“They are Making Fun of Something that is Actually True”

That’s how Barack Obama described John McCain’s campaign after they handed out tire gauges in response to Obama’s claim that properly inflated tires could save as much oil as would be gained from domestic drilling.

Via the Boston Globe:

“It’s like these guys take pride in being ignorant. They think it’s funny that they are making fun of something that is actually true. They need to do their homework, because this is serious business. Instead of running ads about Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, they should go talk to some energy experts and actually make a difference.”

Of course, it’s true that keeping your tires properly inflated will save on gas. About 3.3% according to the U.S. Department of Energy. However, it is nowhere near being true that the savings on gas would be the same as the amount of oil obtained by domestic drilling. Ed Morrissey over at HotAir has some fuzzy numbers on the subject, estimating that we could save about 600,000 barrels of oil a day with tire inflation vs. the 800 million barrels per day we would gain from drilling The Green River oil shale formation alone.

That’s what Obama and an unfortunate many of his supporters don’t seem to understand: no one’s making fun of the idea that some oil can be saved with proper car care maintenance. What they’re making fun of is what Obama actually said, which is that we would save just as much, which is something that is decidedly not true.