Drivers in the most Democratic states are paying the most at the pump, according to a new analysis from the free-market group Unleash Prosperity.
Writing in Hot Air, economist Stephen Moore said the group compared gas and diesel prices across all 50 states and found that the more Democratic a state is, the higher its gas prices tend to be. For each additional percentage point of a states 2024 vote that went to Kamala Harris, Moore said, gas prices run about 2 cents a gallon higher.
On average, Moore wrote, deep-blue states pay about 25 cents a gallon more for gas than deep-red states. He acknowledged that correlation is not causation, but argued the pattern suggests that relying on Democrats to lower gas prices is probably a fools errand.
Moore pointed to California as the prime example, where drivers pay some of the highest prices in the nation. He blamed the states climate policies and fuel taxes of up to 75 cents a gallon, saying Californians pay about $1.25 a gallon more than the average state.
According to the analysis, eight of the 10 states with the highest gas prices are run by Democrats, while eight of the 10 states with the lowest prices are run by Republicans. Moore argued that is no coincidence, accusing Democrats of being deeply in bed with the radical climate change lobby.
He cited Joe Bidens decision to kill the Keystone XL pipeline on his first day in office, along with climate plans aimed at curbing new fossil fuel production. Moore also noted that several Democratic state attorneys general are suing oil and gas companies over climate change costs.
By contrast, Moore credited President Donald Trumps drill, baby, drill energy strategy with driving U.S. oil and natural gas output to an all-time high. He argued that America will need to double or triple its energy production to power the next tech revolution, and that its a fantasy to think we can do that with windmills.
Moore said Democrats cannot campaign on net zero carbon emissions while also promising cheaper gas. You dont send an arsonist to put out a fire, he wrote.
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