John McCain Doesn't know the Price of Gas

Originally posted by grover
I still say that McCain, Obama, Clinton, any of them, while they may not know the last time they pumped their own gas or how much they paid, should know what the average person is facing.

If he had been asked that exact same question at one of his town meetings and had given that exact same answer, he would have been booed off of the stage.

It is important.

And no my head is not stuck up Obama's ass... I support him because he will be the nominee, not because I was in favor of him... I wanted someone with a lot more experience like Richardson.

It is important that these people understand what the rest of us are facing. That is absolutely true. McCain and Obama are both living in a detached reality right now. I don't mean they're detached because they're malevolent or otherwise don't understand, but because they are on a whirlwind traveling schedule with high level security protecting their every move. It's like that rockstar who gets up on the mic and screams "HELLO DETROIT!", not realizing they're in Chicago. He may be an idiot or he may just be road weary.

The real crux of this discussion is whether his response illustrates a lack of understanding of the high gas prices and their effect on the American people. I don't see how you could think it does. The question was not about the current state of gas prices; it was about him remembering when he last pumped gas and what it cost. It was a loaded question to begin with, but that's not unexpected from the press. The only intriguing part of his response is when he said he didn't see how that was relevant. He's correct, but that seems like a knee-jerk reaction from being asked such a loaded question from an hostile source. Had he responded "I can't remember the last time I pumped my own gas since we've been surrounded by the Secret Service for so long, but I can tell you it wasn't like it is now. The American people are really feeling the crunch of these prices and I want to do everything possible to relieve that strain," he probably would have been...well, nevermind. It doesn't matter what either of them say or do.

Regardless of their stance on anything they (McCain or Obama) will either be accused of going too far one way or the other. So is the state of affairs when the loudest mouths belong to the two extremes. It's really too bad that the vast majority of the country is somewhere in the middle.

reply to post by StudioGuy


I totally agree with you. If anyone is out of touch further than the other, it's McCain, though. He says that a lot of our problems are psychological and that the gas tax holiday would provide a "psychological boost", so that the next time we fill up our tank, we can buy something else... Yeah, like FOOD!

He has NO CLUE. At least Obama knows that people are suffering trying to feed their families and that a psychological boost is pretty much out of the question for them.

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Obama is in touch alright...

With increasing his own fortune...

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama wants to raises taxes on the wealthy, but as a member of that social class, he isn't eager to fall victim himself. He has invested at least $1 million in a fund that yields tax-free income.

Obama's net worth at the end of 2007 -- not including his home and other nonfinancial assets -- was pegged between $2,022,016 and $7,356,000.

By far the largest account, valued between $1 million and $5 million, was in the Northern Municipal Money Market Fund. It generated tax-free interest in 2007 of between $15,001 and $50,000.

"The firm estimates it serves roughly 20% of the richest families profiled annually in the Forbes 400."

Interest on municipal bonds, however, is exempt from tax, which is why Obama's Northern Trust fund generates tax-free income.

Despite repeated requests over several days, the Obama campaign declined to comment.

MSN Money
Emphasis mine

(Is MSN a mudslinging site when it is about Obama?)

While no where near as professional as MSN, this bears repeating..

Obama bills himself as a man of the people, who will beat down big business. ... Given his populist stance, Obama's recent trip to the Bay Area, during which he hobnobbed only with the richest and most famous, is amusing, since it either presents a man with no discernible principles or it presents a bunch of rich people who are allowing themselves to be led like lambs to the slaughter.

Zombietime
Emphasis again mine

And in regards to gas prices...

I had representatives from a mobile hospital that told me that the increase cost of fuel has caused them to incur an additional $100,000 in expenses in fuel use. We've also seen widespread reports of local law enforcement and police departments having to reassess how they are going to use their vehicles and their fleet, because of the strain that the high cost of gas is placing on their departments. So clearly it's not just working families. It's communities across the country who are struggling up under these high costs, and for Sen. Obama to indicate that we'll just have to get used to them is clearly an indication that he is out of touch."

Washington Independent
Emphasis mine again

Out of touch?

Obama apparently as a good Comrade in the new Socialist regime, knows that what he has is not to be questioned, only what we may have...

Semper

Maybe he could feed some of those families with his riches instead of investing them in TAX SHELTERS while he taxes the rest of us into oblivion...

With all of this being considered, beside being a Socialist, I CRY HYPOCRITE to Mr. Obama...

Semper

The oil companies are enroning us to force congress into allowing them to drill wherever they want to.

Enroning? This is the statement of someone that has no grip on what he/she is talking about. You don't seem to understand the Enron blunder, or what is making oil cost so much now. Did you know that your much hated 'Big Oil' is not really that big. LINK.

Also, the Enron Scandal was a FINANCIAL scandal and had nothing to do with Bush or its energy holdings.

Check out the largest oil companies and you will find that most of them are state-owned.
'Big Oil' is just the name Democrats and Socialists give to all things they hate. Did you know that oil companies have a relatively low profit margins. 9.7% is the margin according to Thompson Baseline. This is a little higher than average but companies like Google have 25% margins. Nobody seems to have a problem with Google's incredible greed, but the oil companies are the devil.

At least be honest with your rhetoric; you hate successful businesses that seem Republican. I hate defending oil companies, but we are trying to deny ignorance and I couldn't let lies and exaggerations go unturned.

After defending big oil(on this subject), I think I need a shower.

Not to burst anyone's bubble, but this 'story' is bull. From June 18th:

"The price of a gallon of gas in America stands at more than four dollars. Yesterday, a barrel of oil cost about 134 dollarsm" said McCain.

www.ens-newswire.com...

McCain was in California on June 24th. Clearly, he knew what the price of gas was 6 days earlier.

I can't tell anyone just how stunned I am that the Huffington Post wouldn't do its homework.

[edit on 29-6-2008 by vor78]

reply to post by DINSTAAR


I don't hate business and what I mean by enroning is a manulipating resources to run up prices aka price gouging. What they did in California with their rolling blackouts. The boys at enron were behind that and some are behind bars because of it.

[edit on 30-6-2008 by grover]

To the OP...thank you for the early morning humor. That will rank up there with the Bush interviews as a political chuckle that will last for time to come. It will likely make reruns just like the Bush interviews have to compare idiotic things that politicians will say.

reply to post by wheresthetruth


??????????

Haven't you read the thread?! You can't compare John flippin' McCain to George W. Bush. You might as well say that Obama and Jesse Jackson quotes belong in a file together.
And it has been demonstrated and essentially agreed upon by the thinking readers of this thread that the article was CRAP! Regardles of where one stands politically. And if we want an effective meaningful dialogue about issues, we have to stop being so stupid and petty.


[edit on 30-6-2008 by djerwulfe]

reply to post by semperfortis


Semper, while I respect you... can the Democrats/liberals = socialists crap. Its a lie and you know it.

One question...

Does Obama pump his own gas? If you went to DC, could you find a single politician that does?

reply to post by BlueTriangle


I don't think it really matters... just as a matter of politics they should at the very least have a general idea what the price of oil is and what the average Joe is facing. I mean really its all over the news and on everyone's lips...

The real question is how could he NOT know?

So according to McCain - the price of gas doesn't matter, how long we're in Iraq doesn't matter...If nothing else it shows he's either obtuse or insensitive when it comes to what's important to the American people. That's all I really need to know.

reply to post by kosmicjack


Thank you... That's what I have been trying to say. Its the election stupid and if you don't have a clue what the average American is facing you have no bloody business running.

John McCain Doesn't know the Price of Gas

Huh...

Didn't Bush just pull this exact same crap too?

The similarities are mind-boggling.

Did any of you people bother reading my link above? John McCain had quite obviously known the price of oil and gas on June 18th, six days before he made the statement attributed in the OP's link. He was in California on the 24th.

Now maybe he forgot in those intervening six days, but its more likely that he was stating that he didn't know when he personally had filled his own tank (which is how the reporter phrased the question, BTW), not the prices themselves.

reply to post by vor78


The broader point is that he thinks it doesn't matter, regardless of the price. Really though, it just doesn't matter to him. IMO just another indicator of how arrogant and insulated he is.

reply to post by kosmicjack


When he said 'it doesn't matter', I think it is much more likely that he was referring to the last time he filled his gas tank himself and without secret service protection. I don't think that matters at all.

Note that the question, as asked by the reporter, partially placed it in this context to begin with.



[edit on 30-6-2008 by vor78]

reply to post by vor78

What is with these people?
There are real things to criticize the man for. Why are people sticking to this crap? It has been clearly shown that the guy is well aware of gas prices (how could anyone not know?) and that the "doesn't matter" statement was a response to the stupid loaded question he was asked. He was saying that the timing of his last personal, hands-on gas pumping and the cost of gas at that time is irrelevant.
It is.
So why?

Originally posted by GradyPhilpott
The price of gasoline is sky high and it's going to get worse.
Do you think that McCain doesn't know that?

I believe he hasn't pumped his own gas in a long time and doesn't know the current price or the one he would have recently paid. That is what he said.

To me it just goes to show that all candidates are elitist.
I think that was the point of the article and question asked.

Some have been claiming that Obama is the only elitist one in the race but the McCains are far more successful. It's not like McCain is some farmer in Idaho, or some dishwasher in the inner city. I am not surprised he doesn't know the price of gas. I doubt most politicians would as they aren't pumping or paying for it personally.

The truth is that neither of them can actually relate to the average American.
They're both elitist and do not adequately represent me.

- Lee