A foolish consistancy
I find this amazing. But maybe I'm easily amazed.
OPEC Production Cut Could Send Gas Prices Higher
By John Burgess
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, March 31, 2004; 5:12 PMBERLIN, March 31 -- The OPEC countries agreed Wednesday to proceed with a 4 percent cut in oil production beginning Thursday, turning aside criticism from industrial countries that any resulting price rise will harm the world economy.
With oil prices emerging as an election year issue, the White House called the move disappointing and said that administration officials were "actively engaged" with OPEC governments about it.
Oil ministers from the 11 member states, meeting in Vienna, upheld a February decision to cut production by 2.5 million barrels a day on grounds of avoiding a price-deflating build-up of oil supplies in world markets. But some oil industry analysts said any price rises could be blunted by drops in demand as warmer weather arrives and by continued cheating on official quotas as member countries try to maximize their incomes while prices remain near 13-year highs.
Following news of the decision, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said that "producers should not take steps that harm American consumers and our economy." President Bush has not called OPEC leaders about the issue, McClellan said, but officials in his administration are in touch.
And what is the administration's reaction to this?
As gasoline prices have risen to record levels, John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic candidate for president, has increasingly been citing oil in his campaign appearances. On Tuesday, he said that Bush had "done nothing with OPEC to reduce the gas prices." Bush criticized Democrats as planning higher gas taxes.
Bush criticized Democrats as planning higher gas taxes.
That about says it all for this administration.
