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President Joe Biden announced a ban on Russian oil and gas imports on Tuesday buckling to intense bipartisan pressure to block them and suspend trade relations with the communist country over President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
“That means Russian oil will no longer be acceptable at U.S. ports and the American people will deal another powerful blow to Putin’s war machine,” Biden unconvincingly asserted during remarks given at the White House.
“This is a move that has strong bipartisan support in Congress and I believe in the country,” he noted, never hinting at the accusation that he reportedly tried to stall the move over the weekend. “Americans have rallied to support the Ukrainian people and made it clear we will not be part in subsidizing Putin’s war,” he said.
White House correspondent and fill-in anchor for Fox News Jacqui Heinrich tweeted just before Biden’s announcement that there was intense back and forth about the ban, according to her sources.
“Biden stalled bipartisan bill to ban Russian oil. A source close to the process tells me that the House Ways and Means Committee worked all weekend in a bipartisan manner to develop a bill to ban all Russian oil imports…” she tweeted on Tuesday.
🚨NEW, thread: Biden stalled bipartisan bill to ban Russian oil.
A source close to the process tells me that the House Ways and Means Committee worked all weekend in a bipartisan manner to develop a bill to ban all Russian oil imports…
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) March 8, 2022
Heinrich went on to allege that Biden also personally thwarted a bipartisan effort by the Ways and Means committee to remove Russia from its ‘favored nation’ status on tariffs.
…because this source tells me the White House called Ways & Means Dems and told them NOT to move forward on it.
Ways & Means Dems wanted to push ahead anyway – so at about 6:30 last night, someone from the White House called Pelosi’s office to intervene.
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) March 8, 2022
Pelosi, I’m told, still did want to move ahead. So the White House then targeted Sen Wyden via Schumer, to get him to pull out on the Senate side so it would all fall apart.
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) March 8, 2022
Henrich said members of both parties felt ‘rolled’ by the White House, and sure enough, Biden would announce a ban on Russian energy imports after all of the reported weekend turmoil.
Members from both parties expressed frustration that they spent the whole weekend working in a bipartisan fashion only to get rolled by the WH.
**and as I type this, Reuters reports a WH announcement to ban Russian oil is imminent.
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) March 8, 2022
Henrich’s reporting was met with both praise and support, but perhaps the next tweet sums it up the response best:
Cynical take: Biden wants credit for something that’s very popular
Generous take: Biden wants this to be an executive order so that he can use it as a bargaining chip to get Putin to withdraw/ ceasefire.
So far, Americans are not being joined by Europeans in the ban but Biden claims to have consulted America’s allies. The Europeans are unlikely to impose a ban due to fears concerning runaway inflation and retaliation from the Russians.
“We’re moving forward this ban understanding that many of our European allies and partners may not be in a position to join us,” the president noted acting as if there had been no friction on the subject at all. “The United States produces far more oil domestically than all the European countries combined.”
“We can take this step when others cannot, but we’re working closely with Europe and our partners to reduce their dependence on Russian energy as well,” he announced still refusing to allow Americans to become energy independent once again by opening pipelines and pumping our own oil once more.
The United Kingdom is also expected to ban the import of Russian oil on Tuesday afternoon according to Politico. However, allegedly unlike the United States, the UK will allow for a months-long lead-in time to allow the global market to adjust and to stave off panic-buying of gas.
Bloomberg News is reporting that Congress forced Biden’s hand on the Russian oil ban. Those officials closest to the president evidently thought it would be a “bad look” and requested that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stall the bill.
MORE NEWS: Congress was already moving to force the admin’s hands on Russian oil ban, and some in White House believed that’d be a bad look. Biden officials last night asked @SpeakerPelosi to hold off on bill, sources tell @jendlouhyhc, @SalehaMohsin & me.https://t.co/nCxM876LuZ
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) March 8, 2022
— 𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧 𝙏𝙚𝙙 𝘾𝙤𝙪𝙥𝙨 (@BasedCorp) March 8, 2022
What we do know for sure, is that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for “boycotts of Russian exports, namely refusal from oil and oil products from Russia” on Monday.
“If the invasion continues and Russia does not change its plans, then the new sanctions package is needed,” Zelenskyy declared. “New sanctions steps against the war, for the sake of peace.”
He called for “boycotts of Russian exports, namely refusal from oil and oil products from Russia.”
Shell Oil formally announced on Tuesday that it would stop buying Russian crude oil and close its station in the country. This happens the same day as gas prices hit a record all-time high in the United States according to National Review.
Biden laid the groundwork for even higher gas prices stating that banning Russian oil is “not without cost at home.”
Biden upon announcing the ban on Russian oil admits it's "going to cost us." pic.twitter.com/vlHDjcKurv
— American Wire News (@americanwire_) March 8, 2022
“Putin’s war is already hurting American families at the gas pump,” he proclaimed and warned that the ban will increase gas prices.
The president asserted, “It’s simply not true that my administration or policies are holding back domestic energy production.”
He took virtually no responsibility for the 40-year-high rampant inflation in the United States and the skyrocketing gas prices. Instead, he blamed Russia for all of it in the speech he gave on Tuesday.
❌ Fact check false ❌
BIDEN: "It’s simply not true that my administration or policies are holding back domestic energy production." pic.twitter.com/7kyLsH7GEO
— BPR (@BIZPACReview) March 8, 2022
Watch as Biden desperately tries to blame the increase in gas prices on Putin. pic.twitter.com/xcwDRAN9EY
— BPR (@BIZPACReview) March 8, 2022
Former President Donald Trump, unfortunately, predicted the massive gas price hike if Biden were elected president. In 2020, he said, “If Biden got in, you’d be paying $7, $8, $9, then they’d say, ‘get rid of your car.'”
Trump in 2020: "If Biden got in, you'd be paying $7, $8, $9, then they'd say, 'get rid of your car.'" pic.twitter.com/mSWp0AT1Yc
— BPR (@BIZPACReview) March 8, 2022
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