According to the American Trucking Association, truckers use about 30 billion gallons of diesel a year and for every 1 cent hike in price the industry incurs about $300 million more in operating costs. The increased cost to the trucking industry was over $6 billion in 2004.
Farmers are battling with much higher operating expenses since Bush took office. In 2004, farmers combined spent an additional $7 billion for gasoline and diesel fuel for agricultural needs.
During the dynamic duo's reelection campaign, Bush-Cheney spokesman, Scott Stanzel, told reporters: "President Bush and Vice President Cheney want to keep taxes low and keep the economy moving. They have proposed an energy plan that will provide for a stable, affordable and secure energy supply."
To that I say, then where the hell is it?
By now, the administrations policies and tax cuts are having trickle down adverse effects on the average family's everyday life as well. During their 2004 campaign, a Bush-Cheney campaign slogan was "results do matter." Lets compare overall "results" on families since Bush moved to Washington.
When Clinton left office, life was much better for the average American than when he took the reins from the first president Bush. The nation's record of economic success was unprecedented. Budgets were balanced, family income was up by 17%, 23 million jobs were created, nearly 8 million Americans had moved out of poverty, there was record homeownership, and Clinton left a huge budget surplus.
In comparison, the Bush-Cheney record is atrocious. While it is certainly true that corporate profits are at an all-time high, average wages for American workers haven't even kept pace with inflation. Millions of jobs have been lost, there has been a continuous increase in poverty year after year, household debt is at a record high, college tuition will soon be unreachable for many families, over 3 million people have lost their health insurance, and family insurance premiums have increased by an average $2630 a year.
The $397 billion surplus, previously projected by the Congressional Budget Office for 2004, has been frittered away through $2 trillion worth of tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and the war profiteering scheme that was launched 3 years ago could end up bankrupting the whole country before its all over.
In hindsight, I say give me a president with an overactive libido who cares about average Americans any day, over the current resident in the White House, who at best is completely incompetent, and at worst is a greedy, self-centered control freak who doesn't give a damn about anybody besides himself and his rich cronies.
By Evelyn Pringle
epringle05@yahoo.com
(Evelyn Pringle is a columnist for Independent Media TV and an investigative journalist focused on exposing corruption in government)
Farmers are battling with much higher operating expenses since Bush took office. In 2004, farmers combined spent an additional $7 billion for gasoline and diesel fuel for agricultural needs.
During the dynamic duo's reelection campaign, Bush-Cheney spokesman, Scott Stanzel, told reporters: "President Bush and Vice President Cheney want to keep taxes low and keep the economy moving. They have proposed an energy plan that will provide for a stable, affordable and secure energy supply."
To that I say, then where the hell is it?
When Clinton left office, life was much better for the average American than when he took the reins from the first president Bush. The nation's record of economic success was unprecedented. Budgets were balanced, family income was up by 17%, 23 million jobs were created, nearly 8 million Americans had moved out of poverty, there was record homeownership, and Clinton left a huge budget surplus.
In comparison, the Bush-Cheney record is atrocious. While it is certainly true that corporate profits are at an all-time high, average wages for American workers haven't even kept pace with inflation. Millions of jobs have been lost, there has been a continuous increase in poverty year after year, household debt is at a record high, college tuition will soon be unreachable for many families, over 3 million people have lost their health insurance, and family insurance premiums have increased by an average $2630 a year.
The $397 billion surplus, previously projected by the Congressional Budget Office for 2004, has been frittered away through $2 trillion worth of tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and the war profiteering scheme that was launched 3 years ago could end up bankrupting the whole country before its all over.
In hindsight, I say give me a president with an overactive libido who cares about average Americans any day, over the current resident in the White House, who at best is completely incompetent, and at worst is a greedy, self-centered control freak who doesn't give a damn about anybody besides himself and his rich cronies.
By Evelyn Pringle
epringle05@yahoo.com
(Evelyn Pringle is a columnist for Independent Media TV and an investigative journalist focused on exposing corruption in government)
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