Biden takes victory lap over $3 gasoline
Energy & Environment
Energy & Environment
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The Big Story
Biden takes victory lap as gas prices average below $3 in many states
Much of the country is seeing gasoline prices drop below $3 per gallon — good news for consumers and the White House.
© Getty
While the national average was sitting at around $3.09 per gallon Friday, 30 states had prices averaging below $3 per gallon, according to AAA.
Prices have been on a downward trend in recent weeks since the price of oil fell on seasonal demand, high levels of U.S. production and high interest rates slowing down the economy in general.
“A lot of this is seasonal in nature, Americans simply don’t drive as much — they drive less, as it gets colder out. We are also back on cheaper winter gasoline,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at the gas price app GasBuddy.
More broadly, prices are down from their peak of more than $5 per gallon in summer 2022 amid the breakout of war between Russia and Ukraine, as well as economic reopening after the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Biden this week touted the lower gas prices in a pair of posts on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“Gas prices across America have declined by an average of $1.93 since their peak in 2022. That’s a decrease of 38%,” he wrote Wednesday.
Read more in a full report at TheHill.com.
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Essential Reads
How policy will affect the energy and environment sectors now and in the future:
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Shipping giant Maersk warned Friday that cargo ship diversions caused by Houthi military activity in the Red Sea will likely cause disruptions to international shipping and supply lines.
China reaffirmed Friday the U.S. could see the return of giant pandas by the end of the year, as long as the two countries can peacefully coexist.
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On Our Radar
Upcoming news themes and events we’re watching:
Wednesday
The House Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing titled “National Park Service’s Deferred Maintenance Backlog: Perspectives from the Government Accountability Office and the Inspector General”
The House Energy and Commerce Committee will hold a hearing titled “Protecting Clean American Energy Production and Jobs by Stopping EPA’s Overreach”
The House is slated to vote on whether to rescind the Biden administration’s waiver of “Buy America” requirements for steel and iron in EV chargers
Thursday
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on federal EV incentives
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will hold a hearing on proposals for the Water Resources Development Act of 2024
What We’re Reading
News we’ve flagged from other outlets touching on energy issues, the environment and other topics:
Massive dumping ground of WWII-era munitions discovered off Los Angeles coast (The Los Angeles Times)
Canada’s Logging Industry Devours Forests Crucial to Fighting Climate Change (The New York Times)
Why Lansing’s BWL is a model for Biden’s plan to replace the US stock of lead water lines (The Lansing State Journal)
What Others are Reading
Two key stories on The Hill right now:
The Supreme Court agreed to take up whether former President Trump can be disqualified from appearing on Colorado’s ballot over his actions surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, setting up a historic case that could upend the presidential election. Read more
Former President Donald Trump enters 2024 leading his Republican rivals by a national poll average of 51 percentage points. However, Iowa influencers from Trump’s loyal base of evangelical voters have established goalposts also applicable to the general electorate, should Trump top the GOP ticket. Read more
Opinions in The Hill
Op-eds related to energy & environment submitted to The Hill:
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