President Barack Obama's restrictions on drilling for our own oil in the Gulf of Mexico and elsewhere don't even deserve a mention?

There is not a supply problem with regard to the current gas prices. It is Wall Street speculation. More drilling in the Gulf would not lower gas prices.

And referring to it as "our own oil" just shows that the letter writer is another misinformed republican who thinks the oil drilled in the U.S. is somehow "ours". Roll eyes.

Poor Mr. Wagner is obviously a "misinformed republican" since sally says so. After all, her info is always so objective & accurate. So great to see her present facts & data to support her name-calling . . .

Mr. Wagner new drilling permits have been obtained by BP and the other major oil companies. I can not agree with your political ploy to blame the president. Had you mentioned energy speculation I would then agree. The blame should be placed on them. President Obama's rather meek respose to this was to form a group. We have a commission in place that can deal with it. However the political make of that commission won't act.
The president moved rather slowly in replaceing the previous administrations appointees. Other were grandfathered in by a civil service rule.
So if you want to place the blame look hard at Wall Street, then at K Street. Plus the corporate shills from both sides of the aisle.

Mr Wagner? PghGirl?

Us oil production is at it's highest levels since 2003. Yes, under Obama were proucing more crude that during most of the Oil Guy's administration.

http://www.grist.org/article/2011-03-09-oil-prices-soar-in-spite-of-sharp-increase-in-u.s.-production

This is one of the reasons why the top five oil companies made almost $1 Trillion in profits this quarter. Even related companies did well, like Halliburton, $5.3 billion in one quarter. And they credit increased production--wait for it--under the Obama Administration.

http://thinkprogress.org/2011/04/26/halliburton-brings-in-record-5-3-billion-in-first-quarter/

If you wingnuts are going to lie about something--stick to birth certificates. That's what you're good at.

No it doesn't deserve mentioning. Its time to cut the oil companies Republican Welfare Checks!

Don't expect oil to be cheap anytime soon. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_oil

mpdodgson;

At 3:05 you had a pretty good post -- counterclaims backed-up with checkable links -- until you just had to do an ad hominem attack on your opposition. It didn't help your case.

I think the usual attribution for rising oil prices is growth among the less developed nations of the world.

Of the world's 6.5 Billion people, probably no more than 1.5 Billion enjoy income levels and a lifestyle similar to our own. As the other 5 Billion finally see their economies develop, demand for energy (including oil) has to rise. China, for example, is currently trying to throttle back her burgeoning economy lest it fall into ruinous inflation. It is most probably this surging demand from the likes of India, China, Indonesia & Brazil that is driving oil prices up.

But a secondary factor has to be the Obama Administration's tolerance for a declining dollar: In order to keep social spending elevated, we're effectively printing more of them, which lowers their value -- they're not as scarce.

If the oil selling countries expect to buy things with the money they're paid (e.g., foodstuffs, or military equipment), then when our currency loses some of its purchasing power, they will have to have more of those little green pieces of paper if they wish to maintain their standard of living.

Also, if the oil majors largely operate overseas (and they do) then a falling dollar means a rising value for other countries' currencies. Thus if Exxon (for example) were to get paid in Swiss Francs for oil it delivered to some foreign nation, and if the Franc is appreciating against the Dollar, then the Francs Exxon gets paid are worth more & more Dollars. U.S. monetary policy may be pumping oil company profits.

A third factor probably is speculators betting on the "Arab Spring" disruption. But if they get it wrong they lose money -- perhaps a lot of it, and quickly. If they get it right, they will buffer us against supply & price shocks (both worse without these traders).

More supply couldn't hurt. But the environmental left is unlikely to allow such an event in the U.S. (Brazil is luckier, that way.)

Finally, I suspect oil company executive paychecks -- even pooled across all their chieftains -- are a tiny percentage of the oil price rise. I suspect the PG has simply missed the gargantuan scale of the world's oil trade.