A top White House spokeswoman could not preview any more proactive steps the administration is taking to mitigate rising gas prices.
Tuesday was the second consecutive briefing in which White House principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was needled to provide examples of the administration’s response as motorists experience escalating sticker shock at gas pumps around the country.
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“I don’t have anything specific for you. I can just tell you what we’ve been doing here, which is calling on OPEC to increase their supply,” she said of the White House’s crackdown on price gouging.
A handful of Senate Democrats this week implored President Joe Biden to consider tapping emergency oil supplies or banning crude oil exports to combat climbing prices.
Jean-Pierre’s comments Tuesday echoed remarks she made Monday, when she repeated that the White House did not have any announcements regarding Biden’s options to counter higher prices other than relying on the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
“We’re monitoring the prices, and we’re making sure that we have tools in our tool belts that we can try and use. But at this time, I don’t have anything new to share,” she said.
Jean-Pierre cleared up confusion Tuesday concerning whether the White House is weighing closing the Line 5 petrochemical pipeline between Canada and Michigan.
Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is putting pressure on Canadian company Enbridge to shutter the line to prevent oil spilling from the four-mile section under the Great Lakes. Enbridge is adamant the twin lines are in good repair and have not caused an issue in their 68-year history.
“The state of Michigan is objecting to the continued use of easement for the current pipeline,” Jean-Pierre said Tuesday. “Additionally, Canada has decided to invoke the dispute resolution provision of the 1977 Transit Pipelines treaty on the current pipeline. We expect that both the U.S. and Canada will engage constructively in those negotiations.”
A day earlier, Jean-Pierre misunderstood a question, describing reports the White House was considering ending Line 5 as “inaccurate.” But she added that “the Army Corps of Engineers is preparing an environmental impact” assessment on a possible replacement segment.
Jean-Pierre also could not provide an update Tuesday on when Biden would receive his annual medical checkup, whether the president had spoken to Republican Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin of Virginia or the six liberal House Democrats who voted against his $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure deal, or even if he would pardon a turkey this Thanksgiving.
But she did condemn Arizona Republican Rep. Paul Gosar for tweeting a video depicting him slaying New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and being menacing toward Biden.
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“There is absolutely no place for any violence of any sort in the political system. I won’t go any further than that,” she said.
