NYT: Cheney Tax Plan From '86 Would Have Raised Gas Prices

[kskiska]

WASHINGTON, April 5 — In October 1986, when Dick Cheney was the lone congressman from energy-rich Wyoming, he introduced legislation to create a new import tax that would have caused the price of oil, and ultimately the price of gasoline paid by drivers, to soar by billions of dollars per year.

"Let us rid ourselves of the fiction that low oil prices are somehow good for the United States," Mr. Cheney, who is now vice president, said shortly after introducing the legislation.

Oil prices had plunged to $15 from nearly $40 a barrel in the early 1980's, as Saudi Arabia flooded world markets, and Mr. Cheney argued the tax was needed to stabilize oil-state economies devastated as a result. But other lawmakers, including some Republicans, criticized the Cheney plan and similar proposals as "snake oil" that would throw 400,000 Americans out of work. They also said then, as President Bush does now, that higher taxes would stall the economy.

Renewed attention on Mr. Cheney's plan, which Democrats dusted off and talked about on the Senate floor last week, offers another wrinkle in this year's politicized debate about gas prices, which hit a record-high average of $1.76 last week for a gallon of regular. While gas prices may remain a presidential campaign issue if they do not decline, they are still well below the inflation-adjusted high of nearly $3 in March 1981.

To deflect charges that the White House has not done enough to bring down prices, the Bush campaign has attacked Senator John Kerry, the likely Democratic presidential nominee, as favoring higher gas prices. "Some people have wacky ideas like taxing gasoline more so people drive less. That's John Kerry," a recent Bush campaign commercial said. The commercial singled out Mr. Kerry's support a decade ago for a 50-cent gas tax increase, part of a deficit-reduction package that Mr. Kerry never voted for.

(snip)

A spokesman for Mr. Cheney declined to comment.

more…
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/06/politics/06CHEN.html?ex=1081828800&en=4f51c3f7fed77d82&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE

[PartyPooper]

1. Kerry needs to use this in his campaign ads!

The Republicans are such fucking hypocrites!

[David Dunham]

2. Cheney's a big hypocrite.

[markses]

3. Commercial script

Since the Bush Administration is dusting off "wacky" old legislation that John Kerry never voted for in order to smear him, we thought you might like to see this bit of legislation introduced by Dick Cheney.

(Run bullet points of legislation)
(Run opposition by Republicans in the House and Senate at the time)

Dick Cheney's profiteering. It would be old news, but who's getting those contracts for Iraq? Now that's really wacky.

[fearnobush]

4. Fire this over to the Campaign Now.

The Gas prices today are being deliberately hiked by the BFEE to smear Kerry as a gas taxer while prices are at there peek. In fact, the fucked up, ought to be imprisoned for life dis(the American People)administration is working very closely with the big Greed Oppression Power oil refineries to slow up the production of gas. And they are also spending billions by pumping oceans of oil in to the national reserve to reduce supply. All for Money, and mostly for the ultimate Kerry smear as a Gas taxer at a time of dangerously high gas prices.
This was done in 2002 to kill Gray Davis in California with the BFEE's created power crisis that resulted in rolling blackouts and 1000% price hikes for a time. It worked on Gray... Why not Kerry...People - expose this now!!!

[Ravy]

5. I would think that with the */Cheney ties to the big oil money...

Kerry could make a case as to WHO is really getting rich on the back of us little guys.

I would rather an extra 50 cents be going to the gov't rather than the Saudis/BFEE.

[DeepModem Mom]

6. Thanks to the NYT for this article --

We get angry at the print press, justifiably, but I think should recognize that they do much better than tv news, and often actually do the job the press is meant to do in our system. We should give positive reinforcement, along with the criticism.

Also, note the kind of work just honored by the Pulitzer committee (I'm wondering how long it will be before the right finds a way to infiltrate this committee):

"LA Times Captures Five Pulitzer Prizes"

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040406/D81P22P80.html

[lazarus]

7. kick

:kick:

This thread should have over 100 responses by now. This is huge!