Biden faces increased pressure from members of his own party to release oil from the Strategic Peroleum Reserve to quell rising gasoline prices.
The group has been adding 400,000 barrels a day of production each month on paper, although its members have failed to pump that much in practice so far.
expanded its booster shot program in hopes of heading off a winter resurgence that would force other contingency measures to stem the spread.
The Biden Administration’s deliberations to release oil from the SPR comes as gasoline prices have hit a seven-year high, a political problem for Democrats who are experiencing sinking approval ratings.
That surpasses the record set in March 2020, right before the pandemic unleashed widespread demand destruction globally, triggering production shutdowns and bankruptcies across the U.S.