Amid a gas shortage and rising prices at the pump, the White House won’t be asking people to stay home. The White House is also not engaging in any dialogue about how high the price of crude oil might get. Regardless, officials say that Americans won’t be asked to stay home in order to cut down on gas usage.
At a Glance
- The White House won’t make gas price predictions.
- They also won’t request that Americans stay home.
- Some officials want to encourage working from home during this time.
- That directly goes against what the Biden Administration wants, which is to return to “normal.”
No Price Predictions Will Be Made During Gas Shortage, But They’re Sure To Go Up
Gas prices have been a major topic of discussion since Russia invaded Ukraine. We’ve already been hit with high prices this year due to inflation. However, this conflict only makes things worse as it puts a strain on the global market. Thus, gas prices are rapidly rising. There’s no telling how high our fuel prices will go, but the White House isn’t willing to take a guess.
“We’re neither going to make a prediction, or – nor are we going to tell Americans to stay home,” said White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
However, some House Democrats, such as Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, want to do the opposite. Some officials have suggested that the federal government and private businesses should encourage their staff to work from home. By doing so, the demand for fuel would go down and prices could remain relatively stable.
But press secretary Psaki was quick to dismiss this idea. Promoting working from home effectively cancels out what the Biden Administration has been working towards. The government wants to move into the “endemic” phase of COVID-19. Basically, they want us to get back to normal. And for most, that does not include working from home.
As far as gas prices go, some states are already paying more than $5 a gallon at the pump. And there’s little that the government can do. When President Biden arrived in Texas, he was quick to tell reporters that the gas prices were out of his hands. According to ABC News, he blamed Russia and its attack against Ukraine for the current gas shortage.
“They’re gonna go up,” Biden said about gas prices. “Can’t do much right now. Russia’s responsible.”
Gas Prices Hit An All-Time High This Week
The national average for regular unleaded fuel hit $4.173 per gallon on March 8. This new national average has officially passed the previous price record of $4.103, which was set on June 8, 2008.
That’s an 11 cent price hike overnight. Bigger picture, that’s a 72 cent price hike compared to exactly one month ago.
As if these current prices weren’t bad enough, we’ve still got months to go before they peak. According to experts, gas prices are expected to peak sometime in May. Around that time, experts believe that the average cost will hit $4.25. Then, the cost of gas will hover just above $4 a gallon until November at the earliest.
