The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee was lambasted on Twitter on Thursday evening after posting what one user called a “parody-level” graph showing gas prices dropped less than two cents over a one-week period — and praising President Biden for the minuscule decrease.
“Thanks, @JoeBiden,” the House Democrats’ campaign organization tweeted along with a chart showing the average nationwide price for a gallon of regular gas.
The chart showed the average price at $3.395 on Nov. 22 before declining to show it at $3.38 on Nov. 29.
Critics on both sides of the aisle mocked the chart on social media, noting that the y-axis showed the price in fractions of a cent to make the decline appear steeper.
“This is parody-level misleading-with-axes stuff,” CNN reporter and fact-checker Daniel Dale tweeted.
Washington Post chief fact-checker Glenn Kessler agreed, tweeting: “What an utterly ridiculous chart. Truly dumb.”
“Whoever is making this stuff at @dccc needs a lesson in chart-making and statistics,” Kessler added in another tweet, noting an “embarrassing” claim about job growth.
“As someone who releases my own 110-page chart book each year, I am in awe of the people who conceived, built, approved, and posted this chart,” chimed in Manhattan Institute senior fellow Brian Riedl. “I could never come up with this level of bulls—. Bravo.”
Several users responded to the DCCC tweet with memes or other jokes.
“Would love to give you my two cents on this graph,” cracked “Daily Show” head writer Dan Amira.
Others accused the committee of trying to put a good face on the multiple crises the administration has been dealing with, such as supply chain backups and inflation.
“It’s now 2 cents cheaper per gallon for Democrats to Gaslight us into thinking everything is great in Joe Biden’s America,” tweeted conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
“I’ll combine the two cents I saved on gas with that 16 cents I saved on my 4th of July BBQ and put a down payment on a pack of gum,” mocked Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.). “Thanks, Brandon.”
“Another indicator of where the House is going in 2022,” tweeted Washington Free Beacon executive editor Brent Scher, “there is nobody smart working at the DCCC.”
Still others pointed out that the decrease highlighted by the DCCC is nothing compared to the increase in prices over the past year.
“So Joe Biden is responsible for a $0.02 drop in gas prices but not responsible for the 49% increase from last year’s gas prices,” former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley’s Stand for America PAC tweeted.
“Joe Biden cancelled the Keystone XL pipeline and gas prices have risen more than 50% since December 2020,” tweeted American Conservative Union chairman Matt Schlapp. “But Democrats are demanding that you thank him for saving you two whole cents.”
As of Friday, the average cost of regular gas in the US stood at $3.37 per gallon, up $1.21 from this time last year, according to AAA.