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Obama's plan to target oil market manipulation

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    Crackdown on speculators a good policy?

  • Duration 5:33
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Graduate as everybody right now it is a growing financial drain for most Americans and in an election year that makes it a very hot political issue as well we're talking of course.

About the price of gasoline than national average per gallon now.

Three dollars 89 cents and yesterday the president urging congress to give government regulators more power.

To crack down on oil market speculators in manipulators.

In the process the president set up a new showdown with house Republicans.

It's.

A few weeks ago congress had a chance to stand up for families -- paying an extra premium at the pump.

Congressional Republicans voted to keep spending billions of americans' hard earned tax dollars on more unnecessary subsidies for big oil companies.

So here's a chance to make amends.

Just it actually do something -- protect consumers by increasing oversight of energy markets.

Mary -- have about the daily caller is a Fox News contributor.

Juan Williams is a Fox News political -- it's always good to see you both thanks very much Mary Catharine you first good ideas from the president.

Or a political gimmick.

Well this is a political problem for the president -- come up with a political solution I mean I can explain the policy making process of the administration to you which is.

This thing holes badly.

Let's do something bad to it if you want and I polled badly the president would come up with a new scheme to regulate.

Us of course out it's tragic mistake because want -- -- Populist cause -- the voters love us.

And -- and sick but in this case because speculators don't.

The president says super let's expand regulatory power and -- -- -- let's take 52 million of your dollars to do it.

But what's the -- has worked at his word that actual rampant speculation is happening here that these -- the federal government and its regulators that are in place now.

Are doing a terrible job.

At their job so why would I give them to did you many more dollars.

All right -- You very popular with the voters I hear.

Absolutely again -- let me get your take on this is -- something I mean a lot of folks have come out and said even some conservatives I've read this morning -- -- You know what these ideas that the president put out there yesterday they're not bad ideas but.

Politically speaking practically speaking most of them would be congressional approval and there's no way that's happening right.

That's right unfortunately that's the case is being you know Republicans controlled house they're not gonna do this -- to give him this power.

And they're gonna point exactly what Mary Katherine said which is the added cost and say that in fact -- the powers that the president would need.

To go after some of these oil speculators he -- in hand now the president.

And his team are making the case that you know what this market has grown over the past few years.

And I think the analogy the president used in his Rose Garden remarks with the same as in the NFL had more teams but didn't increase the number of -- recently he wants to do.

What he calls putting more cops on the beat.

To stop the oil traders from.

Artificially.

Creating scarcity by buying up oil futures and then driving up oil prices for me you when Mary Katharine.

And Mary Katherine -- is to be daring Republicans -- say no we're not gonna go along with this.

Just as Democrats.

Sort of dared Republicans to vote down the Buffett rule which happened the other night is this the same kind of thing.

And I we just gonna see more and more of these kinds of things as we -- closer to November.

I think we might see one of these ideas a week it's not gonna go anywhere that probably not gonna solving problems that they conceived themselves won't solve the problem both Carney and that -- -- -- -- for spokesperson.

And Obama -- -- -- this isn't really -- pixel bullets problem.

They know it's not gonna do anything that they want to put it out there because it polls well because people don't like speculators he actually also didn't.

Offer any evidence that there actually is speculation which.

You know his regulators are supposed to find a new -- post-Katrina when that DC did an actual investigation of those they found out that lo and behold there was no artificial speculation are jacking up the price is going on.

So I don't think this is meant to solve the problem and was.

Again follow the president's logic here they passed Dodd-Frank it was for us to solve all the speculation problems.

They have a cloudy futures trading commission it's supposed to catch a leased from the didn't catch MF global and -- in the end they say hey we -- our jobs give a 52 million more now.

First want -- so what the president to have in his bag of tricks as we get closer to Election Day.

I mean of course there are the reserves and that the -- the White House really believes that -- the price of gasoline.

Is the biggest hurdle maybe aside from the unemployment rate to the president faces to win another term.

What more could you see the administration and the campaign.

Do here.

Well they can do for they can further go after the speculators if you well they can try to.

Even some Democrats are suggesting release some of the supply from the strategic oil reserve.

I think that's a pretty extreme step but the idea again is to shock the oil market to remind them.

That they have some risk that that they have to behave socially responsibly.

And not just.

You know reap the profits.

But to get to Mary -- sport Rick I think that -- think you have to understand that these margins and how much money can be made by the speculators.

Really does anger the American voter.

And so I think the president helped himself.

I think he's doing something rather than just going up his arms -- -- is nothing that this administration can do.

Nothing they thought they clearly didn't do anything I think he's saying you know what we are taking action we care about you the consumer that's good politics.

Good politics and as we've been arguing that sometimes it's good policy sometimes it's not.

And folks out there will have to decide and we'll watch what happens in Washington Mary Katharine Ham Juan Williams.

Good to see both thank you -- care right the American.

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