Biden faces bipartisan pressure to ban access to Russian oil and gas
Fox News White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich details the push from lawmakers to prohibit Russian oil imports.
When he travels to Texas Tuesday, President Biden will be greeted with near-record gas prices as the Russia-Ukraine war stretches into a thirteenth day.
Before he leaves Washington for Fort Worth, Biden is expected to announce a ban on Russian oil imports to the United States.
Americans are experiencing the highest gas prices since the 2008 financial crisis, with the national gas price average reaching more than $4 per gallon – the highest average to date, according to AAA.
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The previous record was $4.103 set during the financial crisis in 2008, according to data from GasBuddy.
Gas prices are displayed at a Mobil gas station in Brooklyn, New York, Feb. 10, 2022. (Michael Nagle/Xinhua via Getty Images)
As of Tuesday, the average price per gallon of gas in Texas, according to AAA data, is $3.855, just slightly under the national average of $4.173. And according to Gas Buddy, the cheapest price for a gallon of unleaded gas in Fort Worth on Monday was $3.59.
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The average in Texas for regular unleaded falls just under its record-high of $3.985 in July 2008.
The administration has faced bipartisan pressure to ban Russian oil and increase domestic energy production. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Monday, called for "boycotts" of Russian oil imports to the U.S. and European countries.
In this March 8, 2022, image from video provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office and posted on Instagram, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
A Biden administration official told Fox News on Tuesday that a decision on a possible ban of oil imports from Russia to the United States is "imminent." White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday said that "no decision has been made at this point."
Russia is the third-largest producer of oil in the world, but the impact to U.S. oil imports would be "minimal" compared to allies, administration officials told Fox News.
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Russian oil exports account for about one third of Europe’s oil imports, however, for the United States, Russian exports are just under 10% of U.S. overall imports.
"We are also very well aware, as we're having these conversations and as we're consulting with our partners, that there would be—that we have different capacities and capabilities," Psaki said.
Democrats and Republicans in Congress have also said it may be time for a ban on Russian imports.
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Republicans and moderate Democrats alike are calling for the ramping up of American energy production, with GOP lawmakers criticizing the Biden administration for shutting down U.S. oil and gas pipelines.
President Biden clears his throat as he announces new steps requiring government to buy more made-in-America goods during remarks in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building's South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington, March 4, 2022. (REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein)
When asked about potential congressional legislation to ban Russian oil imports to the U.S., and whether the president would sign such legislation into law, Psaki quipped: "Is a bill on its way over here that’s passed Congress? I don’t think so."
"The president has not made a decision at this point in time," she said. "So that's where we stand."
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Biden is traveling to Fort Worth with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough to speak with VA health care providers about addressing the health effects of environmental exposures such as burn pits. He will also receive a briefing on primary care and specialty health services for veterans.
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