President Biden is selling the future prosperity of America for his political present. On May 22, Biden announced the release of a million barrels from the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve just in time for the 4th of July. "A transparent political ploy from the President to get gas prices down and get a small bump for his abysmal poll numbers," an observer commented. This decision, akin to the $5.5 trillion in new spending he approved, might help Biden temporarily but could harm the country’s long-term prosperity.
Critics argue that whenever Biden must choose between America’s long-term health and his short-term political objectives, he consistently opts for the latter. They claim Biden's polls-based economics results in more inflation, slow growth, and reduced prosperity for all Americans.
The primary goal of the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve is to protect the regional economy from hurricanes, natural disasters, or other disruptions until companies can restore regular service. However, according to critics, "For Biden, his flailing poll numbers are more than enough justification to dip into this gasoline reserve," potentially leaving America vulnerable during actual emergencies.
This is not the first instance where Biden has depleted an energy reserve. The government has stored millions of oil barrels inside salt caverns along the Gulf of Mexico coastline as part of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), designed to protect against drastic supply shocks caused by wars or emergencies. Critics assert that "Biden irresponsibly uses these reserves to pay for his short-term political ambitions."
During his presidency, Biden has sold almost 270 million barrels of oil—nearly half of America's SPR. For comparison, between 1985 and 2011, the U.S. stockpiled a net total of 280 million barrels into this reserve over 26 years.
Concerns have been raised about continued depletion: "If Biden keeps selling America’s strategic oil reserves as he has... our oil reserves will be at a critical point." Critics label Bidenomics as economic nonsense and wasteful spending.
Upon taking office amidst existing inflation pressures due to prior government money printing efforts, critics believe a responsible president would have curbed excessive spending to prevent further inflationary pressures. Instead, they argue that "Biden did the opposite; he pushed on excessive spending." His administration added $5.5 trillion through legislation such as the American Rescue Plan and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
When President Biden took office, inflation was at 1%. Eighteen months into his presidency saw prices hit a historic high of 9.1%. Observers state that life is now almost 20% more expensive compared to 2021 due to these policies.
Instead of reducing spending or harnessing America's energy potential responsibly, critics contend that increased government expenditure coupled with draining strategic energy reserves led to rampant inflation and high national debt while jeopardizing future energy security.
"It’s time for Washington to put Americans ahead of their political fortunes," concluded one commentator.
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