Adding Fuel To The Fire
The gas price wars have arrived in New York's Senate race.
A day after George W. Bush blamed the Clinton administration for high gas prices, New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani on Monday followed in the Texan's campaign footsteps.
"You can say thank you President Clinton, thank you Vice President Al Gore and thank you, (U.S. Energy Secretary) Bill Richardson for these prices," said Giuliani, the Republican Senate contender in New York.
The mayor called for repeal of the 1993 federal gas tax increase, and said he supported a proposal to eliminate the state sales tax on gasoline on May 1.
"This administration is napping, hibernating, asleep, unfocused, whatever you want to call it, with regard to what's going on with gasoline," said Giuliani. "Their failure to act has caused this crisis."
Giuliani spoke at a gas station in Bedford, an affluent community in Westchester County, a Big Apple suburb. The prices marked at the full-service island were $2.03.9 a gallon for regular, $2.13.9 for medium, and $2.23.9 for premium. Westchester County is where Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton has her residence, and it's a battleground in the tight race between the mayor and the First Lady.
So far, no response from the Clinton campaign.
On Sunday, Bush said he's considering calling for a suspension of the 4.3 cents-per-gallon federal gas tax increase. The Texas governor claimed the president has not been an effective negotiator with oil-producing countries.
"I guess because his diplomatic policy is not that strong, his standing in the world is not such that he can call upon our friends when we need them,"
Bush said gas prices are high, because the administration has squandered the good will built by his father in the Persian Gulf War and has no overall energy policy.
As president, Bush said he would urge Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Mexico to "open the spigots" and remind them of America's role in the 1991 Gulf War and of its economic bailout of Mexico.
Also Sunday, Richardson said he opposed temporarily lifting the tax increase, but added the president "will consider all options" for consumer relief. The energy secretary said he didn't think suspending the increase would help since the problem is oil scarcity. And Richardson said a suspension would drain $600 million a month from the federal highway trust fund, where proceeds from the gas tax increase now go.