Senator Joe Manchin just delivered some very bad news to President Joe Biden about his plan to institute a gas tax holiday.
The Biden administration has been struggling to reign in record high inflation rates, especially on the price of gasoline which has more than doubled under his watch.
To try and offer some temporary relief, Biden is proposing a 3 month tax holiday through November, right around the time of the election. However, to make that happen he needs the Senate to sign on to his plan.
Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) spoke to an ABC News reporter on Wednesday before Biden’s announcement, saying, “I’m not a yes right now, that’s for sure.”
The Senator continued, “Now, to do that and put another hole into the budget is something that is very concerning to me, and people need to understand that 18 cents is not going to be straight across the board — it never has been that you’ll see in 18 cents exactly penny-for-penny come off of that price.”
The US Senate is currently split 50-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris as the tie breaking vote. Without Manchin on his side, Biden would need Republican support to enact his gas tax holiday, something he is unlikely to receive.
If he does round up the votes or flip Manchin, the holiday would reduce the cost of unleaded gas by 18 cents per gallon and diesel by 24 cents per gallon.
Senator Manchin has already played spoiler to Joe Biden several times throughout his presidency. Most famously he killed Biden’s Build Back Better bill for its reckless spending.
The sitting President frequently blames Putin and gas companies for the steep hike in gas price. Despite this, Biden froze domestic drilling and shut down our domestic pipelines in favor of foreign fuel at the beginning of his term.
The White House released their own statement on the gas tax cut as well, again focusing on the war in Ukraine as the culprit.
“President Biden understands that a gas tax holiday alone will not, on its own, relieve the run up in costs that we’ve seen. But the President believes that at this unique moment when the war in Ukraine is imposing costs on American families, Congress should do what it can to provide working families breathing room.”
It certainly seems less than coincidental that Biden’s “tax holiday” is perfectly timed to end right around the November midterm elections. Democrats are struggling nationally mainly because of his failed economic policies. Do you think Republicans should bend and vote with Democrats on this to secure the small cost cut or is it better for them to hold off for now?
