The White House Press Secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said that it is the “patriotic duty” of oil and gas companies to combat rising prices by cutting profits and producing more fuel amid the administration’s continuous narrative of blaming the war in Ukraine.
Her statements follow President Biden accusing big oil companies of seeing their profit margin triple amid global energy shortages and record gas prices.
“We see it as a patriotic duty … as we’ve talked about, there’s war happening right now. That was caused by Russia, which is why we’re seeing these hikes in gas prices, especially since Russia has amassed, started amassing troops, on the border [of Ukraine],” she said.
“We want to focus on the oil refinery, which is why we put out the letter today or yesterday; I’m losing track of time,” Jeane-Pierre said at a briefing.
‘And so we see that as an important first step in making sure that the oil refineries are doing their part again – patriotic duty – and making sure that they’re putting out capacity, and they’re not taking advantage of it’s of a war that is hurting the American public,” she continued.
Jean-Pierre said that the White House and the oil companies would “hopefully” have a conversation. “We’re going to get to a solution and move this forward,” she said.
The Press Secretary accused the oil companies of using the war as a tool for company profiteering.
“They are using this moment, using this moment of war, where the American, where American families are feeling the high costs with food and gas,” she said.
“That is not a patriotic thing to do, and the president has the right to call them out.”
The comments come on a day when Biden issued a letter to the oil companies demanding they reduce profits and the cost of fuel nationwide. In his letter, Biden cited an “unprecedented disconnect between the price of oil and the price of gas.”
In the letter, he informs them he has ordered Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm to convene an emergency meeting with company executives to explain any reduction in refining capacity since 2020.
While using the typical blame game of “Putin’s war of aggression,” claiming that it is the primary cause of a dwindling supply of oil, Biden also pointed out that oil company profit margins are at the highest recorded levels.
On Thursday, the gas price nationwide remained above $5 per gallon, according to AAA.