Where does Sen. Barack Obama get off saying Sen. John McCain and Sen. Hillary Clinton are pandering for votes? I didn’t realize listening to the cries of Americans for a solution to sky-high gas prices was unethical campaigning. If the proposal gets so much support from the American people, whom candidates answer to, I fail to see the problem. McCain’s idea to temporarily suspend federal taxes on gasoline is a great idea. We depend on fuel to get almost anywhere, and when the price gets too high, people stop buying things. This can spell disaster for business and the economy. With no end in sight to rising oil prices, the U.S. government needs to do what it can to help out Americans. Maybe it doesn’t fix things in the long run, but with short term problems like the rising number of housing foreclosures and an economic recession looming, we can all certainly welcome a bit of relief. What’s more, this period of lower prices gives lawmakers time to hammer out a better long-term solution.

Not to mention, like all Americans, I hate taxes. The government loves any excuse to take my hard-earned money. These taxes unnecessarily raise fuel prices as it is, and I can’t say I blame Clinton for jumping on the bandwagon. It’s about time the Democrats wised up and took some cues from their conservative counterparts. But alas, I’m not here to attack the Democrats’ lack of originality. I have yet to see a better solution benefiting all Americans equally and can bring about the change our nation so desperately needs. We need to take immediate action to soften the blow of our impending economic problems and put money back in the hands of the American people. This nation was founded on a disdain for taxes, and this tradition has held true through the centuries. Call it what you will, Mr. Obama, but we can all appreciate a little help at the pump, even for a little while. If an idea is popular with the public and earns a candidate votes, I call that a smart policy.