As President Joe Biden prepares to slink out of office, it’s clear his legacy is on his mind. This weekend, he laughably claimed, “we’re leaving America in a better place today than when we came here.”
This assertion is not only undermined by polls – a Fox News survey showed voters by a 30-point margin saying they have been hurt rather than helped by his economic policies – but also key metrices.
Take gas prices.
For only four months of Biden’s entire presidency was the average of a gallon of gasoline below $3 per gallon. Those four months were the first of his administration, when he was still benefiting from the successful energy policies of President Donald Trump. By June 2021, gas prices had surpassed $3 per gallon, and they have not dipped below that threshold since.
This rise in prices was fueled by significant administrative actions by the Biden administration that directly harmed American energy production. In that same month of 2021, the Biden Administration suspended oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) region of Alaska. While this single action did not immediately spike gas prices, it was one of many from the administration that demonstrated broader hostility toward domestic oil production.
From canceling key pipeline projects like the Keystone XL to placing regulatory hurdles on energy companies, the Biden administration’s first-year policies created an environment of uncertainty and decreased investment in U.S. energy infrastructure. This approach inevitably drove up prices at the pump, leaving American families footing the bill.
As gas costs climbed, Biden’s approval ratings plummeted. By the first week of September 2021, Biden’s approval rating fell underwater, meaning more Americans disapproved of his performance than approved. That same month, the average cost of gas was $3.27 per gallon, a sharp increase from the sub-$3 prices seen at the start of his term. For many Americans, gas prices, which are visible on billboards on a drive down many streets, serve as a daily reminder of the administration’s failure to manage energy costs effectively – a pocketbook issue that directly impacts households and businesses alike.
Then came the summer of 2022, a particularly dark chapter in Biden’s presidency regarding gas prices. That year, Americans endured the highest gas prices in U.S. history, with the national average surpassing $5 per gallon in June. Rather than addressing the root causes of these price hikes – such as diminished domestic production and reliance on foreign oil – the Biden administration attempted to shift blame ahead of the midterms.
The White House’s communications team launched a campaign to pin the rising costs on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, even coining the term “#PutinsPriceHike” to deflect criticism. Yet this narrative failed to resonate with Americans, who understood that gas prices had been climbing steadily for over a year before Russia’s actions. Adding insult to injury, Democrats tried to take credit for a meager two-cent drop in gas prices at one point, showcasing a glaring disconnect from the struggles of ordinary Americans.
Throughout Biden’s presidency, the administration’s mixed messaging on energy policy only deepened public frustration. On one hand, Biden made public appeals for increased oil production, even going so far as to beg for assistance from OPEC and Saudi Arabia. On the other hand, his administration pushed policies that discouraged domestic drilling and production. This inconsistency undermined confidence in the administration’s ability to manage energy policy and further alienated voters.
Biden’s unpopularity has persisted alongside stubbornly high gas prices. As he prepares to leave office, Biden’s record is set in stone: he presided over the highest gas prices in history and an average gas price above $3 per gallon for an unprecedented 44 months. This is the longest such streak since Barack Obama’s presidency, and it cements Biden’s legacy as a leader whose policies exacerbated rather than alleviated the burden of energy costs on American families.
When historians evaluate the Biden presidency, his failures on energy policy will undoubtedly dominate the discussion. His administration’s approach to energy – characterized by overregulation, reduced domestic production, and reliance on foreign oil – has not only hurt American consumers but also weakened the country’s energy independence. This is a legacy that will likely resonate with the failures of another Democratic one-term president, Jimmy Carter, whose own energy missteps left a lasting mark on his presidency.
Joe Biden leaves office with a record on gas prices that no president before him can rival – and not in a good way.
