Holiday from reason

It’s too bad we can’t slap a heavy tax on pandering. That way politicians could make up for lost revenue under their vote-buying schemes.

Gas tax holiday, anyone?

Presidential candidates U.S. Sen. John McCain and U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton are proposing to suspend the federal gas tax – 18.4 cents a gallon – for the summer to give Americans relief from prices hovering around $3.60. After that, the tax would kick back in.

Or would it? What if it were so popular that politicians couldn’t bring themselves to reimpose it?

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama is against the plan, which he rightly calls a political ploy. But could other politicians bear to reimpose the tax as Election Day nears?

Pandering aside, it’s a bad idea for a number of reasons:

“The decrease in price would increase demand. The big winners would be oil companies and service stations, which would be under no obligation to lower prices just because the tax was suspended. They could pocket all or part of the difference. When Hurricane Katrina struck and prices at the pump soared, some states suspended their gas taxes, but prices did not necessarily drop by corresponding amounts.

“The amount saved would be paltry. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the average driver would save about $30. If that’s the goal, there are less damaging ways to accomplish it.

“The tax cut runs counter to the nation’s new strategy for energy independence. The goal is to provide incentives for alternative fuel sources, not the traditional ones that tie us to an unstable Middle East and exacerbate the issues surrounding global climate change.

“The feds would be forgoing billions of dollars for transportation projects, which could result in a loss of construction jobs when projects are delayed or canceled. Clinton wants to replace that money by taxing oil companies, but they could just pass that levy along to motorists in the form of higher prices at the pump.

Make no mistake, the high prices are hurting families and businesses. But there is no pain-free solution. Plus, it is short-term thinking like this that pushed us into an energy rut in the first place.

President Bush has rightly highlighted our nation’s oil addiction and called for strategies to kick it. But a gas-tax holiday would be like giving a junkie a few more hits before he heads off to rehabilitation.