Washington, DC – U.S. Congressman Charles W. Boustany, Jr., MD (R-Southwest Louisiana) today condemned the Obama Administration’s decision to release 30 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR):

“It is absolutely wrong to use oil from the SPR when American energy production is down by a quarter of a million barrels a day in the Gulf of Mexico,” Boustany said.“This is an ill-advised, desperate political move by this Administration which will have no lasting effects on the economy. Releasing 30 million barrels of oil from our strategic reserves will do nothing to spur long-term economic growth. With its actions, the Administration proves yet again it has no meaningful energy policy for this country and has no serious plan to fix our economy.

“We should promote American energy production, especially in Louisiana and along the Gulf Coast, rather than rely on these ill-advised strategies. The SPR should be used only for crises, not for market manipulation. As we find more untapped energy sources around the country, this Administration continues to put up barriers to avoid using them.”

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