[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 43 (Thursday, March 10, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1071-S1072]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 RUSSIA

  Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, it is interesting to listen to the 
reaction to the notion that we are going to stop our dependence on 
Russian oil. I totally support that. The notion that I would buy 
gasoline in my hometown and put it in my car or truck and somehow 
subsidize what Vladimir Putin is doing in the rape of Ukraine is just 
unacceptable. I believe there is not only a moral force but a political 
force behind this. Morally, there is no way we are going to support 
Putin. Politically, we have to come together with other nations and 
make this as painful as possible on him, and stopping the import of 
Russian oil is a move in that direction.

[[Page S1072]]

  It is interesting that that was a bipartisan position which I joined 
over the weekend--many of us did--Democrats and Republicans all saying: 
Enough with the Russian oil. We will find other ways to keep America's 
economy and cars and trucks moving without being dependent on Vladimir 
Putin or subsidizing his war effort.
  It was bipartisan--strong statements. In fact, there were as many 
statements in support of this from the other side of the aisle as this 
side of the aisle. Then what happened? Well, Dana Milbank, in this 
morning's Washington Post, tells the story of what happened.
  After President Biden made his announcement Tuesday, he said, 
accurately:

       ``Since Putin began his military buildup on Ukrainian 
     borders, just since then, [it is 2 weeks] the price of gas at 
     the pump in America went up 75 cents. And with this action 
     [the Americans will stop buying Russian oil] it's going to go 
     up further.'' [President Biden] dubbed it ``Putin's price 
     hike'' and said ``Russia is responsible.''

  Since this was a bipartisan idea--stopping the flow of Russian oil 
into the United States and subsidizing Putin's invasion of Ukraine--you 
would think there would be bipartisan applause. The exact opposite 
occurred.
  In a Dana Milbank article, which I will ask to be part of the Record, 
here is what was said by House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy:

       ``These aren't Putin prices. They're President Biden's 
     prices''. . . . ``Gas prices started rising the day President 
     Biden took office--when he canceled the Keystone Pipeline and 
     halted new drilling on federal lands.''

  It turns out that these assertions, by not just Kevin McCarthy but 
other Republican leaders, are just not accurate. Nobody goes to the 
task and assignment of actually backing up some of these facts like 
real history and real numbers.
  Here is what he says: Gas prices started rising on the day that Biden 
took office.
  Wrong.
  They have been on an upward trend since bottoming out in April 2020, 
at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. This is because of booming 
demand during the recovery. So this notion that these are Biden gas 
prices that just started going up magically after he was sworn--not 
true.
  Then I love this one on the Keystone XL Pipeline. How many times have 
you heard on the floor of the Senate--maybe even this morning--that 
canceling the Keystone Pipeline is the reason that gasoline prices have 
gone up?
  It turns out, according to Dana Milbank, that pipeline was only 10 
percent completed when Biden canceled it. Its owners didn't even expect 
to open it until next year, 2023, at the earliest.
  Well, how about this one? You hear this over and over again from so 
many Republicans: Biden halted new drilling on Federal lands, they say. 
According to Milbank:

       Wrong. After a temporary halt in new leases, Biden has 
     outpaced Trump in new drilling permits for public lands.

  That has been reported by the Washington Post.
  And as for Biden's shutdown of American energy, listen to this:

       U.S. production has increased under Biden from 9.7 million 
     barrels a day to 11.6 million barrels. The number of oil rigs 
     operating was 172 in July of 2020. . . . Now, 519 are in 
     operation. U.S. production is forecast to set a record next 
     year.

  Now, I don't doubt that stopping the Russian export of oil into the 
United States is going to have a negative impact on gasoline prices. It 
stands to reason. But there is an adjustment being made. The President 
spoke to it last night, at a meeting we attended, where he is working 
on other sources for America to make this hardship as little as 
possible.
  I ask unanimous consent that the Milbank article be printed in the 
Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                       [From the Washington Post]

 Biden Heeded Republicans' Pleas To Ban Russian Oil. Then They Pounced

                           (By Dana Milbank)

       A cynic is rarely disappointed by this Republican Party. 
     Yet even by that standard, the current attempt to blame 
     President Biden--and absolve Vladimir Putin--for the spike in 
     gas prices is a special case.
       For days, Republicans called for a ban on imports of 
     Russian oil, a move that, while the right thing to do to 
     counter Putin's attack against Ukraine, would cause already 
     high gas prices to rise even further. Biden did as 
     Republicans wanted--and they responded by blaming his energy 
     policies for spiking gas prices.
       It's not only that the charge is bogus--the current price 
     of gas has virtually nothing to do with Biden's energy 
     policies--but that the Republican officials leveling it are 
     sowing division at home and giving a rhetorical boost to the 
     enemy at a perilous moment when national unity and sacrifice 
     will be needed to prevail against Russia.
       Announcing the ban on Tuesday, Biden said, accurately: 
     ``Since Putin began his military buildup on Ukrainian 
     borders, just since then, the price of the gas at the pump in 
     America went up 75 cents. And with this action, it's going to 
     go up further.'' He dubbed it ``Putin's price hike'' and said 
     ``Russia is responsible.''


                 republicans leaped to putin's defense

       ``These aren't Putin prices. They're President Biden's 
     prices,'' House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy said during a news 
     conference on Wednesday. Via tweet, he claimed: ``Gas prices 
     started rising the day President Biden took office--when he 
     canceled the Keystone Pipeline and halted new drilling on 
     federal lands.''
       Rep. Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), head of the House Republican 
     Conference, added: ``Joe Biden blames Russia for skyrocketing 
     gas prices. But make no mistake--Biden's war on American 
     energy is to blame.''
       Scores of Republicans piled on. The GOP side of the House 
     Energy and Commerce Committee tweeted: ``Russia isn't 
     `responsible'. Biden's shutdown of American energy is.''
       That's just a gusher of mendacity.
       Gas prices ``started rising the day President Biden took 
     office''? Wrong. They've been on an upward trend since 
     bottoming out in April 2020 at the start of the coronavirus 
     pandemic. This is because of booming demand during the 
     recovery--not because of Biden's policies (or President 
     Donald Trump's, for that matter).
       Canceling the Keystone XL pipeline caused gas prices to 
     rise? Wrong. It was only 10 percent done when Biden canceled 
     it, and its owners didn't expect to open it until 2023 at the 
     earliest.
       Biden ``halted new drilling on federal lands''? Wrong. 
     After a temporary halt in new leases, Biden has outpaced 
     Trump in new drilling permits for public lands, The Post 
     reported.
       As for Biden's ``shutdown of American energy,'' U.S. 
     production has increased under Biden from 9.7 million barrels 
     a day to 11.6 million barrels. The number of oil rigs 
     operating was at 172 in July 2020, E&E News reports. Now, 519 
     are in operation. U.S. production is forecast to set a record 
     next year.
       What's holding back oil production isn't government policy. 
     U.S. producers still have 4,400 wells already approved and 
     drilled that are not yet producing. They aren't drilling more 
     because of a shortage of workers and equipment and, 
     particularly, investors' greed. As The Post reported, major 
     U.S. oil companies say they would rather use their profits 
     ``to boost payouts to shareholders'' than ``rush to drill new 
     wells.''
       Blaming Biden for the spike in prices around Russia's 
     Ukraine invasion isn't just false--it's an assist to Putin 
     that damages national security.
       Polls show that Americans--Republicans and Democrats 
     alike--favor banning Russian oil imports, even if that 
     increases energy prices. Seventy-nine percent said so in a 
     Wall Street Journal poll this week. Americans know the 
     stakes, and they are willing to sacrifice.
       But what happens if Republican lawmakers and their Fox News 
     masters persuade their supporters to believe that Biden, not 
     Putin, is to blame for their problems? Their willingness to 
     sacrifice dissipates--and so does their support for the fight 
     against Putin.
       It's lucky this hasn't happened already. Fox News's Tucker 
     Carlson, after parroting Kremlin talking points justifying 
     its invasion of Ukraine, has pivoted to blaming the United 
     States for provoking Putin. ``Why in the world would the 
     United States intentionally seek war with Russia?'' he asked 
     on Monday night.
       Trump himself has praised Putin's acuity, Sen. Josh Hawley 
     (R-Mo.) has called for the United States to appease Russia by 
     abandoning its support for Ukrainian membership in NATO, and 
     Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), after proposing to 
     impeach Biden for ``threatening war'' with Russia, now asks: 
     ``How is banning Russian oil (10 percent of our imports) 
     helping reduce gas prices hurting Americans?''
       Fighting Russian aggression while avoiding World War III is 
     hard enough. With Republicans acting in bad faith, it's that 
     much harder.

                          ____________________