Teaser:

President George Bush, facing a summer of revolt from a nation that believes
fiercely in its right to affordable petrol, yesterday unveiled plans to try
to stop a rapid rise in prices at the pump.

From The Guardian, April 26 2006

Body:

Bush tries to head off panic over petrol prices
· Poll rating drops to new low amid election fears
· Measures unlikely to ease pain at the pump

Suzanne Goldenberg in Washington
Wednesday April 26 2006 The Guardian

President George Bush, facing a summer of revolt from a nation that believes
fiercely in its right to affordable petrol, yesterday unveiled plans to try
to stop a rapid rise in prices at the pump.

In a speech to the Renewable Fuels Association in Washington, Mr Bush
acknowledged that the high prices - which have sharply accelerated the
decline in his popularity - were hurting ordinary Americans as the holiday
season approaches.

"Energy experts predict gas prices are going to remain high throughout the
summer. And that's going to be a continued strain on the American people,"
he said.

Mr Bush spoke on a day when his approval ratings hit a new trough of 32% in
a CNN poll, and a day after the Republican leadership, worried at the impact
of high petrol prices on November's midterm elections, called on the White
House to investigate possible price fixing.

In an attempt to halt the panic in his own party at its prospects next
November, and among ordinary Americans now faced with paying more than $3
(about £1.70) a gallon for petrol, Mr Bush began with a plan to halt
the purchase of crude oil for the government's emergency reserve. America
has enough fuel to guard against any disruption over the next few months, he
said.

"So, by deferring deposits until the fall, we'll leave a little more oil on
the market. Every little bit helps."

Mr Bush also said he had instructed the Federal Trade Commission and the
departments of justice and energy to investigate possible cheating on prices
at the pump. Other elements of Mr Bush's plan called for the easing of
environmental safeguards to speed the building of refineries, and air
quality requirements on fuel grades. The president also repeated earlier
calls to open up the Arctic wildlife reserve to drilling.

Analysts said that the measures would do little to address the immediate
pain that Americans are feeling at the pump. They described the halt on
contributions to the strategic petroleum reserves as psychologically
symbolic. As for investigations into price fixing, the test of that would
come in enforcement.

However, Mr Bush won praise for his rhetorical commitment to alternative
fuels, even if he disappointed some analysts by not doing enough to
encourage energy conservation.

"Ethanol, hydrogen, electricity - it is going to take 20 or 30 years for
them to have a major impact, and consumers need help today," said David
Friedman, research director in the vehicles programme of the Union of
Concerned Scientists. "Even if we are successful with ethanol, we can't kick
our oil habit unless we move to fuel economy."

Mr Bush did call on Congress yesterday to expand tax credits on the purchase
of energy efficient and hybrid cars.

Since his state of the union address last January, when Mr Bush memorably
declared: "America is addicted to oil", the president's speeches have often
revisited the energy theme.

In another sign of the apparent conversion of a former Texas oil man, Mr
Bush also called on Congress to roll back $2bn in tax breaks for oil
companies over the next 10 years.

However, he rejected calls by Democrats for a windfall tax on oil company
profits from the higher prices.

But yesterday's address was prefigured by growing fears among Republicans
that prices at the pump would once again hit the record high set in the wake
of Hurricane Katrina last September, all but sealing defeat in November's
elections.

With petrol prices some 30% higher than they were a year ago, Congress is
under intense pressure from constituents to ease the pain at the pumps.

However, as Bill Frist, the Senate majority leader, told ABC television
yesterday, there were limits to what Congress could do. "There is no silver
bullet," he said, going on to advise Americans to drive slower and consider
car pooling.

Sorry, we're out of gas

In small town Pennsylvania, people are going to pawn shops to get money to
fill up their cars. In Nevada, they are trading in cars for more fuel
efficient motorcyles. In New Jersey and parts of Delaware, people would be
grateful for petrol at any price. The pumps there went dry over the weekend.

All across the country, Americans have been forced to confront the most
un-American of facts: they can no longer rely on cheap petrol. The average
price at the pump - $1.46 a gallon when President George Bush came into
office - is now well above $3 in many parts of the country, and touching $4
a gallon at some stations in Beverly Hills.

The sharp rise in prices - the second since the record high set last
September in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina - could not have come at a
more painful time with Americans hoping to make for the open road as summer
approaches.

For some customers, filling up their tanks now requires selling some of
their belongings, a Pennsylvania television station reported. The station
WJAC found a woman in Portage Township, Pennsylvania, selling a television
and CDs so her fiance could buy petrol. "It's getting to the point where
he's gonna see if he can give somebody $20 and ride with them and sell the
car; it's that bad," she told the station.

In Nevada, a Las Vegas TV station found a couple who traded their car for
motorcyles, which get 50 miles to the gallon and cost $15 to fill up. "The
only other thing I can do to get this kind of gas would be to get a hybrid.
And, right now, we just don't have the financial backing to get a hybrid so
the bikes are a better deal," Terry Davis told the station.

Other commuters are taking slightly less unorthodox measures: they are
taking the bus. Public transport systems across the country report increased
custom.

Copyright Guardian Newspapers Limited