According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), gas prices in Tennessee – and in other states around the country – have increased by a stunning amount in the past month alone.
In Tennessee, the number is 54 cents per gallon.
On February 5, the average price of a gallon of gas in the state was $3.12. As of Friday, the average price of a gallon of gas is now $3.66.
In the past year, gas prices have risen from an average of $2.54 to $3.66, a $1.12 increase for Tennesseans at the pump.
State Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-District 75) was quite candid about the rising price of gas in an email statement to The Tennessee Star.
He said:
Rising gas prices and inflation are two of the cruelest hidden taxes on those at the lower end of the economic spectrum – and I have a significant number of constituents that feel that cruelty every time they fill up their vehicles. If you only have so much money from your paycheck for your family, food and shelter and gas to get to work, and then your fuel costs double, it outrageous – especially when this catastrophe was either planned or the result of incompetence!
I can only hope that following the November 2022 elections with the GOP take over of the US Senate and House, that the current illegitimate administration will be forced to abandon their incompetent energy policy and sanity will once again prevail. Failing that, Americans may have to continue to suffer until November 2024 when President Trump wins his third Presidential Election!
The Star reached out to three Democrat legislators for their reaction to the soaring gas prices: State Rep Jesse Chism (D-District 85), State Rep. Karen Camper (D-District 85), and State Rep. Bill Beck (D-District 51). None returned a request for comment.
The rising gas prices have coincided with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The United States imports most of its oil from Canada and Saudi Arabia, but about four percent of oil imports come from Russia.
While that could be a cause of the steep increase in oil prices over the past month, Americans have been paying more at the pump throughout the entire Biden presidency.
Many blame Biden, who on day one of his presidency shut down the Keystone XL pipeline, for the increase in gas prices. That pipeline, championed by former President Donald Trump, was a step towards energy independence for the United States.
Liberal activists say the pipeline is bad for the environment.
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Bruce Griffey” by Tennessee General Assembly.
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