Rising Gasoline Prices Weigh on President’s Approval Ratings

With one exception, the signals portend that the US economy is recovering: private employers are adding jobs, and so are some state and local governments; equities prices are rising; new construction is inching up; and the situation in Europe has receded for the moment. The exception, of course, is gasoline prices, which are steadily rising, threatening to steal away any gains that the average American may have been feeling.

And just as the President gets — and takes — credit for the good news, he can’t dodge the bad news. A new poll from the Washington Post-ABC News indicates that voters’ approval of President Obama’s handling of gasoline prices is a mere 26%, with 65% disapproving and the remaining 9% have no opinion. His overall job approval rating is 46%, with 50% disapproving and 4% having no opinion.

Needless to say, the President is also getting pilloried by his Republican opponents, one of whom will go head-to-head with Obama in November’s election. Here’s the President’s problem in a nutshell:

Most Americans say higher prices are already taking a toll on family finances, and nearly half say they think that prices will continue to rise, and stay high.

The country is also about evenly split on what it believes the President can do about gasoline prices: 50% believe the President can do something about gasoline prices, and 45% don’t believe he can. Critics point to the delay on the Keystone XL pipeline — which will do little if anything to lower gasoline prices — and the administration’s refusal rapidly to approve new drilling offshore the continental US and Alaska. Some even say he should release crude oil from the 750+ million barrel US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, an idea that sounds good, but doesn’t address the central issue about oil prices — supply is only barely meeting demand and geopolitical threats, particularly involving the Middle East, could restrict supply even more.

In the near term, there is little the President can do, but as average prices approach $4/gallon — and higher in some places — his critics voices will only get louder. Any offshore drilling in the US will take years to produce results, the Keystone XL pipeline won’t lower prices, and a release from the US SPR doesn’t achieve anything.

If China, India, and Brazil would reduce their demand for gasoline, US drivers might see some relief at the pump. But that’s not likely to happen on its own and there’s not much any US president can do about that. President Obama is in for a long summer.

Paul Ausick