Pain at the Pump in NC: How the Presidential Candidates Plan to Deal with It

With the average price of gasoline rising almost daily, Americans are feeling squeezed financially...often doing without other necessities just so they can afford to buy gasoline to get back and forth to work. The price of gasoline is a top issue for voters and they will definitely be looking to the 3 Presidential frontrunners to see what solutions they offer.

North Carolina is being sorely affected by the gas crunch, and with the upcoming primary, it is important to have a look at what each candidate has to say about the problem. Here are the current plans from each of the candidates.

Hilary Clinton has both long range and short range solutions for the pain at the pump. According to Hilary Clinton http://Hilaryclinton.com her plan is to end America's dependence of foreign oil while at the same time protecting the planet and creating new jobs. She would like to invest "150 billion in Clean Energy," and gradually increase vehicle Fuel Economy Standard to 55 mpg by the year 2030. Other ideas include more plug in hybrid school buses and cars. Clinton would also like to see biofuel production increases to 60 billion gallons by 2030.

Clinton's most recent short term relief proposal is a plan to suspend the gas tax paid for "out of oil company profits". This would give North Carolinians some relief over the peak summer months.

Candidate Barack Obama has also spelled out a long range plan for dealing with the gas problem. Like Clinton, Obama believes it is of great importance that America reduce her dependence on foreign oil. According to www.barackobama.com, Obama also wants to reduce carbon emissions by 80% by the year 2050. He has also laid out a plan to support the production of biofuels. His plan includes the investment of federal resources and tax incentives. Obama would also like 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels to be included in the supply by the year 2022 which would increase to at least 60 billion gallons of advanced biofuel by 2030. Obama has not laid out a short term relief plan for the cost at the pump.

John McCain's plan is a short term relief plan in which the federal gas tax would be suspended for the summer. According to www.latimesblogs.latimes.com , that would amount to "18.4 cents per gallon" for unleaded, and "24.4 cents per gallon for diesel". McCain would also stop filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to reduce demand.

According to www.johnmccain.com, he will also end policies that result in higher food and transportation costs. Examples of these would be Ethanol subsidies, tariff barriers and sugar quotas.

Of the 3 candidates, Hilary Clinton is the only one to offer both long range as well as short term relief. According to the plan she has laid out, she has a definite interest in the price Americans are paying at the pump as well as an interest in long term solutions and the environment...such as biofuel production, hybrid vehicles, and a reduction in our dependence on foreign oil.

Barack Obama has an interest in long range fiscal and environmental solutions as well, but has shown no interest in suspending the gas tax for the summer.

John McCain's short term relief plan is not enough, and since it involves suspending the federal gas tax, it would be taking money away from revenue that goes toward our roads and bridges, which are already suffering and in need of repair. This differs from Clinton's short term relief plan, for she wants to suspend the gas tax paid out for oil company profits...therefore it would not be taking away from the American people.

Hilary Clinton's plan holds the most appeal for me because it contains both short and long range solutions. These days some short term relief is needed. So many families, including mine, are doing without other things in order to buy gasoline. There are reports on the nightly news of thieves stealing gasoline from people's vehicles because they are so desperate for gas and cannot afford to pay the price.

Hilary's long term goals are also important both fiscally as well as environmentally. They are important to me and everyone who lives in North Carolina, because our children will be living on this earth long after we are gone. They will be left with the results of what we do today.