Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) urged President Joe Biden to halt the extraction of oil from the U.S.’s petroleum reserves, advocating instead for the utilization of “our own God-given natural resources.”
Johnson’s remarks followed the Biden administration’s announcement on Tuesday to release 1 million barrels of gas from storage facilities in the Northeast. The cost of gas has emerged as a significant point of contention for many voters, who cite the escalating cost of living as a critical issue ahead of the 2024 presidential election, in which Biden is seeking another term.
“Use our own God-given natural resources and stop this massive deficit spending,” Johnson said on Fox News’s Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo. “Studies show that an average American family is spending more than $1,000 per month just to maintain their standard of living due to Biden’s inflation. Surveys indicate that anywhere from a third to two-thirds of Americans can’t handle a $400 emergency. They lack that much savings. How can they possibly afford $1,000 a month? They can’t.”
The senator from Wisconsin expressed his hope that voters “connect the dots” and vote the Biden administration “out of office.” The upcoming 2024 presidential election is likely to feature a rematch between Biden and former President Donald Trump.
During the summer of 2022, when gas prices hit a record high of $5.01 per gallon, Biden authorized the sale of 180 million barrels of oil from the U.S. emergency stockpile, a move initiated a few months after the onset of the conflict in Ukraine. Although gasoline prices subsequently fell, the order depleted the U.S.’s gasoline reserves to their lowest level in 40 years.
As of now, the national average price of gasoline, according to AAA, is $3.59 per gallon, a slight decrease from last month’s average of $3.66 but marginally higher than last year’s average of $3.57 per gallon.
The economy is expected to be a significant issue for voters in the upcoming November elections, with 73% of all voters in a recent poll ranking the cost of living and inflation among their top three concerns. Additionally, 60% of respondents in the poll expressed disapproval of Biden’s economic performance.
