Trump Proposes Selling Off Half the US Strategic Oil Reserve

[IsailedawayfromFR]

The White House plan to trim the national debt includes selling off half of the nation’s emergency oil stockpile, part of a broad series of changes proposed by President Donald Trump to the federal government’s role in energy markets.

Trump’s first complete budget proposal, released in part on Monday, would raise $500 million in fiscal year 2018 by draining the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and as much $16.6 billion in oil sales over the next decade.

The proposal also seeks to boost government revenues by allowing drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, ending the practice of sharing oil royalties with states along the Gulf of Mexico and selling off government-owned electricity transmission lines in the West. Like much of the budget, those moves are likely to face opposition on Capitol Hill.

Presidential budget proposals typically undergo significant changes in Congress, but they provide insight into White House priorities.
http://www.newsmax.com/StreetTalk/trump-crude-oil-oil-u-s-oil/2017/05/22/id/791697/

Bet this was not part of the deal making in Saudi Arabia

[ABX]

What the Duck?


Another thing Trump is doing that Conservatives threw a fit about when Obama did it.

Examples:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3355105/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/3512342/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3353338/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2851385/posts


Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

[ABX]

Bet this was not part of the deal making in Saudi Arabia

Let's see....
Sell off our emergency stores.
Puts a massive amount of oil on the market.
Crashes the price of oil.
US companies hit hardest, slow or stop production (just like when the Saudis dumped oil on the market).
Saudi's step in and begin to fill gap as prices go up.
We have to restock our emergency stores, now at higher prices, more money to the Saudis.

[corbe]

From the Article:

Offshore Royalties

Trump’s budget request also revives an Obama-era proposal to cut the payments Gulf Coast states collect from offshore drilling near their coastlines, a change that would translate to an extra $3.56 billion in federal revenue over the next decade. Under a 2006 law, four Gulf states -- Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas -- now claim 37.5 percent of the royalties that oil and gas companies send the federal government in exchange for drilling rights and production on some Gulf of Mexico leases.

Trump’s move echoes Obama’s attempt to divert some of those royalty payments. And his bid to quash state revenue sharing is likely to meet the same fierce resistance that Obama’s plans did. Just as they did under Obama, Gulf Coast lawmakers will fight to defend those payments, which help support restoration programs.

   This is not gonna go over well in the Gulf states, I'd venture to say this particular proposal is DOA.

[ABX]

From the Article:

   This is not gonna go over well in the Gulf states, I'd venture to say this particular proposal is DOA.

That's adding to the post above, making it harder for US companies to compete by stripping their profits and crashing the prices.

This helps no one but OPEC and maybe those betting against our economy (aka Soros types).

[ABX]

Another note on Offshore Royalties, this is also something Obama tried to do that our side raised holy hell over.
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/02/obama_budget_tries_to_realloca.html
https://www.bna.com/obamas-last-year-n57982066467/
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2620414/posts?page=1

[Night Hides Not]

With oil at $50/bbl, we should be adding to the SPR. IMHO, we also need to be adding additional sites to the SPR, too. We're the world's largest economy, with 350 million people. We need to have more than 90 day supplies in the event of an emergency.

[ABX]

With oil at $50/bbl, we should be adding to the SPR. IMHO, we also need to be adding additional sites to the SPR, too. We're the world's largest economy, with 350 million people. We need to have more than 90 day supplies in the event of an emergency.

Keeping up the old government tradition of buying high and selling low.

[txradioguy]

What the Duck?


Another thing Trump is doing that Conservatives threw a fit about when Obama did it.

Examples:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3355105/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/3512342/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3353338/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2851385/posts


Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

Clinton/Gore did the same thing with the Elk Hills Naval Petroleum Reserve in 1997.

Occidental Petroleum who bought the reserves was a long time contributor to Gore Sr and Jr.

[txradioguy]

This helps no one but OPEC and maybe those betting against our economy (aka Soros types).

No wonder the Saudis were all smiles while Trump was there.

[Smokin Joe]

Keeping up the old government tradition of buying high and selling low.

Exactly. Will the 20% proposed import tax be on oil, too?

[Hoodat]

What the Duck?


Another thing Trump is doing that Conservatives threw a fit about when Obama did it.

Examples:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3355105/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/3512342/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3353338/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2851385/posts


Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

But . . . but . . . but this is different.

[kevindavis007]

Bad idea..

[Smokin Joe]

@thackney Check this thread out.

[Hoodat]

The White House plan to trim the national debt includes selling off half of the nation’s emergency oil stockpile

Totally useless without the budget being in balance.  If you continue to spend more than you bring in, the debt will continue to go up.

[ABX]

Totally useless without the budget being in balance.  If you continue to spend more than you bring in, the debt will continue to go up.

It is also a one time fix that has to be recouped in terms of the reserves being built back up. This is almost like taking a payday loan to pay a credit card payment to show you paid on time that month.  Bill Clinton pulled this crap too (one of several temporary moves) so he could claim a budget surplus.

[Hoodat]

Bill Clinton pulled this crap too (one of several temporary moves) so he could claim a budget surplus.

They only way that Bill Clinton could claim a budget surplus is by doing what Bill does best.  He lied.

The last year the budget was in surplus, Eisenhower was in office.

[edpc]

The last year the budget was in surplus, Eisenhower was in office.

A surplus, under any administration, just means the people were overtaxed.

[XenaLee]

What the Duck?


Another thing Trump is doing that Conservatives threw a fit about when Obama did it.

Examples:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3355105/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/3512342/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3353338/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2851385/posts


Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

Yeah, and I don't like it one damned bit.  There's a reason it's called an "emergency" stockpile (duh).   We may very well need it.  Trump is not acting in the best interest of our national security here.

[jmyrlefuller]

A surplus, under any administration, just means the people were overtaxed.

So you propose never paying the debt down?

The fact is, we as a nation haven't had a positive balance sheet since 1835. Yes, that was when Andrew Jackson was President.

[Hoodat]

A surplus, under any administration, just means the people were overtaxed.

The converse of that:  A deficit, under any administration, just means that the people were undertaxed.

[edpc]

The converse of that:  A deficit, under any administration, just means that the people were undertaxed.

Not really, because the revenue generated from taxation is a fairly known quantity.  You budget on what you know the income will be.

[thackney]

@thackney Check this thread out.

For some additional info:

U.S. plan to sell oil reserve shows declining import needs
http://www.gopbriefingroom.com/index.php/topic,264170.msg1334137.html#msg1334137

[thackney]

With oil at $50/bbl, we should be adding to the SPR. IMHO, we also need to be adding additional sites to the SPR, too. We're the world's largest economy, with 350 million people. We need to have more than 90 day supplies in the event of an emergency.

At current levels, it would take over 156 days to empty the SPR.  The SPR can only deliver 4.4 million barrels per day.  But that is enough; remember if OPEC decided to embargo oil deliveries to the US, it isn't going to stop domestic production or Canada or Mexico or many others.  We currently import ~3.2 million barrels per day from OPEC.

U.S. Crude Oil Imports by Country of Origin
https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_move_impcus_a2_nus_epc0_im0_mbblpd_m.htm