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The problems are piling up for Joe Biden with no end in sight ahead of the 2024 Election.
Now, one just landed on his desk from the most unlikely of sources.
And Joe Biden was blindsided when he was thrown this nasty curveball for 2024 from abroad.
OPEC deals Joe Biden a crushing blow on gas prices
High gas prices have been one of the persistent problems plaguing Joe Biden’s Presidency since he entered office.
Biden is paying the price for declaring war on American energy production beginning on his first day in the White House.
Gas prices hit record highs during the summer of 2022 before he began draining the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to bring them down before that year’s Midterm Elections.
Inflation and the cost of living have consistently ranked as top issues for voters in polling for the 2024 Election.
Voters give former President Donald Trump a significant edge over Biden in handling inflation in most polls.
Gas prices are climbing again with the start of the summer driving season and refineries being required to switch production to more environmentally friendly summer blends of gasoline.
And that’s bad news for Biden’s re-election campaign.
Giant billboards with high gas prices on them are a painful and visible reminder for millions of Americans of the cost-of-living crisis during his Presidency.
The Biden administration recently announced that it was tapping one million barrels of gasoline from the Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve to lower gas prices in the northeast heading into the Fourth of July Holiday.
Biden knows that gas prices are a serious political liability heading into the election.
Now, the oil-producing countries of the world dealt Biden another major setback on gas prices.
OPEC+ announces move to keep high gas prices through the Presidential election
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its partners (OPEC+) announced that they were going to extend oil production cuts through next year to boost prices.
The eight largest oil-producing countries in the cartel also agreed to keep a voluntary cut of 2.2 million barrels a day going into 2025 as part of a separate deal.
These production cuts all but guarantee that a dramatic drop in gas prices won’t happen before the November election.
OPEC+ trying to boost oil prices comes as Saudi Arabia is trying to sell shares of Saudi Aramco – the country’s state-run oil company – raising $12 billion.
Saudi officials are using the money to try and diversify their economy.
Another major wildcard for gas prices is going to be hurricane season.
Researchers with the National Weather Service predicted that there’s going to be an 85% chance of an above-normal Atlantic Hurricane season.
That could potentially disrupt the operation of oil refineries located on the Gulf Coast.
GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis, Patrick DeHaan, said production being disrupted could cause prices to jump.
“However, should U.S. oil production see a hurricane hiccup, this could provide a bit more potential for upside in July and August,” DeHaan stated.
High gas prices and the cost of living crisis could sink Joe Biden’s re-election campaign.
Election Buzz will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.
