The story behind those expensive Exxon gas stations Wolf Blitzer loves to tweet about

As the longtime host of CNN's "The Situation Room" and one of the most recognizable faces in American political journalism, Wolf Blitzer deals with a lot on a daily basis. But every now and again, his focus turns to much more pedestrian issues — namely the price of gas in Washington, D.C.

Twice this year Blitzer has tweeted out images of gas prices in the city, largely to point out how apparently high they are. "OY!" he remarked in a July tweet, showing the price of a gallon of regular at $4.29 at an Exxon station in the city. And just last week he was at it again, sharing an image of gas prices at another Exxon station in the nation's capital, this one just down the block from Union Station. He kept the tone more neutral, merely remarking he was sharing the image as an "FYI." (We reached out to Blitzer for comment, but have yet to hear back.)

In most cases, someone complaining on social media about, well, anything at all wouldn't be news. But Blitzer isn't just anyone — he has more than 1.7 million followers on Twitter and a daily TV show on a widely viewed national network, putting him in the distinct position to, well, fuel debates and discussions about what's happening, whether in politics or petroleum.

There's no better evidence than his gas-station tweets.

"Thanks, Biden," responded the Young Americas Foundation — a prominent conservative group — after Blitzer's July tweet. And last week a North Carolina Republican member of the House said the high prices were caused by Democratic policies on the environment.

The implications of both of Blitzer's tweets is that those high gas prices in D.C. are not only linked to decisions made by the Democratic president, but also a damning indication of the state of the economy. That's even more the case now, with inflation remaining higher than most federal officials predicted and gas prices having jumped this year due to constrained supply and rising global demand.

But what if the explanation for that $4.29 gallon of gas in D.C. has little to do with national policies, and much more to do with local quirks in how gas stations are owned and operated? And what if those gas stations that Blitzer highlighted are little more than dramatic outliers, sometimes located literally across the street from stations that offer cheaper gas?

Both facts are true, and involve local personalities and policies that would take far more than 280 characters and an image to properly understand.

To start off, this fact is critical: The Exxon station Blitzer chose to highlight last week — on Massachusetts Avenue NE, a few blocks from the U.S. Capitol — is among the city's most expensive. On the day Blitzer tweeted the image of that $4.29 gallon of gas it was selling, the citywide average was $3.62. It's also expensive by national standards. According to AAA, the average price of regular gas across the nation last week was $3.41, with only California posting an average above $4.

And that it's an Exxon station is additionally notable. (It's probably worth noting that the Exxon is the closest gas station to CNN's Washington studios.) Of the city's 10 most expensive gas stations in D.C. as ranked by GasBuddy last week, six were Exxon stations — and all owned by the same businessman, Joe Mamo. In fact, eight of the city's most expensive gas stations are owned, operated by, or linked to Mamo. (Interestingly, Mamo also owns the station that posted the cheapest gas in town — an Exxon on Georgia Avenue that was selling regular for $3.09 a gallon last week. He also owns one on Pennsylvania Avenue SE near the Supreme Court that was selling that same gallon of gas for $4.50.)

"They are not representative of gas stations in the District," says Councilmember Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3). "They are representative of Joe Mamo charging more because he's a mini-monopolist."

Mamo is the president of Capitol Petroleum Group, the Virginia-based business he founded in 1987 and which now owns, operates, or distributes gas to hundreds of gas stations in and around Washington and New York City. CPG is listed as the official distributor of Shell, ExxonMobil, Valero, Crown, and Citgo products; it runs 54 gas stations in D.C. and distributes to at least 14 more.

Whether merely a savvy and accomplished businessman or "mini-monopolist," Mamo — who the Washington City Paper profiled in 2011 — is a big player in local gas stations, and has tussled on more than a few occasions with local officials and lawmakers, Cheh included. In 2011, Cheh proposed a bill that would have prohibited distributors of gasoline like Mamo (known in industry parlance as "jobbers") from also owning gas stations, but the bill died amidst fierce opposition from Mamo and his supporters, including Jesse Jackson. A few years later, then D.C. Attorney General Irv Nathan sued Mamo, essentially accusing him of using his market power to set high gas prices at his many stations. (The lawsuit was later dismissed when a judge ruled the city did not have standing to sue.)

Capitol Petroleum Group did not respond to a request for comment, and neither did the operator of the Exxon Blitzer tweeted about last week. But in 2011 Mamo released a statement denying that he was fixing gas prices and saying he was as much at the whims of global market forces as individual drivers who wonder why their local gas station is charging more for a gallon.

More recently it was D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine who took on Mamo, accusing him in a 2020 lawsuit of price-gouging in the early months of the pandemic. Mamo has also denied this, and the lawsuit is pending.

Beyond accusations Mamo has faced in legal and legislative battles, there's another possible explanation for the high gas prices: costly real estate.

"He has very expensive real estate," says Michael Besche, who ran a family business distributing gas in the Washington region for 40 years, referring to some of Mamo's stations.

Besche says that Mamo likely charges operators at some well-located gas stations more in rent because the land is worth so much, thus pushing the operators to charge more for gas in order to make ends meet. Additionally, since land is so expensive in D.C., few entrepreneurs want to use it for gas stations — leaving Mamo with more of the market.

"He doesn't have a 100% monopoly, but he has a high market share," says Besche. "There's not a whole lot of competition because the cost of real estate is so high."

There is evidence that Mamo knows he's sitting on valuable real estate. Almost a decade ago he sold an Exxon station at the D.C. end of the Key Bridge to developers planning a residential building there. (That building never came to pass; the land could soon be bought by D.C. for possible use as a gondola station.) And real estate is the central point of contention in a legal fight Mamo is now embroiled in over the fate of his Exxon station at Connecticut and Nebraska Avenues NW, which has long posted some of the city's highest prices. Last week it charged $4.29 a gallon for regular if paid with a credit card (and $4.49 if with cash), even though it is located less than a block from two other gas stations — a BP charging $3.75 and a Shell charging $3.79.

In a lawsuit filed in federal court last year, the eleven-year operator of that Exxon station accused Mamo of charging "higher prices for motor fuel than other similarly situated service stations" — including the neighboring Shell, which Mamo also owns. She also said he was charging her higher rent, all in hopes of cancelling her lease (which he tried to do last year, prompting the lawsuit) so as to redevelop the property. In 2019, Mamo purchased a property adjacent to the gas station, fueling rumors as the station's fate. (Redeveloping gas stations has been a topic of controversy in recent years; see this Petworth station.)

Mamo's attorneys have denied the operator's claims; the lawsuit remains pending in federal court.

Besche also says that the usual real estate adage of "location, location, location" might explain some of the higher prices Mamo's stations can charge. Take Mamo's Exxon station on MacArthur Boulevard NW in the Palisades; there isn't another gas station for more than a mile in any direction. "Where else are you going to get the gas?" asks Besche.

We get it — D.C. is a town full of symbols, so it's easy to want to find something that symbolically represents a national trend. In this case, Blitzer seemingly wanted to use D.C. gas prices as an indicator of the state of the national economy. Gas prices have been increasing, and that can put additional strain on low- and middle-income families who have to drive. (There's no better indication of this than the extremely long lines of drivers that waited for $20 worth of free gas over the weekend, courtesy of a D.C. church.)

But that $4.29 gallon of gas at the Exxon station close to the Capitol is a poor choice for a symbol, whether it's used by Blitzer or either of the political parties. (And both have: In 2018 Democratic leaders similarly used that Exxon station to criticize then-president Donald Trump for rising gas prices.) It has always sold gas for more than other stations, some located only a mile away. (Activist Charlotte Clymer had a handy Twitter thread showing stations nearby where drivers could save almost 75 cents a gallon.)

While some of the reasons for those high gas prices may be linked to the complexities of the national economy and global oil markets, they may actually have more to do with local conditions and ownership — not to mention location, location, location.

This story is from DCist.com, the local news site of WAMU.

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