WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- Before departing the White House early Monday for a farewell tour of Europe , President Bush stole a page from his predecessor and suggested he feels American consumers ' pain . Democrats and Republicans are deadlocked over how to address the rising gas prices . `` A lot of Americans are concerned about our economy , '' Bush said . `` I can understand why . Gasoline prices are high , energy prices are high . I do remind them that we have put a stimulus package forward that is expected to help boost the economy . And of course , we 'll be monitoring the situation . '' Americans are looking for more action , though , than monitoring the situation . But while gas prices keep soaring , the chances of Washington finding a solution keep dropping because Democrats and Republicans are deadlocked over how to fix the problem . Bush talks mostly about increasing supply through more oil drilling in places like Alaska 's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge . `` I 've proposed to the Congress that they open up ANWR , open up the Continental Shelf , and give this country a chance to help us through this difficult period by finding more supplies of crude oil , which will take the pressure off the price of gasoline , '' Bush said Monday . Watch how Congress could affect gas prices » . But Democrats like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are vehemently opposed to increasing production on environmental grounds , so the president 's plan has virtually no chance of passage in the current Congress . In turn , Democrats talk mostly about lowering demand for gasoline through research into alternative fuels -- something the president talks about too -- and more funds for mass transit . `` It 's got to involve investing in alternative fuels , so that we can have some alternatives to gas and significant investment in public transit , '' Virginia Gov . Tim Kaine , a key supporter of Barack Obama 's presidential bid , said Sunday . These types of plans will take a long time to implement , so no quick fix there either . And with the federal government now more than $ 9 trillion in debt , where would Congress find the money to pour into public transit and research into alternative fuels ? With the parties deeply divided on solutions , it 's not surprising that last week a Senate bill requiring major cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions failed . Only 48 of 100 senators voted for it amid charges by White House press secretary Dana Perino that the bill would have a devastating impact on the economy and thus might not really help cut the price in gasoline . But six absent senators , including Obama and Republican John McCain , said they would have voted yes to end debate and move forward on the bill . That led some in Congress to declare that Congress will have the momentum to take action next year on reducing America 's dependence on foreign oil . All that means , however , is that there 's optimism the next president might be able to find an energy compromise in 2009 . In other words , do n't expect any help from Washington any time soon .
Bush has proposed increasing the supply ; Dems propose reducing demand . Some Dems oppose increasing production for environmental reasons . They propose research into alternative fuels , funds for mass transit . Those plans would be costly and would take a long time to implement .