The Biden administration will announce the sale of 14 million crude oil barrels from the strategic petroleum reserve this week in the hopes of lowering gas prices before the November midterm elections.
President Joe Biden authorized the sale of 180 million barrels of oil in March to bring down gas prices. Now the administration will direct the Energy Department to auction the remaining 14 million barrels, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the situation.
The White House is desperate to lower the price of gasoline due to concern that high prices could weaken the Democrats’ chances of winning key congressional and gubernatorial races on Nov. 8.
Biden has continuously blamed Russia for making gas prices “too high” and previously stated that he wasn’t finished bringing down prices at the pump.
The White House also threatened Saudi Arabia to not cut oil production before the midterm elections; however, Saudi Arabia and OPEC slashed production by 2 million barrels per day on Oct. 5.
The national average gas price is $3.87 per gallon, 55 cents higher than it was in October 2021, according to AAA.
The DOE will sell 26 million more barrels of crude to oil companies throughout fiscal year 2023, which began on Oct. 1, according to Reuters. The department will release its plans to buy back oil to refill the emergency stockpile, currently at its lowest level since 1984, and may continue repurchasing oil throughout 2025.
The White House and DOE did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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