McCain isn't alone in promoting this foolishness. Hillary Clinton seconded the motion, leaving Barack Obama as the only major presidential candidate to recognize the downside to it.

The federal tax on gasoline is 18.4 cents; on diesel it's 24.4 cents. It's estimated that suspending the taxes would save only about $2.35 on an average fill-up.

Clinton proposes a windfall profit tax on oil companies to make up for the loss in revenue - about $9 billion that goes toward the nation's roads and bridges. But a tax is simply a cost of doing business, which companies routinely pass on to their customers. We'll just end up paying the same at the pump.

But more importantly, this is no time for government to offer a financial incentive to consume more gasoline. Friedman equated it with money laundering: "We borrow money from China and ship it to Saudi Arabia and take a little cut for ourselves as it goes through our gas tanks," he wrote.

This is a politically attractive gimmick that is no substitute for a sensible energy policy.

Home