E&C Republicans Lead to Stop Biden from Sending America's Strategic Oil Reserves to China

Press Release

House Energy and Commerce Republicans submitted an amendment to an annual energy spending bill to prevent President Joe Biden from jeopardizing America's energy and national security by selling oil from America's Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR) to the Chinese Communist Party.

Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) released a statement on the dire need for Congress to protect America's strategic oil reserves from the Chinese Communist Party.

"President Biden is draining the Strategic Petroleum Reserves and sending our emergency reserves to China -- that's not a solution to the energy crisis that Americans are suffering from today. My amendment would protect our stockpile and prohibit the sale of America's strategic crude oil reserves to China.

"President Biden needs to remember that our strategic energy reserves are for emergencies, not to cover-up the consequences of him shutting down American energy. The purpose of America's strategic reserves is to keep America powered during emergencies, not communist dictatorships.

"To lower prices, President Biden's focus should be flipping the switch on American energy production. That's why Republicans are leading on solutions like the American Energy Independence from Russia Act which reverses his war on domestic energy production. It permits drilling on federal lands and waters, approves the Keystone XL pipeline, unleashes U.S. LNG exports, and protects energy and mineral development from government attacks."

Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC) spoke in favor of the amendment before the Rules Committee on Monday.

His remarks as prepared for delivery:

STOPS BIDEN FROM SENDING OIL RESERVES TO CHINA

"This amendment is very simple -- it would prohibit the Department of Energy from sending America's emergency oil reserves to China. These are Strategic Petroleum Reserve resources, owned by the taxpayer, and they're there for certain circumstances and events.

"Because of President Biden's hostility to oil and gas, our domestic production and refining capacity has declined by more than 1 million barrels per day since President Biden took office.

"Energy prices have surged past historic records. People have been forced to pay more than $6 per gallon in many regions of the country.

"Now, President Biden is looking for cover. He is looking to distract American voters from the painful realities of his anti-fossil fuel agenda by releasing an unprecedented 260 million barrels of oil from our SPR."

BIDEN'S PRICE HIKE

"Releasing oil from the SPR is not doing anything to lower gasoline prices. It's a temporary blip. It is not the solution to the energy crisis Americans are facing today.

"The oil being released -- more than 1 million barrels per day -- it really has nowhere to go.

"Our refineries are full. Our pipelines are full. As a result, America's emergency reserves are being sent to China, which is using it to build up its own strategic reserves."

[…]

"At the rate President Biden is depleting our emergency reserves, we may not have anything left to respond to a true emergency. Hurricane season is here. Like if a hurricane strikes the Gulf of Mexico or a major pipeline goes down, how are we going to respond to that if we deplete these reserves?

"The irony is that when prices plummeted at the onset of COVID, President Trump's DOE wanted to buy oil and fill more of the SPR.

"Democrats, the same Democrats who are now tapping the SPR until there's nothing left, opposed filling it up--they claimed it was a "sellout to big oil.'"

[…]

"Now, selling off our strategic stockpile will not lower gas prices, and when it is used by our foreign adversaries, like China, to enhance their security at our expense, it threatens our national security.

"The solution to high gas prices is to reverse the anti-fossil fuel policies that President Biden imposed on his first day in office."

RESTORING AMERICA'S ENERGY DOMINANCE

"We need to approve the Keystone XL pipeline, restart lease sales for oil and gas production on Federal lands, and rollback the regulations that slow infrastructure permitting and discourage investments in fossil fuels."

[…]

"We need to return to the energy dominance we had under the prior administration. We need to increase production of oil and gas and increase refining capacity in America.

"President Biden wouldn't need to go to Saudi Arabia and beg MBS, like he did last Friday, to produce more if he unleashed production here in the US."

[…]

He can commit the oil and gas producers here in America to new leases, faster permits, and an end to the regulatory war on pipelines and the supply of capital.

"Bottom line is we need to stop draining the Strategic Petroleum Reserve oil and handing our energy security over to China."

Source