As oil prices topped $115 a barrel on futures markets, President Bush continued his near-silence on the damage that energy inflation is doing to consumers and the economy, said Consumer Watchdog. The White House clings to a pallid strategy of blaming OPEC even as it continues buying oil off the market at a rate of 1.5 million barrels a month for a Strategic Petroleum Reserve that is already filled to near-record levels.

"In 2006, President Bush dramatically announced that he would stop taxpayer-paid purchases for the petroleum reserve in order to help bring down prices," said Judy Dugan, research director of Consumer Watchdog. "Now, in a much more urgent situation, he has not taken even this symbolic step to show seriousness in the face of serious economic damage from energy prices."

Consumer Watchdog (formerly the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights) recently asked President Bush to cease purchases for the reserve, and also to begin releasing oil from the 700-million barrel store to show his administration's determination to quell volatility and speculation in oil on futures markets.

"It is two-faced of Bush to assert that OPEC's refusal to increase supplies is the sole cause of this slide to disaster even as the White House itself takes oil off the market," said Dugan. "The White House has failed even to push for regulation of energy trading that could wring out some of the purely financial trading that is helping to spike prices. It also continues to oppose legislation that would create jobs in green energy businesses by canceling just a portion of oil companies' multibillion-dollar tax subsidies."

Energy prices are the chief cause of inflation that is deepening the U.S. economic slide and giving consumers a double whammy in the pocketbook, at the gas pump and again at the grocery store, said Consumer Watchdog. Oil companies are reaping continued record profits while other businesses falter.

"Every day there is a new reason put forward for the daily oil price and fuel price record," said Dugan. "The sliding dollar, a new blip of violence in Iraq, the faltering U.S. economy, or a temporary dip in the oil supply somewhere... All of this combined cannot account for $115 dollar-a-barrel oil. It's hedge funds feeding off the last bit of bad news to keep prices spiraling higher."