As high gas prices spread throughout the country, Democrat legislators are beginning to hold Democrat President Joe Biden responsible for the rising costs of gasoline.
They claim this jeopardizes the party’s dominance in both chambers of Congress and in the approaching midterm elections. This week, Virginia Democrat Abigail Spanberger told the press many factors contribute to the situation.
However, the congresswoman remained adamant the president must take the primary responsibility. Also, she’s glad to be one of the members of Congress who continues to sound the alarm about how terrible the situation has become.
Democrat Rep. Abigail Spanberger Blames Biden for Gas Prices… https://t.co/gbd0P7Ta8z
— David Asman (@DavidAsmanfox) November 25, 2021
The criticism comes after Biden stated, in a move which experts called “symbolic,” that he would release up to 50 million barrels of oil from the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve to tackle rising oil prices.
America Shouldn’t Depend on OPEC
Immediately following the president’s official statement, Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin, head of the Senate Power and Natural Resources Review panel, criticized Biden.
Manchin named the aforementioned release of oil barrels as a “policy band-aid” that neglects to talk about the real issues. Manchin described this as a self-inflicted gash that short-sighted energy plans are having on the country.
According to Manchin’s statement, the release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is an essential policy band-aid for rising fuel costs. However, it does not address the self-inflicted damage that myopic energy policies are inflicting on the country.
He went on to say because the United States is undergoing an energy transition, Washington mustn’t endanger America’s energy security by leaving consumers exposed to rising energy prices.
Historic inflationary taxes, as well as the absence of a coordinated all-of-the-above energy strategy, constitutes a clear and present danger to the economic and energy stability of the United States. This cannot be overlooked any longer.
Manchin states this is why he continues to call on President Biden to boost power generation here at home wisely. He also wants the president to change course on allowing the Keystone XL pipeline to be built.
This would have supplied the country with up to 900,000 barrels of crude oil per day from Canada, one of America’s key allies.
Senator Joe Manchin (D., W. Va.) on Tuesday called on President Biden to reinstate the Keystone XL pipeline as the U.S. struggles with gas shortages and skyrocketing prices. https://t.co/Cfi8M2gPgG
— National Review (@NRO) November 25, 2021
Finally, he noted the issue here is American energy autonomy. Manchin also pointed out the reality that industrious Americans really shouldn’t rely on foreign entities, such as OPEC+, for their energy supplies.
Instead, they should focus on the genuine issues the country faces.
Biden’s Short-term Answers
Oil prices soared when President Biden said he would release 50 million barrels of crude oil, which was less than half of what investors anticipated.
According to the New York Times, the market response highlighted President Biden’s problems, both economically and politically, in his attempt to adapt to the fastest spike of inflation in three decades.
As gas and food costs increase, the president’s support ratings have fallen. Because of this, Republicans unleashed a relentless barrage of assaults on Democrats, accusing them of being to blame.
