Is it possible that fuel prices are declining because of the upcoming election?

Bingo !!

In Economics its called supply and demand.

There is less demand between the end of summer and the beginning of the home heating season. Every year prices go down this time of year (last year they didn't because of the hurricane damage to refineries and suspended oil production in the Gulf.)

This year the forecast was for more Atlantic hurricanes, since they can disrupt shipping, production and refinery capacity the price was higher due to the hedging investors made. (Oil is a commodity, not a fixed price product.)

The hurricane season passed without a single gulf storm, so the hedges were off and the prices plummeted. When combined with the seasonal decrease in demand this has benefited consumers greatly.

But if you are looking for a conspiracy, look at something simpler than Bush controlling world oil prices, which is unrealistic since he has absolutely zero control over them. Think about the oil companies making record profits (some quarters are exceeding entire years from the 70s and 80s) and being afraid the Democrats will take the House or Senate in November and opening a few Congressional Hearing on price gouging. If the prices are at a reasonable price those hearings would be harder to initiate.

Elections are in 2008. That's 2 years away. Bush can't get voted in again. (What a shame... not!) There's been so much criticism for a long time about the price of gas/petrol and oil. But most of it came when the big wigs at the oil companies posted on the front pages of the newspapers RECORD PROFITS! This was right after Hurricane Katrina. They made record profits in 2004 too with the hurricanes hitting my home state, Florida. The problem with it is, the fines are too small for when they price gouge that they make it up real quick. Not enough people complain when the companies do that because of the emergency situations. When a hurricane is coming, it's get your gas and go real fast, not stay and worry about the price. Per incident, the company gets fined. Yet, like I stated, not enough people complain because of circumstances. They make $5000 in profit at one store and on a normal day, they'd make $3000 for profit. For once incident, they get fined $1000. They already made $1000 more so that fine didn't matter. (The numbers aren't accurate. It's for examples.)

Yet, here's the kicker: When certain things go down (like gas), other things go up without you noticing. This is how grocery stores work. When you clip your coupons, you'll say, get buy one get one free barbecue sauce. But, what are you going to use it for? Alas... the price of chicken is more. But, you fail to see that because you're glad for the cheap barbecue sauce. We are blind to it all.

It's a capitalist country and that's marketing for you. We all have to live with it whether we like it or not.

Fuel prices are dropping because:

- crude oil prices are dropping

- people were worrying about another Katrina-type hit to the oil industry in the Gulf of Mexico this summer, but that fear is past

- many people drove less this year due to the high gas prices

- there is a record amount of refined gasoline and fuel oil in storage for the winter

- many oil producers have put new facilities online to pump/refine/ship faster so that they could cash in on the high prices

Its all about supply & demand, with a fair portion of panic (or lack of it). There is more supply today, and less demand, and wholesalers aren't rushing out to grab some more gas thinking the supply may run out.

Is it possible, yes. At the same time, you don't ask what other factors could be causing the decrease.

Other possible factors:

Time of year - less driving - less gas use.

Storage tanks are refilled - emergency tanks are back to full - less immediate depenency.

Average to warm winter predicted - less need for heating oil.

The Republicans do not set the price of oil. Can they have an impact, sure but so can the democrates.

Not really, we really have no control over the price of crude, it's OPEC. The more logical reason is that there are a lot of alteratives to oil showing up now, with E85 and Hydrogen being pushed by GM, Honda, and BMW they have to be competitive.

Oh jeez. This question yet again. Please tell me how the President overrides supply and demand, speculation, foreign oil interests to control the price of gas. Do you really think he just makes a call and the oil companies follow. Come on.

Prices go down every single fall. Every one. Yes, even when Clinton was in office. Why? Demand is down and supply is up. OPEC is already set to cut back on production, the winter is coming so of course prices will go up. Turning this into a political issue is nonsense.

It's Bush he is such an evil genius all he has to do is call his oil buddies to manipulate the price of oil up and down then I keep hearing stories that he is such an incompetent idiot I am so confuse.

It never occured to me, but ya know that is a good thought. I mean they try to manipulate everything to make themselves look better when it comes down to the end of the campaign...

Oil prices are about making money,they are not about elections.

Of course not. Prices go up and down according to the supply and demand of gasoline/diesel. Where did you people go to business school?