NO. Did Saudi Arabia Just Hand the Midterms to the GOP?

Biden had hoped for cooperation from Riyadh to help starve Russian president Vladimir Putin’s war machine, which is largely funded by hydrocarbon sales, and further hinder his invasion of Ukraine (Russia’s deputy prime minister, who is under U.S. sanctions, was present at the OPEC+ meeting in Vienna). And of course, Biden wanted gas prices to be going down, not up, in the lead-up to November’s midterm elections.

The insult to Biden came just a few months after the president visited Saudi Arabia and exchanged an infamous fist bump with Crown Prince (and newly appointed prime minister) Mohammed bin Salman. That gesture of friendship with a brutal tyrant was readily interpreted as a nasty bit of realpolitik, with Biden bowing to the fact that he needed Saudi Arabia to keep the oil flowing to keep both inflation and Russia in check. On that visit, Biden secured an understanding from Saudi Arabia and its junior partner, the UAE, to increase production by a total of about 1.25 million barrels per day. The Saudis did ramp up production during the summer, when oil was over $120 a barrel, but backed off as prices began to fall again.

Biden ended American energy independence, called Saudi Arabia a pariah state, and then expected them to bail him out.

“Blame it on the Saudis” is nothing more than obvious post-election battlespace prep to discredit a GOP victory.

The left can’t blame the Russians this time, so the Saudis will have to do.