Menendez: We Should Stop Importing Russia's Oil, Up to Biden to Decide if He Wants to Drill More

On Thursday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “MTP Daily,” Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) said he thinks the U.S. should impose an embargo on Russian oil, but whether U.S. oil production should be increased to make up for the loss of Russian oil is up to President Joe Biden.

Menendez said, “I support a full embargo, even though it would equate to about — if it’s just the U.S. alone — about 4% of Russian sales globally. But I think it is an important step to make, and I think it is gaining traction. And I think that the president will have to look to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and other measures to offset any domestic challenges. But, look, an evil, horrible war needs some dramatic actions. And so, I think this is one of many that can be taken.”

Later, after host Chuck Todd asked about the prospect of increasing domestic oil production along with an embargo of Russian oil, Menendez stated, “I don’t think one hinges on the other. I hope my Republican colleagues aren’t saying we should stop Russian oil only if we have more exploration. That would be pretty outrageous. So, I think we should stop Russian oil. Now, how the president chooses to meet the challenge of that percentage of Russian oil that equals the entire oil of the United States that it imports is a question for him to decide, whether he opens up more of the Strategic Petroleum Reserves, whether he gets allies that are oil-producing nations to step up to the plate, or whether he permits some increase in domestic production on lands that are already in production.”

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