Inside Biden’s Frustration with Soaring Prices
by Tyler Pager (Washington Post) Biden vented to aides after an ethanol announcement designed to ease gas prices, questioning the policy’s effectiveness — President Biden seemed upbeat when he visited an Iowa biofuels plant in April to talk about bringing down gas prices, standing before a large tractor as he declared that “biofuels have a role to play right now” and announced a plan to expand the use of ethanol over the summer.
But privately, Biden dismissed the policy as ineffective and questioned the value of the trip, according to two people familiar with the conversations. After returning to the White House, he hauled his senior staff, including chief of staff Ron Klain, into the Oval Office, badgering them with questions about the purpose of the event.
Biden had worried even before the announcement that it exaggerated ethanol’s ability to cut gas prices and could harm his climate goals, the people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. But Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and other officials urged Biden to go, arguing that it would at least help the Midwest — and the White House, after all, was desperate for ways to lower gas prices.
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The president has changed his approach to Saudi Arabia, a major oil producer, after vowing as a candidate to treat the country as a “pariah.”
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The renewed engagement with Saudi Arabia is one of the most striking policy consequences of the rising prices, as it marks a notable deviation from Biden’s campaign rhetoric and pledge to put human rights at the center of his foreign policy.
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Officials hope the visit will help bolster oil production and facilitate peace deals in the Middle East, bringing down gas prices in the process. READ MORE
High Oil and Gas Prices Test Drive a Global Carbon Tax: The recent impact of rising energy costs shows some challenges to putting a meaningful price on carbon emissions (Wall Street Journal)
The Costly Contradictions of Biden’s Crusade for Green Energy: The assault on fossil fuels distorts or undermines many other domestic and international priorities. (Wall Street Journal)
$5 IS HERE: Gasoline hit $5 per gallon on a national basis for the first time ever on Saturday (Politico’s Morning Energy)
Biden privately griped that focusing on biofuels wouldn’t help lower gas prices, report says (Business Insider)
No need for Biden to visit Saudi Arabia when South Dakota has fuel solution: Your letters (Aberdeen News)
Excerpt from Politico’s Morning Energy: But even if he (President Joe Biden) can secure additional barrels beyond the modestly higher increase the Saudis pushed under the recent OPEC decision, tight refinery capacity is likely to prevent any significant new supply from reaching motorists. White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Cecilia Elena Rouse told CNN Friday the president was looking into ways to ramp up refinery capacity, and considering “what he can do administratively, whether that’s working with oil companies and refineries asking them, ‘We recognize your back capacity challenges — what can we do to help you maintain your refining capacity and bring more oil online?'” READ MORE
