Soaring fuel costs spawn clamor for quick fixes

0 Comments | USA TODAY, April, 2008

Sooner or later, anger over rising fuel prices had to boil over, and Monday it did. Truckers converged on Washington to stage a noisy protest and demand that Congress provide relief from diesel prices that have soared above $4 a gallon. With oil near $120 a barrel and gasoline closing in on that $4 mark, regular motorists might not be far behind.

In an election year, the pressure on Congress to do something about energy prices is growing. Proposals are spouting like a Texas gusher. They include giving drivers a summer holiday from the federal gasoline tax, suspending efforts to fill the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and forcing shippers to pay truckers a fuel surcharge.

All have superficial appeal. But at a time when the real reasons for high prices...