* White House: rising gas prices reflect global pressures
* Obama acknowledges pain of rising pump prices
* Republicans take aim at Obama energy policies
(Adds more White House comment, background)
WASHINGTON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Under fire from
Republicans over rising gasoline prices, the White House
on Tuesday highlighted factors beyond its control for
gains in global oil markets, as it sought to deflect blame over
a potentially damaging election-year issue.
Gas prices, which rose 7 cents a gallon last week, could
unsettle economic confidence at a time when the U.S. recovery
appears to be gathering pace, hurting President Barack Obama as
voters review his track record ahead of the Nov. 6 ballot.
Obama, a Democrat, acknowledged the risk posed by higher gas
prices as he welcomed congressional approval of a payroll tax
cut extension. The White House later argued that it was unfair
to single out the administration over prices at the pump.
"There are no magic solutions to rising oil prices," said
White House press secretary Jay Carney. "The rising gas prices
clearly the effect of a variety of factors on the global
price of oil," he told reporters, citing geopolitical unrest and
rapid growth in India and China.
Oil prices touched a nine-month high on Tuesday,
partly because Asian consumers moved to cut oil imports from
Iran following Western sanctions, and this has
already had an impact on forecasts across America.
Gasoline prices advanced last week to $3.59 a gallon
from around $3.32 at the start of the year, a
rise that helped push up U.S. consumer inflation in January,
denting household spending power.
Republicans see gas prices as a way to attack Obama's energy
policies as they campaign to deny him a second White House term.
They argue the president sees rising prices as a way to
alter U.S. energy consumption, while taking aim at his decision
last month to reject TranCanada Corp's proposed Keystone
XL crude oil pipeline.
"The current unrest in the Middle East reminds us how
dependent we are on resources from a volatile region - and how
misguided the president's decision to block the Keystone
pipeline from Canada really was," said Brendan Buck, spokesman
for House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, the top
Republican in Congress.
Pushing back, the White House noted that U.S. domestic
energy production was at an eight-year high and said the
president's energy policies were helping to reduce the country's
dependence on imported foreign oil.
But Obama himself drew attention to the gas price issue.
Welcoming congressional approval of an extension of the payroll
tax cut, he said earlier on Tuesday the $40 per paycheck that
this break was worth would help offset "the rising cost of gas -
which is on a lot of people's minds right now."
"The president is very aware of the impact that the global
price of oil has on families," Carney told reporters. "The fact
that this is happening only underscores the need ... to have a
comprehensive energy policy," Carney said.
(Reporting By Laura Macinnis and Alister Bull; Editing by
Sandra Maler and Eric Walsh)
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