This is obviously happening in much of the rest of the world. In Asia, there are serious shortages of cooking gas. In Europe the price of petrol, and the price of gas, are at extremes and have inspired mass protests in some countries.
I said that I thought $5 a gallon gas in substantial parts of the country by August would be a disaster for Republicans. Obviously, the West coast states use taxes to get over that price already. But in the rest of the country, we’re getting close. The New York Times is keeping track. My local station was above $4.75. Obviously, politics is more complicated than one price of one commodity. But it still seems true that most people decide how they feel about the economy in election years by the late summer.