During the 2008 vice presidential debate, Joe Biden complained about how gas prices were so high at the time that the average “Joe” couldn’t afford to fill up his tank.

During the Oct. 2, 2008 vice presidential debate with Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, Biden was asked by moderator Gwen Ifill to comment about deregulation.

In his answer, then-Senator Biden took the opportunity to relate a conversation he had at a gas station with “a guy named Joey” who said he couldn’t afford to fill up his tank:

“So deregulation was the promise. And guess what? Those people who say don't go into debt, they can barely pay to fill up their gas tank.

“I was recently at my local gas station and asked a guy named Joey Danco. I said, ‘Joey, how much did it cost to fill your tank?’ You know what his answer was? He said, ‘I don't know, Joe. I never have enough money to do it.’”

At the time (Oct. 2008), the average cost of a gallon of regular was $3.17 – and only $1.93/gallon when Obama took office in January of 2009 – according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Today, AAA estimates that a gallon of regular costs about $3.82 (Oct. 9), while the latest BLS report says it cost $3.71/gallon in August.

And, this week, the Associated Press reported that gas prices in California have hit an all-time high of $4.67 for a gallon of regular, and The Los Angeles Times reported that that Gov. Jerry Brown has taken “emergency steps” to address the problem.

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