(Above video courtesy CBS News)
Following Tuesday’s news of a ban on the U.S. purchase of Russian oil by President Joe Biden, Kansas’ Republican Senators are weighing in.
Biden’s move comes a week after Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall teamed up on a letter calling for an embargo on Russian energy and introduced legislation that would ban the import of Russian oil. In a statement Tuesday, Sen. Marshall applauded the President but said the move was late, drawing similarities to Russian sanctions and aid to Ukraine.
Sen. Marshall on Fox News Monday suggested the administration could go even further, opening up the Keystone XL pipeline and amid other actions.
“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,” he said.
In a statement Tuesday, Sen. Moran called on the President to “immediately reinstate the Keystone pipeline and allow for new drilling leases on federal lands and waters and retreat from proposals that would install burdensome regulations and tax increases on domestic oil and gas producers.”
In an appearance on KMAN’s Morning Show Monday, Sen. Moran stated the U.S. should not continue to fund Russia’s ability to continue its aggression.
“We are funding the Russians to attack a country we’re trying to protect, at a time in which we have American men and women in the neighborhood,” he said.
Prior to President Biden’s announcement Tuesday, the U.S. was buying approximately 700,000 barrels of oil and other petroleum products per day from Russia. The average price of a gallon of gas in the U.S. hit a record $4.17 per gallon. AAA reports that average has gone up 55 cents in the past week and will likely continue to rise as tensions continue in Ukraine.
