Home Mobile Archives Reader Blogs Register Login

Friday, March 30, 2007

North Dakota’s House Majority Leader Promises Cheaper Gas

By Rob on March 30, 2007 at 06:03 pm
6 Comments

That’s what liberal blogger Chad Nodland at Bismarck Dems thinks, posting this quote from Rep. Berg speaking on the House floor today:

There is only one way to turn the price of gasoline at the pump down.  It’s not by government regulation.  It’s not by doing less drilling in North Dakota or less drilling in America.  The way we turn the price around at the pump is we increase our domestic supply.

Audio here.

Berg is exactly right.  Gas prices are set by the rules of supply and demand.  If we facilitate the expansion of our oil supplies by allowing more oil exploration and protecting oil companies from undue regulation and taxation gas prices will go lower.  Or, at least, stay lower than they would be if we increased taxes and regulation.  But Nodland doesn’t seem to understand things like “supply and demand” or lowering the burden of government of private industry.

Berg urged legislators to vote for SB2397 because by not making oil barons pay their fair share, it will increase our domestic oil supply. 

I’m paying $2.70 for a gallon of gas today.  I’m looking forward to the lower gas prices promised by Berg. 

One wonders if Nodland flunked basic economics in school or was simply absent that day.  Regardless, if he’s so worried about gas prices being high then why does he want to tax the oil companies?  That will only make gasoline prices higher than they are now.  When you tax private companies those companies must turn around and charge higher prices for their goods and services to compensate.  You cannot want lower gas prices and support higher taxes on oil companies at the same time.  That’s illogical.

But then again, “liberalism” and “logic” oft seem to go together like oil and water.

Besides, oil companies are already paying their “fair share” and more in taxes.  Here’s what Exxon Mobil paid in state and federal taxes in the third quarter of 2006 alone:

Income taxes: $7.68 billion
Excise taxes: $7.76 billion
All other taxes: $10.79 billion

Total taxes remitted/paid: $26.24 billion

You know how much Exxon/Mobile made, net, in the third quarter?  $10.49 billion.  Which means they paid about 2.5 times more in taxes than they made in profit.  Can you imagine how much cheaper your gas would be if companies like Exxon Mobil didn’t have to pay $26 billion in taxes every quarter?  Or even just had to pay half of it?  Quite a bit cheaper.

But don’t expect Nodland to get on board with lower taxes on oil companies.  He’s either not intelligent enough for that, or not intellectually honest enough.

Comments

Neiman

Does that mean they will tap into your state capital and drill for the gas expelled by the Democrat legislators there?

No matter the age or state of health, for a military man it is always glorious to tilt at windmills, rescue a fair Dulcinea and be a gallant knight in armor in a glorious cause.

Neiman on March 30, 2007 at 06:36 pm
Kevin

A lot of teacher retirement accounts are invested in Exxon/Mobile.
Why do they want to hurt the poor old teachers?

Kevin on March 30, 2007 at 06:42 pm
Bat One

Why do they want to hurt the poor old teachers?

Kevin,

Because the leftwing Democrats and their union toadies don’t give two shits about the financial well being of the “educators”, while the “educators” themselves are too blissfully ignorant of economics, markets, and arithmetic to realize what’s being done in their names and too politically indoctrinated to do anything about it even if they could comprehend the significance.

“Poverty of goods is easily cured; poverty of the mind is irreparable.”

Bat One on March 30, 2007 at 07:38 pm
Avatar for ellinas

Total taxes remitted/paid: $26.24 billion
By Rob on March 30, 2007

Did they actualy hand over this much in taxes, or their tax bill was $26.24 billion prior to the deductions and tax breaks?
I wonder how much they actualy forked over.

ellinas on March 30, 2007 at 08:21 pm
Rob
Rob
17182 comments
Send a private message

Ellinas, if you’d read the source you’d see that it’s total taxes paid.

You do know how to read, right?

The war against illegal plunder has been fought since the beginning of the world. But how is… legal plunder to be identified? Quite simply. See if the law takes from some persons what belongs to them, and gives it to other persons to whom it does not belong. See if the law benefits one citizen at the expense of another by doing what the citizen himself cannot do without committing a crime. Then abolish this law without delay … If such a law is not abolished immediately it will spread, multiply and develop into a system.

Frédéric Bastiat, The Law

Rob’s recently listened-to songs:

robport.gif border=0

Rob on March 30, 2007 at 09:34 pm
Bat One

Exxon/Mobil Corp’s latest 10-K Report is here.

It shows that for FY 2006, sales-based taxes paid were $30.381 billion, other taxes paid were $39.203 billion, and corporate income taxes paid were $27.902 billion.

For the year, XOM paid $97.486 billion in total taxes, and had a net income of $39.500 billion, or $6.62 per share.

I wonder just how many liberals would consent to paying $.70 in taxes while keeping only $.30 for themselves?

“Poverty of goods is easily cured; poverty of the mind is irreparable.”

Bat One on March 30, 2007 at 10:14 pm
Page 1 of 1        

Post a Comment


Before commenting, please recite:

Grant me the serenity to ignore the trolls,
the courage to debate with honest opponents,
and the wisdom to know the difference.

Name   
Email   
URL   
Human?
  
 
 @ 
<a>
Close Tags

Upload Image    

Remember my personal information

Notify me of follow-up comments?

Note: Notifications will only be sent to confirmed email addresses.