Fox News host Eric Bolling is a birther, global warming denier, and all-purpose conspiracy theorist who sees himself as a warrior in an ideological battle for America. He's also Fox's purported energy expert.
Bolling recently touted his 20 years of experience as a Wall Street oil trader to declare: “One thing I do know, I know gasoline and oil pricing.” But time and time again he has shown otherwise, making statements that actual energy analysts -- including those who share Bolling's pro-oil perspective -- call "absolute and utter rubbish," "idiotic," "nonsense," and "not correct." Although he is certain of his expertise, Bolling often seems to misunderstand the very basics of the oil market.
With gasoline prices on the rise, Bolling has made a spectacle of himself all over Fox News in recent weeks. Armed with props and gimmicks, Bolling claims he could immediately lower gas prices by $1. What is this magic plan that has eluded the nation's economists and policymakers? He won't say. Really.
In line with GOP messaging strategy, Bolling and his colleagues at Fox have seized on rising gasoline prices to attack the Obama administration and resurrect bumper sticker slogans that falsely present more domestic oil drilling as a solution to gas price spikes. Bolling's rants about drilling and the Energy Secretary and the EPA distract from the fact that oil prices are not determined by U.S. energy policy.
Bolling's antics befit an infomercial, not a news outlet. They only serve to fuel public misconceptions and obscure the best long-term solution to gas price volatility: decreasing our dependence on oil.