By Institute for Energy Research ——Bio and Archives--April 21, 2012
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[W]e still need to work extra hard to protect consumers from factors that should not affect the price of a barrel of oil. That includes doing everything we can to ensure that an irresponsible few aren't able to hurt consumers by illegally manipulating or rigging the energy markets for their own gain. We can't afford a situation where speculators artificially manipulate markets by buying up oil, creating the perception of a shortage, and driving prices higher--only to flip the oil for a quick profit.... ... I've asked Attorney General Holder to work with Chairman Leibowitz of the Federal Trade Commission, Chairman Gensler of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and other enforcement agencies to make sure that acts of manipulation, fraud or other illegal activity are not behind increases in the price that consumers pay at the pump. So today, we're announcing new steps to strengthen oversight of energy markets. Things that we can do administratively, we are doing. And I call on Congress to pass a package of measures to crack down on illegal activity and hold accountable those who manipulate the market for private gain at the expense of millions of working families. And be specific. [Bold added.]As the passages in bold make clear, President Obama is coming down hard against...activity that is already illegal. He is proudly telling Americans that he is opposed to crime. Read at face value, the president's remarks suggest that anytime the price of oil goes up, the people who are trading that day should be prosecuted. Presumably that's not what the president means, since that would effectively be a price control on oil at the current price. But if the president isn't saying, "Anytime the price of oil goes up, someone is going to jail," then his remarks are completely ambiguous. It's not even that they are wrong; in order to be wrong, he would have to actually offer a statement about how these speculators are allegedly hurting consumers.
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The Institute for Energy Research (IER) is a not-for-profit organization that conducts intensive research and analysis on the functions, operations, and government regulation of global energy markets. IER maintains that freely-functioning energy markets provide the most efficient and effective solutions to today’s global energy and environmental challenges and, as such, are critical to the well-being of individuals and society.