Pelosi Dimisses Gas-tax Holiday

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) Thursday joined the growing chorus of Democratic voices opposing a summer gas tax holiday.

"There is no reason to believe that any [savings from a] moratorium on gas taxes will be passed on to the consumer, first and foremost." Pelosi said at a press conference on Capitol Hill.

"There are other remedies that are much better than that," said Pelosi. "The biggest answer to our challenge is to invest in renewable energy sources.

House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) said Wednesday he did not support the proposal.

Two of the top three remaining candidates for president - Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona - have offered proposals to temporarily suspend the 18.4 cents-per-gallon federal gasoline tax during the busiest travel months in an effort to make a slight dent in the soaring costs for consumers.

Many congressional Republicans, however, have warmed to the idea of a gas tax holiday as Congress struggles to cope with surging prices at the pump.

House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) didn't directly endorse the proposal at a press conference Thursday morning, but did say "I have been for lowering taxes since I was first elected to office" when asked if he would support the gas tax holiday.