Scott Witten

Editor

Pumped up about politics?

That could certainly describe Republican Vernon Robinson, who will be pumping gasoline today as part of a kickoff for his campaign for Congress in the 8th District.

Robinson will be in Biscoe at 11 a.m. to pump 1,000 gallons of gasoline for $1.80 a gallon. He will be at the E-ZEE gas station at 306 N. Main St. The public can fill up, but the offer is restricted to one car per family and excludes commercial vehicles.

Biscoe is the home of Democratic U.S. Rep. Larry Kissell. Robinson is one of several Republicans trying to unseat him. Once the gasoline is sold, Robinson said he will go to Raleigh to file for the newly-drawn district, which stretches from Charlotte to Robeson County.

Gas pricing

Robinson said $1.80 is the same price gasoline sold for when Larry Kissell and President Barack Obama assumed office in January 2009.

“It is a fact that in the three years that Larry Kissell has been in Congress and Barack Obama has been in the White House the price of gasoline has doubled,” Robinson said. “The price of crude oil has more than doubled. The reason for these outrageous increases are the failed energy and monetary policies pursued by Larry Kissell and Barack Obama.”

Robinson said he supports an “all of the above” energy policy,which includes the Keystone pipeline and drilling for oil in ANWR. He added that he is committed to getting government out of the way of the private sector.

“So that Americans can find, develop, and produce new sources of energy to power our factories, run our engines, and heat our homes. This principle, together with a strong stable dollar, will result in the free market driving down energy prices.”

When Kissell ran for Congress in 2006, he held a similar campaign event, selling gasoline for $1.22/gallon — the price it was when his GOP opponent, then-Rep. Robin Hayes, took office in 1999.

Kissell thanked Robinson for following his example.

“I encourage all the other candidates to likewise follow my lead, and that of Mr. Robinson, and find similar ways to help the working families in our district who are struggling to make ends meet,” Kissell said in a statement.

Kissell said he also supports passage of the Keystone XL Pipeline along with the Pickens Plan “and other policies that will lead to American energy independence and will finally free working people in this nation from the burden put on them by those who speculated on oil prices and politicians who got rich off their votes for big oil.”