The White House today said that politicians who promise a quick fix to mitigate gas price increases are being misleading.

But there's a problem with that: The presumptive Republican nominee, Sen. John McCain, has said his idea of a gas tax holiday this summer would alleviate fuel price spikes.

White House spokesman Tony Fratto, during today's briefing, said that "anyone out there saying that something can be done overnight or in a matter of months to deal with high gasoline prices is trying to fool people."

"There is no tool in the toolbox out there that will lower gas prices overnight or in weeks, and probably not even in months," he said.

But ABCs' Jon Karl sharply caught Mr. Fratto's slip.

"But one of the people who is saying that something could be done overnight is John McCain, right, with the tax moratorium," Mr. Karl said. "You're not trying to say he's trying to --"

Mr. Fratto cut him off and tried to dig himself out.

"No, look, that's -- you know, he has a view on the tax moratorium, and that's his position," he said. "And we -- you know, we talked about looking forward.  But what -- the president's been looking at it, but what the president's been focused on is, you know, the root of the problem, which is supply and demand."

— Jon Ward, White House correspondent, The Washington Times

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