White House claims Americans are saving $420million because of lower gas prices

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre claimed on Tuesday that Americans are saving $420 million due to lower gas prices as President Joe Biden prepares to release up to 15 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

The average price of gas is $3.87 per gallon, about 20 cents higher than a month ago, according to AAA. Prices have fallen since this summer, when they were over $5 a gallon in some states in June.

“Everyday Americans are saving Americans up to $420 million compared to mid-June,” Jean-Pierre said at her Tuesday press conference.

Still, Biden plans to announce another 10 to 15 million barrels of US emergency oil reserves. Bloomberg News reported.

Biden could announce the release as soon as Wednesday, when Chief of Staff Ron Klain said he will comment on the government’s efforts to lower gas prices.

Jean-Pierre declined to say what policies Biden will discuss in his remarks on Wednesday, saying, “I’ll let the president speak for himself.”

President Joe Biden speaks on gas prices on Wednesday

David Turk, the president’s deputy energy secretary, said last week that the government could tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) in the coming weeks and months if necessary to stabilize oil.

News of the move to dampen gasoline prices comes just weeks before the pivotal midterm elections will test Biden’s approval.

A source familiar with the White House deliberations told Bloomberg that Biden wanted to cut gas prices for the interim terms.

“The government has a small window for the midterm elections to try to cut fuel prices, or at least show that they are trying,” the unnamed source said.

“The White House did not like $4 a gallon of gas and it has indicated it will take action to prevent that from happening again,” she added.

Polls show that voters are placing the economy and inflation at the top of their list of priorities.

In a New York Times/Siena College poll released on Monday, voters voted the economy first in their minds at 26%, inflation followed at 18%, then the state of democracy came in at 8%, while abortion and immigration got 5% each.

And President Biden consistently receives low marks for his handling of the economy, leading many Democrats to fear voters will vent their frustration at the high cost of food, energy and housing at the polls.

The New York Times/Siena College poll indicated that this could happen: 49% said they would vote for the Republican congressional candidate compared to the 45% who said they would vote for the Democrat.

Biden has drained the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to its lowest level in 40 years as he tries to combat rising gas prices and crude oil shortages linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Biden will announce release of up to 15 million barrels of oil from strategic reserve

Biden has released 160 million barrels of crude oil since March, pushing reserves to the lowest level in four decades.

The country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve held 416.4 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 30 — the lowest level since 1984, according to Department of Energy data.