The so-called gas tax holiday proposed by the US president would mean the abolition of the federal levy of 18.4 cents per gallon of gasoline and the 24-minute diesel levy paid by consumers at the pump. The total cost of the measure will be about $ 10 billion. Biden is asking Congress to replenish the Freeway Trust Fund, which is usually funded by these taxes, with other revenue increases. “It does not reduce all the pain, but it would be a great help. I do my part. “I want Congress, the states and industry to do their part as well,” Biden said in a statement from the White House on Wednesday afternoon. Some states, including New York and Florida, have taken steps to suspend their own state gasoline taxes and offer drivers relief from high prices. But Biden is facing a tough battle to get the measure approved at the federal level in the Capitol, as Republicans avoided it and Democrats were cool with the proposal. “Of course what the government is coming up with is another trick, another Band-Aid and something they know is dead when they get here in Congress,” John Thune, a Republican senator from South Dakota, told reporters. “While well-intentioned, this policy would at best achieve minimal relief while creating a $ 10 billion hole in the freeway trust fund,” said Peter DeFazio, an Oregon Democrat and chairman of the House Transport Committee. Tom Carper, the Democratic senator from Delaware, was even tougher on Twitter on Tuesday afternoon. “I’m glad that @POTUS is exploring ways to reduce gas prices at the pump. However, suspending the primary way we pay for infrastructure on our roads is a short-sighted and ineffective way of providing relief. “We need to explore other options for reducing energy costs,” he wrote. Biden’s call for a gas tax holiday marks the White House’s latest effort to show its determination to do what it can to reduce inflation and energy costs as the war in Ukraine escalates. Biden on Wednesday criticized critics who said his policies had triggered inflation, saying they had failed to acknowledge that the Russian invasion was a major driver of price increases. “Well, for all those Republicans in Congress who are criticizing me today for the high gas prices in America, are you now saying that we made a mistake in supporting Ukraine?” said Biden. “Are you saying we were wrong to resist Putin?” Are you saying we should prefer lower gas prices in America and Putin’s iron fist in Europe? I do not believe that. “ In recent months, Biden has released oil from strategic oil reserves, pushed domestic energy groups to boost production, and is set to travel to Saudi Arabia for talks with a regime that once promised to cheat. As the cost of gasoline has soared to around $ 5 per gallon, the federal tax suspension will offer only a small relief to distressed consumers. Consumer prices rose at an annual rate of 8.6 percent last month, worsening Americans’ perceptions of the strength of the US recovery. Biden considered a holiday for the gas tax in February, but decided not to do it. Critics have warned that the policy could fail, boosting demand and contributing to inflation, while failing to provide substantial relief to families. Maya MacGuineas, chairwoman of the Federal Budget Committee for a non-partisan think tank in Washington, D.C. an energy source that is already short. on offer “. Oil executives are likely to welcome the move, which equates to a subsidy on their product. Executives of some of the largest US oil and fuel producers will meet on Thursday with Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.

However, high fuel prices have deepened tensions between Biden and oil executives. On Tuesday, he attacked Chevron CEO Mike Wirth after saying in a letter to the president that a “change of approach” was needed to reduce prices and that management should not “insult” the industry. Biden called Wirth “sensitive” and urged the industry to increase fuel supply.