-free for the next 90 days?" Stewart told "America Right Now." "The transit authorities received billions and billions of dollars in new funding from the building from the infrastructure bill. Let's see if that works."
He added he never thought he would agree with former President Barack Obama, who years ago rejected the idea of a gas tax holiday, saying that would be equal to "offering gimmicks" to solve a serious issue.
"The reality is, it's a gimmick — and it doesn't address the real issue, which is how do we ensure a long-term reliable supply and production again? The other thing it shows, I think, is that there's a dearth of creative problem-solving in the White House," Stewart said.
President Joe Biden has asked Congress to approve a three-month gas tax holiday to help alleviate costs for consumers at the pump, but his plan is getting backlash from both sides of the aisle.
Many are saying that the approximately 18 cents a gallon the tax holiday will save consumers are not enough to make up for the high price of gas, but the break will hurt federal coffers used for road and highway repairs.
Stewart, however, cautioned Saturday against dismissing the low amount of money being saved.
"We have got to be careful not to discount this too much," he said. "I grew up in a house where $20 meant a difference per month. The numbers we ran, about $20 is what the average family would see in savings in transportation costs."
However, a tax break also means the government is interfering in the market pricing mechanism of fuel, and when the "price creep kicks in," that savings could quickly evaporate in weeks, just like the savings did when oil was released from the strategic petroleum reserve, said Stewart.
The result will be that "nobody sees any real difference after a few weeks, and we've raided the highway trust fund," he said.
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