The White House understands that it risks a serious political blow if gas prices continue to rise.
But on Tuesday President Biden
Joe Biden’s “Batman” scene has been criticized for its depiction of an Asian being attacked on the subway. The GAO reports that on Jan. 6, 114 Capitol police officers reported injuries. Trump calls Barr a “Bushie” who has switched sides. Moscow remains for the war in Ukraine and for responding to bipartisan calls to cut off Russia’s oil and gas.
Several factors influenced Biden’s decision.
Political support for a Russian secession in Washington and across the country is strong, with voices in both parties calling for the move.
Russian imports also make up a relatively small part of the US supply. Russia accounted for about 3 percent of US foreign crude oil imports last year and about 1 percent of US supplies overall.
Desire to oppose Russian President Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich PutinDefense and national security overnight – More troops sent to Europe in crisis On money – Biden is under pressure to ban Russian oil Gas prices rise as support for a ban on Russian oil grows. a difficult midterm year and the population is already irritated by rising prices.
“These decisions are not easy. It comes with risks, but I don’t think anyone can stand by and watch what’s going on there and take no action,” said one of Biden’s allies, appreciating the move.
In his comments announcing the decision, Biden acknowledged the risk he was taking and the potential cost to Americans.
“I said from the very beginning that I would be equal to the American people, and when I first spoke about it, I said that defending freedom would cost us in the United States too,” he said.
He then played on anti-Putin sentiment in the United States, fueled by the media’s horrific portrayals of civilian casualties at the hands of the Russian military.
“The Americans have come together to support the Ukrainian people and have made it clear that we will not participate in subsidizing Putin’s war,” he said.
The White House made the announcement after several days of internal discussions and conversations with European allies and members of Congress.
He took the move after Russia stepped up its military attack on Ukraine in recent days, hitting urban areas and killing civilians.
Describing the decision, officials said the administration could not stand it if Putin did not pay as much as possible.
“President, he has said many times that dictators will have to pay the price for their aggression, otherwise they will just cause more and more chaos and increase costs and threats to America and people around the world. That is why he chose to resist Putin’s aggression,” a senior administration official told reporters. “We think the time has come for American resolve. Standing up to Putin will come with costs, but we are doing everything we can to keep those costs low.”
The administration also hopes the public will blame Putin.
On board Air Force One on Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.
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The decision was made easier by the momentum building on Capitol Hill for the move—even with coast-to-coast gasoline costing over $4 a gallon.
The polls also gave the administration some confidence. Polls show that Americans, concerned about Russia’s military actions in Ukraine, are willing to pay an additional price.
“It’s very popular, even knowing it could drive up gas prices,” John Anzalone, Biden’s lead pollster, said during his 2020 campaign.
Anzalone, who was not involved in the White House decision, pointed to recent Reuters and Morning Consult polls showing that large constituencies in the US support such a ban.
When reporters asked Biden, who was touring Texas on Tuesday afternoon, if he had a message for Americans about rising gas prices, he bluntly replied, “They’re going to go up.”
Asked if there was anything he could do about it, he doubled down on his opinion: “There is not much I can do right now. Russia is responsible.”
The White House is simultaneously evaluating options to mitigate any increase in fuel costs, including encouraging countries like Saudi Arabia to increase production. Biden has already approved the release of millions of barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and in recent weeks the administration has pointed to the possibility of gas tax exemptions.
“There are a number of options on the table,” Psaki told reporters on Tuesday, without giving details.
While Republicans backed the move on Tuesday, they also escalated their attacks on Biden over gas price spikes and other day-to-day expenses. Democrats say they are ready to strike.
“Republicans are going to attack him no matter what he does, unlike [former President] Trump behaves like a president and does everything in his power,” said Democratic strategist Eddie Weil. “A brutal dictator is attacking Ukraine and Biden has done an amazing job of helping unite NATO and the world on sanctions and now on energy.
“And if the Republicans try to make a political fight out of this, I’m not sure they want to end up on the side of Trump and others who support Putin, not America,” he said.
Tuesday’s action was different from other sanctions imposed jointly with Western Europe, which depends on Russian gas supplies.
“We did not expect or ask them to take the same step that we announced this morning,” Psaki said on Tuesday.
Nevertheless, European countries have declared their intention to reduce their dependence on Russian energy. The European Union has pledged to phase out Russian oil and gas imports by 2030, and the UK has said it will stop importing Russian oil and petroleum products by the end of this year.
“The unilateral move was taken in a coordinated manner, and that is exactly what is needed,” said Charles Kupchan, who served as senior director of European affairs at the National Security Council under former President Obama.
Barack Hussein ObamaDOD: Detained Gitmo who tried to participate in 9/11 sent home to Saudi Arabia GOP senators demand Biden cancel building order to support workers World can learn from Colombia as Ukrainian refugee crisis grows MORE. “You don’t want to let Putin know in any way that there are cracks in transatlantic unity.”
Kupchan said the Biden decision, taken along with other sanctions, would put further pressure on the Russian economy and encourage American companies to stop doing business in Russia.
“I see it as a strategy to start big and then build up over time,” he said.