, Columnist
Cheap Gasoline Can Be Part of a Good Climate Policy
It’s not hypocritical to support green energy while also trying to keep down the cost of fossil fuels.
No one likes paying more for it.
Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg
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Worried that rising prices will hurt their chances in November’s midterm elections, moderate Senate Democrats are considering a gas tax holiday. Economists, predictably, are panning the idea as a political gimmick that won’t actually do much to curb inflation.
The economists are right, of course. At the same time, the Democratic senators are right. Bringing prices down at the gas pump wouldn’t necessarily affect the broader rate of inflation — what consumers save on gas they’ll probably spend on other stuff — but it would still be popular.