The Republican Party of Florida held a campaign event at a Mobil Gas Station in Tampa today to highlight the high cost of gasoline. Republican Party Chairman Lenny Curry was on hand at the “Pain at the Pump,” protest, aimed at drawing attention to President Obama’s energy policies.

When Obama took office, average gas prices were $1.85 per gallon and now prices have reached nearly $4 a gallon, Kristen McDonald, a Republican Party of Florida spokesperson said in a news release. “Increasing gas prices are taking money out of the pockets of hard-working families who simply cannot afford it,” the news release said.

Republicans has seized on high gas prices, citing Obama’s opposition to the Keystone Pipeline as evidence of a misguided energy policy. The conservative group, Americans for Prosperity, on Thursday unveiled a $6.1 million advertising blitz in Florida and seven other swing states that accuses Obama of wasting billions of dollars on green energy.

During a speech in Florida in February, Obama assailed Republicans for politically “licking their chops” over the price of fuel.  ”Some politicians always see this as a political opportunity,” Obama told a crowd at the University of Miami.

Earlier this month, Obama’s re-election campaign went up with an ad in Florida, defending the president’s energy policies and accusing Mitt Romney of “standing with big oil.”

Tags | Kristen McDonald, Lenny Curry, Mitt Romney, obama, Republican Party of Florida, tampa