Backers see Obama tapping oil reserves

Backers see Obama tapping oil reserves

President Obama's aides say he has not yet decided whether to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a way to battle high gas prices, but many observers are expecting him to do just that.

Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., noted today on ABC's This Week that Obama "has reach ed out to other oil-producing countries around the world," and "they have got a strategy now to get more oil on the market."

"That should drive down prices," Van Hollen said.

The energy minister of one of those countries, France, said last week that it is ready to use its oil reserves as part of a coordinated international strategy, and "it was the United States that requested this." British officials have confirmed similar discussions.

Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., chairman of the House Budget Committee, described using the oil reserves as "political pixie dust in an election year."

"It really doesn't do a lot," said Ryan, who appeared with Van Hollen on ABC.

Like many Republicans, Ryan called for more domestic production of oil "that is locked on public lands by President Obama." He also advocated construction of the full Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the Texas coast.

"Unfortunately," Ryan said, "the president i s standing in the way of all of those kinds of reforms. and so he's resorting to what I call these sort of policy gimmicks that in the past really haven't done a whole lot to change the outcome."

Van Hollen pointed out that "domestic oil production is at an all-time high," to which Ryan replied: "That's private land, not public land."

There would be another reason for Obama to tap the strategic oil reserves: His decision to move forward with sanctions on Iran's oil exports.

"There currently appears to be sufficient supply of non-Iranian oil to permit foreign countries to significantly reduce their import of Iranian oil," said a White House statement.

The statement cited "current estimates of demand, increased production by some countries, private inventories of crude oil and petroleum products, and available strategi c petroleum reserves."