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A State Department official is drawing criticism after tweeting that he favors high gas prices because it means less driving and less carbon emissions.
“I prefer high gas prices = less driving, less CO2,” State Department Senior Foreign Service Officer Alan Ayer wrote Friday in response to a tweet from President Biden that claimed American families were paying more less per month on average than they were during “peak prices .”
Ayer describes himself as a “government bureaucrat” in his Twitter bio along with the phrase “kindness, always kindness.”
Eyre’s tweet was widely criticized on social media, including by former California Republican state Senate candidate Ron Basilian, who called Eyre a “dude” and pointed out that gas demand is “inelastic.”
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“Maybe, but I don’t think it’s inelastic, and I remember in the 70s the oil embargo led to a huge increase in renewables,” Ayer replied along with the hashtag #BeKind.
Vassilian responded with criticism that was echoed by several other Twitter users, pointing out that gas prices have caused significant struggles for Americans across the country.
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“Be kind?” Baslian said. “Maybe be nice to the billions of people left stranded in this situation you praise. To say that starvation is a good way to start a diet is not kind.’
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – MARCH 18: Alan Ayer, left, Persian language spokesman for the US State Department, speaks to Iranian reporters during the Iranian nuclear talks in Lausanne, Switzerland, March 18, 2015. (Credit: Carol Morello/ The Washington (Post via Getty Images)
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Since this article was published, Eyre’s Twitter account appears to have been disabled or deleted.
Eyre’s comments come shortly after Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg faced criticism for suggesting higher pump prices actually benefited shift to electric vehicles.
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During a radio interview earlier this month, Buttigieg said the Biden administration is trying to reduce the cost of electric vehicles “because when you have an electric vehicle, you’re also I will be able to save on gasbut first you have to be able to afford it.”
“The more pain we all feel from the high price of gasoline, the greater the benefit to those who have access to electric vehicles,” the former presidential candidate added while testifying before Congress recently.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg appeared on ABC’s The View on April 8, 2022 and discussed high gas prices and inflation. (Screenshot/ABC) (Screenshot/ABC)
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The national average gas price as of Thursday was about $4.40. While the price is down about 20 cents from last week’s average, it’s still more than a dollar higher than prices at this time last year and two dollars more than when Biden first took office.
Fox News’ Bradford Betz and Lindsay Cornick contributed to this report.
Andrew Mark Miller is a writer at Fox News. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to AndrewMark.Miller@Fox.com.
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