You are not logged in. Please register or login.
- Topics: Active | Unanswered
Re: Democrats’ latest idea: gas stamps
As the U.S. economy teeters on the brink of recession, Democratic leaders are revisiting an idea born of the Great Depression: gas stamps to help Americans cope with high fuel prices.
The proposal to subsidize fuel costs for lower-income families and individuals would almost certainly be popular with white, working-class voters and could boost Barack Obama's appeal with that critical voting bloc in this year's presidential election.
Democratic lawmakers and their leaders say they are serious about including it in a second economic stimulus package expected to move this month. Meanwhile, Republicans ridicule the idea as a return to welfare-state politics, which they say characterized the Democratic Party before Bill Clinton.
'It's certainly under consideration,' House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) told The Hill on Thursday afternoon. 'It would be like food stamps for those people who need help.'
Gas stamps would work like traditional food stamps, which some Americans have collected since the 1930s. They would be used, however, to pay for regular unleaded instead of meat and potatoes.
Under one version of the proposal, a person earning up to $31,200 or a family of four earning up to $63,600 could receive government payments totaling $500 for gas.
Hoyer said he was not ready to discuss details about the proposal because he is focused on passing a comprehensive energy bill Democrats unveiled this week.
Sens. Obama (D-Ill.) and John McCain (Ariz.), the Republican presidential nominee, said last week they would favor Congress passing another stimulus package in light of the national unemployment rate reaching 6.1 percent, its highest level since 2003.
Democratic strategists say gas stamps could help Democrats appeal to rural and exurban voters and may tip swing states to Obama. Rural voters have been hit particularly hard by high gas prices.
The idea for fuel stamps was first proposed by maverick Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.), chairman of the House Income Security and Family Support subcommittee, who remembers his family using gas stamps when he was a boy during World War II.
'If you had to drive to work, you got to buy more gasoline than if you just drove your car on the weekends,' he said of the wartime policy.
McDermott, who introduced the idea before the August recess, said that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) made favorable mention of gas stamps Wednesday during an afternoon caucus meeting on a pending energy bill.
He said the mechanism for giving money to Americans at the pump has yet to be designed. He suggested that state and local governments could design stamps or perhaps a credit card that would give people a discount each time they fill up their cars or trucks.
A Republican leadership aide panned gas stamps as a bureaucratic government solution to a problem that would be best solved by allowing oil companies to expand offshore drilling.
'We don't need a top-down government program, we need to unleash the potential of the American people by allowing increased production of American energy,' said Michael Steel, spokesman to House Republican leader John Boehner (Ohio). 'This is a classic example of top-down, centralized bureaucracy that Washington represents.'
But some Democratic strategists think that gas stamps could help Obama and other candidates appeal to voters in rural and exurban areas, a demographic that leans toward the GOP.
Democratic strategist Chris Lehane said that the presidential election will likely come down to '2 or 3 percent of the electorate in a handful of battleground states' and that working-class men and women from rural and exurban areas could decide the results.
'High gas prices disproportionately impact working people who tend to live in areas that require them to drive more to get to where they work,' Lehane said. 'To me, this is one of those issues to talk about to a key demographic group [Democrats] need to talk to this election.'
Rep. John Larson (Conn.), vice-chairman of the Democratic Caucus, said gas stamps have become more popular among lawmakers in recent days.
'That has caught people's attention,' said Larson, who added the stamps would 'distribute something to assist middle- and low-income people.'
Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas), a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee who played a big role in negotiating the pending Democratic energy bill, said he favors the idea.
'I've heard talk about it,' said Green, who said it would help residents of his Houston district. 'We pay high prices and we don't have a wealthy district.'
Democratic leaders are expected to take up a second economic stimulus package after they push the energy bill through the chamber.
Democratic leaders are also considering increased infrastructure spending, heating assistance for low-income Americans, Medicaid assistance for state governments and extended unemployment insurance, Hoyer told reporters Tuesday.
Re: Democrats’ latest idea: gas stamps
This isn't going to be as popular as they hope. Most americans have no desire to be on welfare. I'm certainly not rich, but I'll continue paying 4 bucks a gallon for gas before I allow myself to be placed on the liberal welfare roll.
They don't even have the money to offset this shit. All it will do is increase the deficit and lower the value of the dollar even more.
Nice energy plan. Maybe this is a glimpse of that change stuff they used to talk about.
Re: Democrats’ latest idea: gas stamps
A bigger question is why are we having a 3rd stimulus package under George Bush?? Why doesn't he just lower taxes instead of giving money back every now & then.
I seriously think this is the new Republican mantra... High taxes, then people celebrate whenever they get a $300 check in the mail.. woo-hooo.
I agree I don't like this concept, but it seems in the very preliminary stages, and also who's too say it's actually going to be "stamps" and maybe not an extra "$100" or something added to the stimulus check for people making under $60,000 or whatever. In otherwords, again we get a check in the mail, but people making under a certain amount ($31k for singles, $60 family of 4) get even more. But again, my bigger issue is why do we keep having these stimulus packages.. just lower the freaking taxes.
Re: Democrats’ latest idea: gas stamps
I'm not fond of these stimulus packages either. They're not solving anything. Its not a republican issue either. Obama wants a new one pronto. Its issues like this where dems and repubs(voters not politicians)need to stand up and say enough is enough.
If its VERY limited in scope, its not a big issue to me. Example would be a very poor family that lives a long distance from their childrens school and gas prices are causing them to buy less food, clothing,etc. However, a huge program where gas stamps are handed out like they grow on trees is completely unacceptable.
Re: Democrats’ latest idea: gas stamps
So...the fact that I grew up on food stamps means I should be ashamed? is that what I get from you Lofton...
People don't go on these programs from the fucking fun of it...they go on them because they have no choice...
our social standing in the community took a back seat to us eating...
Re: Democrats’ latest idea: gas stamps
So...the fact that I grew up on food stamps means I should be ashamed? is that what I get from you Lofton...
People don't go on these programs from the fucking fun of it...they go on them because they have no choice...
our social standing in the community took a back seat to us eating...
I'm starting to notice a trend of you trolling me in this section. I respond to your shit, you ignore it, then find another thread to troll me.
Can you point me to any post of mine where I said you or anyone should be ashamed of "growing up on food stamps"?
Can you point me in the direction of a post of mine where I insinuated people use these types of programs "for the fun of it"?
If you should be pissed at anyone, its the dems who want this plan. It says several times in this article(by the dems themselves) they aren't doing this to help YOU. They are doing it to grab votes for Obama. Its a political move. Nothing more, nothing less.
Dems always rave on Clinton because of his welfare to work programs. Now you're advocating a return to what it was prior. Make up your mind.
You want lower gas prices? Stop trolling my ass and start trolling democratic headquarters and tell them to stop having pie in the sky dreams about alternative fuels which may or may not be feasible, and one(ethanol) which threatens a huge increase in food prices and actual food shortages.
Oh wait, I forgot. Its Obama.
Change!
Re: Democrats’ latest idea: gas stamps
How about just LOWERING THE FUCKING PRICES?
Or is that too hard for the most powerful country in the world? No, it's cause America is making money off of that high gas.
The U.S. is not a dictatorship, officially, so you simply can't do that.
Oil is high for many reasons. A ban on drilling the domestic fields that are actually left, inflation due to ridiculous spending and public lending, price manipulation by the Opec cartel and no doubt the oil companies themselves (Exxon makes 15 billion, record, net profits in the first quarter of 2008...) and of course a legislative dependent on these criminals. Not to mention a drugged down majority of the voting populace not knowing or giving a shit.
So there's not much 'just' about it.
