Ted Cruz (Republican from Texas) introduced Wednesday a bill that would prohibit the Biden administration’s sale of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPRs) to China and Chinese Communist Party(CCP-owned) companies.
Cruz’s bill, Protecting America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve from China Act (the Protecting America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve from China Act), was cosponsored this month by more than a dozen Senate Republicans. It closely matches the House bill. The House bill was passed by a overwhelming bipartisan vote of 331 to 97 with 113 House Democrats voting for it.

If the Democratic leaders agree to take up the bill, the bill will have a chance in Senate because of the easy House vote.

Cruz stated in a statement that the Strategic Petroleum Reserve was meant to guarantee that America has sufficient oil reserves in case of emergency.

Cruz stated that Joe Biden instead sold a portion this crucial national security asset to China Communist Party while the CCP was stockpiling crude oil for its own strategic uses, and while Americans pay higher fuel prices because of the disastrous energy policies of the Biden administration.”

He stated, “We must immediately take action to prevent this from happening in future and unleash American energy.”

Biden ordered the Department of Energy’s first tap into the SPR in December 2021. He stated that it was a major effort to lower the price of oil and lower the prices at “corner gas stations”. Biden announced a 30-million barrel release following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year and another 180 million barrel release in March 2022.

The administration’s actions have resulted in the SPR falling to its lowest level since 1986. Chinese-controlled companies have been able to purchase at auction two million barrels despite possessing one of the largest oil stocks in the world.