By Brandon Moseley
Lawmakers in Washington are responding to President Joseph R. Biden’s decision to tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
The White House announced that the Department of Energy will make available releases of 50 million barrels of oil from the reserve in an attempt to lower gas prices for Americans.
Congressman Jerry Carl (R-AL01) issued a statement following the announcement.
“Since day one of the Biden Administration, my colleagues on the Natural Resources Committee and I told the President what would happen if they closed American pipelines and used political pressure to forcibly shut down the American fossil fuel industry,” Carl said. “Now, Americans across the country are seeing the results of the Administration’s failures each time they go to the fuel pump.
The Energy Department will begin releasing the 50 million barrels next month. Congress requires that some 18 million barrels are to be sold to raise revenue, and the other 32 million will be returned to the reserve when prices drop.
“The Biden Administration is like a drunken pilot trying to defy the law of gravity, but the pilot will eventually crash the plane. Unfortunately, President Biden’s decision to tap into our emergency oil supplies is leading us toward a crash. Thankfully, it is not too late to change course and avoid a crash.”
Carl asked the president to fix the problem of rising gas prices by opening up the pipelines.
Congressman Gary Palmer (R-AL06) has also been critical of Biden’s energy policies.
“Record inflation and shutting down American energy resources are causing scary spikes in household utility bills,” Palmer said. “Many Americans are bracing themselves for the most expensive winter in years. High energy costs have led to tragic deaths in many European countries over the last several years, and the U.S. could be heading in the same direction.”
Congressman Barry Moore (R-AL02) expressed similar concerns on Tuesday.
“After foolishly killing the Keystone XL Pipeline, banning new drilling on federal land, and shackling us with restrictive Green New Deal policies that decimate our energy independence, now Biden has resorted to releasing oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve to tame the price of gas,” Moore said. “America is foreign oil-dependent because of Biden. Why does Biden hate American energy so much? He has destroyed our energy independence in less than a year, with the price of gas now over 60% higher than this time last year.”
U.S. production of crude oil is about 1.7 million barrels per day below its pre-pandemic peak
The White House said that “Over the last 18 months, the COVID-19 pandemic forced an unprecedented global economic shutdown. As the world is re-opening from a near economic standstill, countries across the globe are grappling with the challenges that arise as consumer demand for goods outpaces supply.
To read the full statement from the White House, click here.
