High Gas Prices and Tax Relief

Re “Bush’s Fix at Gas Pumps: Tax Relief,” May 12: It hasn’t been easy living in Orange County believing that the man occupying the White House cares little about the average working person. Lately, however, I’ve been making a lot of new friends--at the gas station. Every time I pull in, I mumble about how President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are letting their oil buddies reap obscene profits while working Americans suffer, and then all of a sudden, I’ve made new friends! We chat about how far removed Bush is from the concerns of the average working person, from gasoline soaring to $3 a gallon to a tax refund plan that will give most of the refund to the richest 1%. . Before driving away, I remind people that I voted for Al Gore. It’s so nice to hear how many Bush supporters no longer support him.

Robin Howard

Laguna Hills

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Let me see if I’ve got this right. I don’t use my tax cut to add to my retirement account, to pay down my credit card debt or to help grandma purchase prescription drugs. I use it to buy high-priced gasoline. The money goes from the U.S. Treasury to the big oil company millionaires. And they say Bush isn’t smart.

Virginia Raucher

Valley Village

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Wouldn’t it be more efficient to have Congress simply cut out the folks in the middle and send the tax cut savings directly to the oil companies?

Joan Klotz

Venice