Michele Bachmann Promises She'll Bring Back $2-a-Gallon Gasoline

Shades of Nixonomics.

Republican presidential contender Michele Bachmann vowed Wednesday to bring gasoline prices back to $2 gallon.

Speaking in South Carolina, the Minnesota congresswoman said, "Under President Bachmann you will see gasoline come down below $2 a gallon again. That will happen."

Bachmann didn't detail how she would achieve that. It did, however, sound eerily reminiscent of Richard Nixon's ill-fated wage and price controls.

On the other hand, the Obama White House is sending petrol prices in the opposite direction by piling on costly "green" energy regulations and constantly wrangling with oil companies.

In the latest battle, the administration is moving to end Exxon-Mobil's lease on a Gulf of Mexico tract that is believed to be the biggest oil discovery ever.