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Rep. Virginia Foxx

It is time that we emphasize the facts about the price of gas in our country.

On inauguration day for President Obama, the average price of gasoline was $1.84 per gallon. Today, it's $3.75. That's an increase of 103 percent. The estimate is that it will be $4.50 by May. A 1-cent increase in the cost of gas equals $1 billion out of the economy, and it's a $4 million-per-day cost to consumers.

As the price of oil continues to rise at an alarming rate, the President and the congressional Democrats have tried to deflect the blame of their failed energy policies and point the finger at Wall Street speculators for the rise of the cost of a barrel of oil. But that's not the problem, Mr. Speaker. The Obama administration's energy policies are creating uncertainty in the marketplace and are driving up costs.

We need this President to assume the responsibility for the problems that he has caused the average hardworking American taxpayer and to do something about the price of gas.