Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., called on President Joe Biden to "admit his mistake" regarding U.S. energy independence, and ban imports of Russian oil.
Marshall spoke to Fox Business on a day oil prices spiked to their highest levels since 2008 amid market supply fears as the U.S. and European allies considered banning Russian oil imports and prospects for a swift return of Iranian crude to global markets receded.
Marshall said Biden has "declared an all-out war on oil." The most notable example was the president stopping construction of the Keystone XL pipeline shortly after taking office.
"All of America thinks we should ban Russian oil except for one person, and that’s Joe Biden," Marshall told Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo. "But American energy independence is a message we’ve been preaching of for a year.
"I grew up in the oil patch. I know exactly how important affordable energy is to make this economy run, but Joe Biden has declared an all-out war on oil. It's not just pipelines. It's also the Federal Reserve. It's the EPA. It's the Interior Department. They've all declared war on drilling oil, but, look, there’s a good appetite up here."
Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Thursday introduced legislation calling for a declaration of national emergency and to direct Biden to impose a ban on Russian oil imports.
"Joe Manchin stepping up once again — you talk about a profile in courage — Joe Manchin stepping up to lead the Democrats, but the president’s going to have to admit his mistake for once and let us turn this policy around," Marshall told Bartiromo.
Reuters on Monday cited two sources in reporting that the Biden administration was willing to move ahead with a ban on Russian oil imports without the participation of allies in Europe.
The U.S. national average price Sunday for regular gasoline hit $4 a gallon, the highest price since July 2008, according to AAA. During the first full week of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the price of regular gas rose by almost 41 cents.
Other potential suppliers of oil include Iran, which would need several months to restore oil flows even if it reaches a nuclear deal, analysts said.
The Biden administration also discussed with Venezuela the possibility of easing oil sanctions on the South American country but made little progress toward a deal in their first high-level bilateral talks in years, five sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
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