The past few months have erupted with good news.
Gas prices dropped nearly 80 cents, President George W. Bush made some promises for Iraq’s future, and Tuesday brought the end of a particularly nasty election.
But no matter how earnest you believe the new mission in Iraq is or how low the gas prices fall, the good news will fade as quickly as it came.
As the mid-term elections neared, and as the Republican Party sank deeper and deeper into scandal, the prospect of an American regime change filled the air.
The Democrats had the chance to take the House of Representatives from Republican control for the first time since 1994. But false promises and low gas prices diverted the American public away from the real issues of the election.
The Bush administration has recently admitted faults in their Iraq policy for the first time, and made promises to change.
Though the President acknowledged that the battle for Baghdad is failing, and that a change in course will be necessary, it was only one of many unsubstantiated claims from the Bush administration.
The violence is escalating and Iraq is on the brink of civil war, yet the situation is not likely to change within the next two years. Bush has repeatedly denied the possibility of withdrawing from Iraq and continues to do so. Speaking from the Oval Office on Sept. 11, 2006, Bush said, “America will stay in the fight. Iraq will be a free nation, and a strong ally in the war on terror.”
He intends to continue the war while, according to a poll by World Public Opinion, seven out of ten Iraqis favor U.S. withdrawal within the next year.
Meanwhile, the gas prices fell to their lowest level in ten months, which is good news to all.
Gasoline prices are often seen as a symbol of the strength our economy, and they can easily swing public opinion away from the people in power. To voters, low gas prices mean healthy nations, and they can also do a lot to help win an election.
According to the Associated Press, since August the prices at the pump have dropped nearly 80 cents to their lowest level since January, and are down 40 cents from this time last year. In Greensboro on election morning, they were down to just $2.06 a gallon.
But if the 2004 elections are any precedent these wonderful prices will not last.
According to the Energy Information Administration, during the election season of 2004, between October and December, the price of gas dropped about 25 cents to below $1.80 a gallon.
In December 2004, the prices started steadily rising. By April they had soared almost 50 cents to nearly $2.30 a gallon.
They were the highest retail prices of gasoline ever up to that point.
Maybe the oil tycoons that hold the White House in their pockets aren’t really like the countless other corporations in history that served their private interests politically, and perhaps Bush will contradict every statement and action he’s made since 2003 and change his views on Iraq.
But I doubt it. The gas prices will start escalating again soon, the war in Iraq will stay on course, and the same scandalous news from the last six years will continue to flow.
When dealing with Washington, promises should not be taken at face value. And always be skeptical of good news in November. So fill up your tanks now and turn off the TV, because the excitement is over for this year.
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