President Joe Biden threatened yesterday to pursue higher taxes on oil company profits if industry giants do not work to cut gas prices. Via CNBC.com:

Biden has criticized oil companies that have made record-high profits as consumers struggle to keep up with high gas prices. The price of a gallon of gas was $3.76 on Monday, according to AAA, down from a record of over $5 in June but still higher than a year ago.

“Their profits are a windfall of war,” Biden said, referring to Russia’s war in Ukraine, which prompted Western sanctions that reduced oil supply. “It’s time for these companies to stop their war profiteering.”

“If they don’t they’re going to pay a higher tax on their excess profits,” he said.

I guarantee you: Oil lobbyists sent out big fat checks to Republicans after they heard those words -- and that's always a risk in an election period.

Any new taxes on oil profits would need congressional approval, which may prove difficult as Democrats control both chambers of Congress by slim margins. Progressives like Senators Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts previously floated the idea.

Republicans, who generally support lower taxes, also hope to win back one or both chambers of Congress in the Nov. 8 midterms.

Biden stressed that he is “a capitalist” but added that companies are making “profits so high it’s hard to believe.”

The European Union agreed to a windfall profits tax a month ago.