Jeff Bezos Chastises Joe Biden For Telling Oil Companies To Stop Price Gouging At Gas Pumps
Champion of the ultra-wealthy Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has attacked President Joe Biden for calling out oil companies for price-gouging American consumers at the gas pump.
And the White House came back with some burn.
Biden in a tweet on Saturday called out executives of oil companies running gas stations: “This is a time of war and global peril. Bring down the price you are charging at the pump to reflect the cost you’re paying for the product. And do it now.”
Bezos was miffed.
“Ouch. Inflation is far too important a problem for the White House to keep making statements like this,” he tweeted in response. “It’s either straight ahead misdirection or a deep misunderstanding of basic market dynamics.”
Ouch. Inflation is far too important a problem for the White House to keep making statements like this. It’s either straight ahead misdirection or a deep misunderstanding of basic market dynamics. https://t.co/XgKfEICZpk
— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) July 3, 2022
Actually it’s neither, the White House slapped back.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre schooled Bezos in a responding tweet that gas prices are still high even while oil prices are falling — giving the lie to his claim of inevitable “market dynamics” (unless those “dynamics” must include price gouging).
“I guess it’s not surprising that you think oil and gas companies using market power to reap record profits at the expense of the American people is the way our economy is supposed to work,” Jean-Pierre slayed.
Oil prices have dropped by about $15 over the past month, but prices at the pump have barely come down.
That’s not “basic market dynamics.” It’s a market that is failing the American consumer. https://t.co/xpsK0QsQPT— Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) July 3, 2022
But I guess it’s not surprising that you think oil and gas companies using market power to reap record profits at the expense of the American people is the way our economy is supposed to work.
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) July 3, 2022
Twitter wags loved the Bezos shade.
— Stephanie L🐝✈️🚊🚖☮️ (@Stephcpa4Pete) July 3, 2022
Dayum!!! 🔥👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
— Tracie 💔 (@trixiedeelite) July 3, 2022
Go girl
— Omnivore Books (@omnivorebooks) July 3, 2022
The WH made a good chart when this happened earlier in the year; might be interesting to update it. pic.twitter.com/o8MmAIPSpR
— southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) July 3, 2022
The last time Bezos was this upset with the president was in May when Biden said corporations should pay their fair share of taxes (their taxes were slashed 40% during the Trump administration) to help battle inflation.
Bezos griped that underpaying taxes would have no effect on the nation’s current high rate of inflation. He called for Twitter’s “Disinformation Board” to probe Biden’s message because he claimed the president inaccurately linked higher corporate taxes to lowering inflation.
Higher corporate taxes can in fact lower inflation, according to economists, by tamping down an overheated economy, which causes inflation.
Actually, @JeffBezos increasing taxes is an excellent way to fight inflation as it curbs macroeconomic growth by moderating aggregate demand. It can, like rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, be recessionary if you are too aggressive with it, which nevertheless lessens inflation
— Nicholas Creel (@Prof_Peacock) May 14, 2022
More money in the Treasury from corporations could also help provide aid to people suffering in a post-inflation, cooling economy, by expanding or increasing the amount of unemployment benefits, for example.
Amazon, incidentally, has paid extremely low taxes in relation to its enormous income and wealth. It paid zero federal taxes for 2018 by claiming a $129 million rebate on $11 billion in profits. It was one of 60 of some of the largest publicly traded corporations that paid no taxes that year.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
