Photo: Science Photo Library RF
President Trump has announced that he will be releasing 172 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) as delays in the Strait of Hormuz continue to push prices higher.
This follows President Biden releasing massive amounts of oil from the SPR during his term ahead of the 2022 midterm elections. There are some key differences between Biden’s actions and Trump’s.
Jeffrey Addicott with the Warrior Defense Project at St. Mary’s School of Law explained Biden’s actions, saying: “He drained the reserves almost all the way down to empty right before the election, in order to protect his base, because gas prices were rising.”
Addicott went on to say that what Trump is doing now is much closer to the actual purpose of the SPR. “We are at war, and gas prices are rising because the Iranians have blocked the Strait of Hormuz, where 25% of the world’s oil goes through,” he said.
Using oil from the SPR to help push those prices back down for Americans in times of emergency like this is exactly why we have an oil reserve. Unfortunately, according to Addicott, the reserve is still at very low levels due to Biden draining it for political purposes.
Thankfully, we should not have to draw on the reserve for very long, because, as Addicott says: “We will see gas prices collapse under the Trump administration, because he knows what he’s doing. Times are tough right now, but they’re not gonna be tough for very long. The Iranians are gonna be brought to their knees, and we will have stability in the Middle East.”