Top Democrats are proposing tough actions in response to Saudi Arabia’s support for the OPEC+ oil production cuts, with options ranging from an overhaul of security cooperation, a halt in weapons sales to the kingdom, to the overhaul of a policy that grants the oil cartel protection from U.S. antitrust laws.
Here are the options Democrats are pushing for:
Blocking new weapons sales:
Some top Democrats are calling for a “freeze” in cooperation between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, including on issues of security.
Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, vowed to block all weapons sales to Saudi Arabia unless it “reassesses” its position on the sales.
Menendez also called for leaders to immediately freeze “all aspects” of U.S.-Saudi cooperation “beyond what is absolutely necessary” to defend U.S. personnel and interests.
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) called for legislation to halt arms sales and security cooperation with Riyadh. Saudi Arabia imports roughly 80% of its arms from the United States, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
NOPEC legislation:
“NOPEC,” or the No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act, would allow the U.S. government to sue OPEC and OPEC+ producers for violating antitrust laws and trying to control oil production.
Versions of NOPEC have stalled in Congress for decades, due in large part to opposition by former presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
In May, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 17-4 to advance the bill to the full chamber, but it was never called to the floor for a Senate vote amid concerns that Biden might not sign it into law.”
At the time, the White House had expressed concerns about “unintended consequences” NOPEC might have on global energy markets and the risks of potentially alienating top oil producers.
Since then, the risk calculus has obviously changed.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Senate Democrats are now weighing passing the bill.
BIDEN ‘REEVALUATING’ SAUDI ARABIA TIES AS DEMOCRATS RAIL AGAINST OPEC+ SNUB
Complete military drawdown:
A trio of House Democrats, Reps. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), Sean Casten (D-IL), and Susan Wild (D-PA) introduced legislation that would force a drawdown of all U.S. military personnel from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates within 90 days. It also calls for a complete withdrawal of missile defense systems from Middle Eastern countries.
Releasing more oil from the U.S. emergency stockpile:
One option for Biden to move unilaterally would be to order the release of additional oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Biden already ordered the sale of 180 million barrels of oil from the SPR reserves in March—the largest and fastest sale since the stockpile’s creation in the 1970s.
But it also helped curb soaring energy prices in the U.S., taking political heat off Democrats temporarily.
In doing so again, Biden could add more supply to the global market and counteract, at least for a little while, the OPEC+ production cuts.
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But more drawdowns could pose new national security risks, and experts cautioned that by draining the SPR too far, the U.S. might not have enough left to cover a supply disruption in the future.
