REHOBOTH, Del. (Fwrd Axis) — President Joe Biden said Monday he is considering temporarily halting the federal gas tax as a measure to relieve some of the pressure Americans are feeling at the pump with the Fourth of July holiday looming.
Speaking to reporters along the beach in Rehoboth, Delaware, Biden said a decision could come as soon as the end of the week before he departs overseas for another foreign trip.
“I hope I have a decision based on data,” he said.
A gas tax holiday would require congressional action and the White House knows the chances of it passing would be slim to none with Republicans against it.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that rising gas prices and inflation are “a gold mine for us” ahead of the midterm elections in November with polls showing Americans trust Republicans to handle inflation.
Republicans don’t want gas prices to come down,” a White House official said. “They want Biden to suffer.”
When asked by reporters forgiving student debt, fulfilling one of his campaign promises, Biden said: “Yes.” The President made canceling $25,000 of student debt one of his signature campaign promises prior to the 2020 election.
Biden said one of the things the administration is considering is sending gas rebate cards directly to Americans. However, that might prove to be difficult but he declined to rule it out.
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm plans to meet with oil refining executives on Thursday as the tension between the U.S. oil industry and the White House continues to grow.
“If we remove the gas tax, that takes away the funding that was just passed by Congress to be able to do that,” Granholm said on CNN over the weekend. “So you know, that’s one of the challenges, but I’m not saying that that’s off the table.”
