Biden Falsely Claims Gas Prices Were ‘Over $5’ When He Took Office

On Oct. 27, 2022, U.S. President Joe Biden falsely claimed that U.S. gas prices were “over $5” per gallon when he took office in January 2021. While speaking in Syracuse, New York, Biden said, “Today, the most common price of gas in America is $3.39, down from over $5 when I took office.”

According to The Associated Press, Biden was speaking in Syracuse to “showcase a significant investment by the U.S.-based company Micron, one of the largest microchip manufacturers in the world.”

Townhall.com tweeted a video of the moment in question. Biden provided two inaccurate figures in the same breath, one about the gas prices when he took office and another regarding costs during the week he spoke in Syracuse.

Here’s a little bit more from Biden’s remarks that we transcribed from a full recording of the speech. The two inaccurate figures were mentioned by Biden at the 22:23 mark in this video that was posted on the NBC News YouTube channel:

And because of the actions we’ve taken, gas prices are declining. We’re down $1.25 since the peak of this summer, and they’ve been falling for the last three weeks as well, adding up real savings for families. Today, the most common price of gas in America is $3.39, down from over $5 when I took office. We need to keep making that progress by having energy companies bring down the cost of a gallon of gas that reflects the cost they’re paying for a barrel of oil.

It was true that the national average for U.S. gas prices dropped by about $1.25 from between June and October 2022. However, the two figures in the bolded portion of Biden’s remarks above were incorrect.

First, USA Today previously published that U.S. gas prices averaged $2.39 per gallon for the week ending Jan. 25, 2021, right after former U.S. President Donald Trump left the White House. This figure of $2.39 was a far cry from Biden’s false claim of $5. The reporting cited data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and added, “Experts say presidents have little control over gas and diesel prices.”

The second inaccurate figure provided by Biden was when he said the average price of gas was currently $3.39 as of late October 2022.

On Oct. 22, The Associated Press reported that “the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.82,” which was quite different from $3.39. Similarly, the EIA reported a price of $3.87 on Oct. 17 and $3.77 on Oct. 24, also not too close to $3.39.

For further study, our readers previously asked us if several popular tweets were accurate that claimed gas prices dropped to below $2 when Trump was president.

Sources:

Biden Delivers Remarks On Micron’s Plan To Invest In CHIPS Manufacturing. NBC News via YouTube, 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBvPOTQAJ9s.

“Gas Prices Decline across Nation, Remain Unchanged in NJ.” The Associated Press, 22 Oct. 2022, https://apnews.com/article/new-jersey-business-6dd2f1b5de35361ffae240a54b1cc2aa.

Kim, Seung Min. “Biden Zeroes in on Economic Message as Campaign Winds Down.” The Associated Press, 27 Oct. 2022, https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-inflation-biden-new-york-0ce9df94ad312462eecb793f54c2bbbd.

Lenard, Jeff. “Does the President Control Gas Prices?” Advancing Convenience & Fuel Retailing, 3 Feb. 2021, https://www.convenience.org/Media/conveniencecorner/Does-the-President-Control-Gas-Prices.

Sadeghi, McKenzie. “Fact Check: Viral Image Does Not Show Gas Prices the Day Biden Took Office.” USA Today, 15 Oct. 2021, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2021/10/15/fact-check-regular-gas-not-below-2-day-biden-took-office/6088322001/.

@townhallcom. Twitter, 27 Oct. 2022, https://twitter.com/townhallcom/.

“Weekly U.S. Regular All Formulations Retail Gasoline Prices.” U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), https://www.eia.gov/.