Or OPEC may simply counter any SPR release with an offsetting reduction in its quota. Beyond questions about the efficacy of this measure, it is strikingly inconsistent for Gore to be fighting for lower energy prices, as higher prices have long been a major part of his environmental agenda. As vice president, Gore spearheaded a major initiative to raise fuel taxes for the express purpose of creating prices high enough to curb usage. Though stopped by Congress in this effort, Gore did provide the tie-breaking vote in the Senate for a gasoline tax increase in 1993. The administration has also blocked domestic oil exploration and drilling at nearly every turn, and supports an Environmental Protection Agency initiative to crack down further on the dwindling number of remaining refineries.
Polls consistently show that high-energy prices have become a major concern for the electorate.
Gore's high profile effort to address this concern by tapping the SPR, though misdirected, is a refreshing change of direction from a man who has spent a good deal of his public life trying to tax and regulate the energy sector into lower production and higher prices. One can only guess how long his newfound commitment to affordable energy will last.