Democrats Float an End to US Troop Protection for Gulf Nations After OPEC+ Production Cut

Joseph LordOctober 6, 2022

Some Democrats are floating the idea of removing U.S. troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over a recent decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries plus Russia (OPEC+) to substantially slash oil production.

Since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021, the cost of gasoline and other energy sources to consumers has seen a substantial uptick.

Republicans have placed the blame for rising costs squarely on Biden’s “anti-American” domestic energy policies.

While in office, Biden made extensive changes to the energy policies of former President Donald Trump, who led America to become energy independent for the first time in decades. Biden, who promised during his campaign to “transition away from the fossil fuel industry,” wasted no time in halting construction on the Keystone XL pipeline and placing a moratorium on leasing federal lands to natural gas and oil companies.

Extenuating the effects of Biden’s climate and energy policies is collusion by OPEC+ and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, both of which have led to further rising costs.

On the morning of Oct. 5, OPEC+ announced that it would be cutting its oil production by two million barrels a day—a cut in production that will have tangible consequences for American consumers.

In its statement announcing the sharp downtick in production, OPEC+ cited “uncertainty that surrounds the global economic and oil market outlooks.” The announcement marks the largest cut in oil production by OPEC+ since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Currently, the world market produces around 100 million barrels of oil a day, meaning that the OPEC decision represents approximately a two percent cut in global production. The hit on consumers will be more than two percent, however, according to experts.

Dan Kish, a senior fellow at the Institute for Energy Research, a nonprofit which leans