House Democrat Wants 50-Cent per Gallon Gas Tax Hike; Baron Hill is Good for Big Oil Companies, Bad for Gas Prices

Yessir.

The party of working Americans strikes again:

A Michigan congressman wants to put a 50-cent tax on every gallon of gasoline to try to cut back on Americans' consumption.

Polls show that a majority of Americans support policies that would reduce greenhouse gases. But when it comes to paying for it, it's a different story.

Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., wants to help cut consumption with a gas tax but some don't agree with the idea, according to a new poll by the National Center for Public Policy Research.

The poll, scheduled to be released on Thursday, shows 48 percent don't support paying even a penny more, 28 percent would pay up to 50 cents more, 10 percent would pay more than 50 cents and 8 percent would pay more than a dollar.

"I don't want to pay more, I don't think anyone wants to," said Karen Deacon, a motorist.

"I think that wouldn't make any sense," said Frankie Hoe, a motorist. "Ugh ... who's making the money from all this and where is that money going? Is it going to go green? I don't see any green things anywhere."

The Democrats in Congress have never found a government program that doesn't need more funding, or a tax that doesn't need increasing.

Even taxes on gasoline.

Now, of course, is a good time to remind everyone the truth about Baron Hill and gasoline prices.

Mr. Hill made much in the last campaign about his opponent being responsible for high gas prices.

Such allegations were never supported by any actual examination of fuel price histories (though nobody in the media in the 9th District ever bothered to actually check).

According to the Department of Energy (Excel file warning), the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the Midwest was $0.88 when Baron Hill entered office in January of 1999.

When he was voted out, in early November of 2004, gasoline cost $1.97 a gallon, a net increase of 124%.

When he returned to office, in January of 2007, gasoline cost $2.26 a gallon.

That means that, for the time Mike Sodrel was in office, from November of 2004 to January of 2007, gasoline prices went up all of 14% or so.

Today, gasoline is averaging $3.25 around New Albany, an increase of 44% since Baron Hill returned to office.

In all, gasoline prices went up $0.29 while Sodrel was in office, about 14%.

While Baron Hill was in office overall, however, gasoline prices have seen a net increase of $2.08.

That is a net increase of 336%.

It is also over seven times, 717% to be exact, of the increase seen while Sodrel was in office, despite Hill attacking Sodrel for being in the pocket of the big oil companies.

In the fifteen months since Baron took office again, gas prices have seen an increase three and a half times the size that seen while Sodrel was in Congress.

If you use Baron's own 2006 reasoning, you can draw no other conclusion but that Baron Hill is good for the oil companies.

And Democrats in Congress want to add a fifty-cent per gallon tax on top of that?

I bet Baron'll say it makes him fiscally conservative and environmentally-friendly.

Not so friendly to your wallet, though, that's for sure.