President Joe Biden is tapping into the U.S. strategic oil reserve in hopes of bringing down gas prices.
At 1 million barrels a day, it’s the largest withdrawal in history. Critics say the move is risky and won’t do much at the pump. They point to the administration’s energy policies as the real culprit.
“Today, I’m authorizing the release of 1 million barrels of oil per day for the next six months – over 180 million barrels,” Biden said on Thursday.
The move comes as gas prices have already been skyrocketing for weeks. The national average for a gallon of gas now sits at a staggering $4.22. Whether there will be relief or more pressure on consumers already suffering from high inflation remains uncertain.
“It makes my wallet a lot lighter,” said one Virginia driver at the pump.
President Biden is trying to blame the high prices mainly on Russia. “Our prices are rising because of Putin’s actions, there isn’t enough supply,” he said.
While the pandemic and the war in Ukraine do play a role, some point to the president’s domestic energy policies for the drop in U.S. oil production. They say that’s why gas prices had already risen substantially long before the Russian invasion.
“I think the administration’s anti-fossil fuel views are sort of like a religion,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). “Until that policy changes, we’re going to have a problem.”
Biden is also trying to blame U.S. oil and gas companies, suggesting the country should penalize them for not producing enough.
“I’m calling for a use it or lose it policy,” the president said. “Congress should make companies pay fees on wells on federal leases they haven’t used in years.”
The former senior policy advisor to the Secretary of Energy for the Trump administration, Victoria Coates, contends the issues started as soon as Biden took office. Coates is now with the American Foreign Policy Council and says Biden’s plan will punish the infrastructure desperately needed for national security.
“Everyone knows that with the cancellation of the Keystone Pipeline – it was one of the first actions the president took – those first actions set the stage for what to expect in the administration. So, they’ve all had well over a year of doing this,” Coates said.
There are also concerns that Biden’s plan will reduce oil reserves to the lowest level since 1984, leaving the U.S. vulnerable to further shortages in the case of future emergencies.
Meanwhile, lawmakers debate other short-term relief efforts. Congress is considering suspending the federal gas tax while states like Georgia and Maryland have already put a temporary halt to theirs.
But some lawmakers compare the move to putting a small band-aid on an open wound. And they say it could take months before we see prices begin to level out.
On the street, driver’s just want the problem fixed.
“It makes it difficult when you’ve got kids that are driving and your wife is driving to work,” said another driver at the pump. “You know it’s costing double, twice as much as it normally does.”
In California and Chicago, gas giveaways had people line up for hours just to feel some relief. “It’s free gas!” said one lucky driver. “And it’s a blessing.”
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