NEWY'all tin at present heed to Play a joke on News articles!

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday dismissed the White House blaming Russian President Vladimir Putin for record peak gas prices every bit "express mirth-out-loud revisionist history."

"Democrats' reckless spending that's fueled across-the-board aggrandizement have made Americans' pain at the pump even worse. Only in the last few days, the Biden administration has tried to invent some laugh-out-loud – laugh-out-loud revisionist history," McConnell, R-Ky., said on the Senate floor.

"They're trying to rebrand the entire increase in gas prices on their lookout – listen to this – equally an effect of Putin'due south recent invasion of Ukraine. So, they want to arraign 14 months of gas cost increases on the last ii weeks of turmoil. Washington Democrats' war on domestic free energy long predates Putin'due south war on Ukraine."

The U.Due south. Labor Department reported Thursday that the consumer price index, which analyzes the costs of appurtenances and services beyond the economy, showed prices soar 7.9% year-over-year in February, the highest in the terminal four decades.

RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR: CANADIAN PREMIER WANTS TO REVIVE TRUMP-BACKED KEYSTONE-XL PIPELINE TO REPLACE RUSSIAN OIL

"I strongly support America stopping our purchase of Putin's state of war. But Democrats' ain war on our product will brand that even more than painful for American families than it had to be," McConnell said Thursday. "If the Biden administration spent 14 months not attacking aggrandizement … we'd be ameliorate able to push button back on Putin with less painful cost to American families."

In response, the Biden administration has been floating the phrase "Putin's price hike."

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., speaks to reporters after a Republican strategy meeting at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 8, 2022. 

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., speaks to reporters after a Republican strategy meeting at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March eight, 2022. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

"Today's inflation written report is a reminder that Americans' budgets are existence stretched by price increases, and families are starting to feel the impacts of Putin's price hike," Biden said Thursday in a written statement released by the White House. "A large contributor to inflation this calendar month was an increase in gas and free energy prices every bit markets reacted to Putin's ambitious actions.

"Equally I take said from the start, there will be costs at dwelling as we impose crippling sanctions in response to Putin'due south unprovoked war, but Americans can know this: The costs we are imposing on Putin and his cronies are far more than devastating than the costs we are facing," he added.

Earlier this week, a reporter asked President Biden what he was going to do about soaring gas prices. Biden responded that he "can't practice much," calculation "Russia's responsible."

President Biden speaks before signing the American Rescue Plan, a coronavirus relief package, in the Oval Office of the White House, March 11, 2021, in Washington.

President Biden speaks before signing the American Rescue Plan, a coronavirus relief package, in the Oval Office of the White House, March xi, 2021, in Washington. (Associated Press)

"Washington Democrats are trying to pull off a political spin," McConnell said. "Anybody knows that gas prices and energy costs have been soaring sharply for many, many months. Working families know all too well that gas prices and utility costs have been rise throughout President Biden's tenure."

"It keeps getting worse, not better," he said. "This has been a painful pattern throughout President Biden'due south tenure. We've now had nine directly months of aggrandizement higher than 5%."

Three weeks ago, before the crunch in Europe, Democrats "were already in a political panic over gas prices and badly talking about a gas taxation vacation," and the average cost of a gallon of gas had already shot up more than a dollar from when President Biden was sworn in, McConnell said.

CLICK Here TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"You lot'd think the Democrats would have been proud of this. Hostility to fossil fuels and homegrown free energy is precisely what President Biden campaigned on," McConnell said.

"Here's what our president said on the campaign trail in 2020, a direct quote: 'No more subsidies for the fossil fuel industry. No more than drilling on federal lands. No more drilling, including offshore. No ability for the oil industry to go on to drill, flow. It ends.'

"That was the president in 2020. Hither's what he told an activist: 'Look at my eyes. I guarantee you nosotros're going to finish, finish, fossil fuel.' Now, President Biden spent two years campaigning on hostility to American energy. At present he'southward spent 14 months putting that hostility right into action."