The price of oil has blown past $125 per barrel this morning as the Biden administration's climate change agenda continues to hamper progress on lowering costs.
Over the weekend, a number of State Department diplomats were deployed to Venezuela in hopes of pulling off sanctions on the Maduro regime in order for the U.S. to tap back into the country's oil supply.
"Senior U.S. officials are traveling to Venezuela on Saturday to meet with the government of President Nicolás Maduro, according to people familiar with the matter, as the Biden administration steps up efforts to separate Russia from its remaining international allies amid a widening standoff over Ukraine," The New York Times reports. "The trip is the highest-level visit by Washington officials to Caracas, Venezuela’s capital, in years. The United States broke off diplomatic relations with Mr. Maduro and closed its embassy in Caracas in 2019, after accusing the authoritarian leader of electoral fraud. The Trump administration then tried to topple Mr. Maduro’s government by sanctioning Venezuelan oil exports and the country’s senior officials, and by recognizing the opposition leader, Juan Guaidó, as Venezuela's lawful president."
Last week, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said importing oil from Iran, the world's largest state sponsor of terror, was being considered.
Buttigieg says buying oil from Iran (the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism) is “on the table” pic.twitter.com/l6n4eqTHTW
— Logan Ratick (@Logan_Ratick) March 3, 2022
And now after months of begging OPEC to pump more oil, the Biden administration is planning a potential trip to the kingdom to make the plea in person.
SCOOP: Biden’s advisers are discussing a possible visit to Saudi Arabia this spring to help repair relations and convince the Kingdom to pump more oil, Axios has learned.https://t.co/pXnOoCldIi
— Axios (@axios) March 6, 2022
But as far as ramping up production in the United States, the administration has no plans to do so while insisting Americans must move forward with an energy "transition."
Biden’s Energy Secretary on high gas prices:
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 3, 2022
"We're working through an energy transition...The reality is, we have to take some time to get off of oil and gas, we recognize this. This is a transition." pic.twitter.com/ZOCJIdZCa5
Meanwhile, the White House continues its refusal to sanction or ban imports of Russian oil as President Vladimir Putin continues his unprovoked war on Ukraine.