Biden drained America's emergency oil stockpile to historic lows.
Trump's returning to the White House and cleaning up the mess.
And Biden's Strategic Petroleum Reserve crisis left Trump with 300 million barrel problem.
Biden Drained 300 Million Barrels From Strategic Petroleum Reserve After Gas Prices Hit Record Highs
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve sat at 638 million barrels when Biden walked into the Oval Office in January 2021.
Today it's down to 367 million barrels — a 42% collapse that left America vulnerable after the biggest oil drawdown in history.
Biden pulled roughly 300 million barrels from emergency stockpiles over four years, more than all previous presidents combined going back to 1975 when Congress created the reserve.
The reserve hit lows not seen since 1983 — back when it was still being filled.
Biden's first raid came in November 2021 when he released 50 million barrels, claiming he needed to ease pandemic supply chain pressures and bring down gas prices.
That didn't work, so he doubled down in March 2022 with an unprecedented release of up to 1 million barrels per day for six months as gas prices climbed.
The excuse changed to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but the real motive was clear: Democrats faced a midterm bloodbath with inflation crushing American families.
Republicans called it what it was: raiding America's emergency reserves to win an election.
Heritage Foundation Energy Expert Says Shale Revolution Made America Energy Independent
Diana Furchtgott-Roth from The Heritage Foundation explained to Fox News Digital why the Strategic Petroleum Reserve doesn't carry the same weight it did three decades ago.
"I don't think for the security of the United States, for the economy of the United States, I don't think the SPR is as important as it was 25, 30 years ago because now we are one of the greatest oil and natural gas producers in the world," Furchtgott-Roth said.
The shale revolution changed everything.
America became the world's largest natural gas producer in 2011, overtaking Russia.
Then in 2018, U.S. crude oil production surpassed both Saudi Arabia and Russia.
That surge came from horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing unlocking massive reserves.
Trump's first administration supercharged domestic production with an "unleashing" energy agenda and his "drill, baby, drill" mantra.
The result: America went from depending on foreign oil to becoming a net energy exporter for the first time since 1952.
Trump's 'Drill Baby Drill' Energy Dominance Policy Reduces Strategic Petroleum Reserve Importance
Furchtgott-Roth hammered home the point that Trump's policies fundamentally rewrote America's energy security equation.
"We have the potential to produce a lot more, and we have a government that's supportive of that," she said.
"It's now possible to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, but I just want to say the biggest strategic petroleum reserves we have is right under our feet in places like Texas, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Ohio. We have so much oil and natural gas in this country."
Trump signed executive orders within days of returning to office aimed at "Unleashing American Energy" — rolling back regulatory barriers and fast-tracking permits.
The administration also reversed Biden's "pause" on liquefied natural gas export approvals.
Furchtgott-Roth blasted Biden's drawdowns as a misuse of emergency reserves never meant to manipulate consumer prices.
"That's not what the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is supposed to be useful for," she said. "It's supposed to be used for a national security emergency. It's not supposed to be used because prices are too high. And in this case, it was a self-caused emergency caused by President Biden's different policies regarding oil and natural gas."
Biden's green energy crusade drove prices up, then he raided emergency reserves to hide the damage before elections.
Venezuela Oil Under Chris Wright Could Help Trump Refill Strategic Petroleum Reserve
The capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro in January created an unexpected opportunity.
Trump announced Venezuela would turn over between 30 and 50 million barrels of sanctioned oil to the U.S.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright told Fox Business that Venezuelan crude is "particularly well-suited for American refineries" and "helpful for giving us multiple ways to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve."
But an administration official made clear that refilling the reserve with Venezuelan oil isn't currently under consideration.
The focus remains on Trump's long-term strategy: domestic production as America's real strategic reserve.
Furchtgott-Roth noted Venezuela's oil comeback would take time because production collapsed from roughly 3.5 million barrels per day before Hugo Chávez to under 1 million today after the regime destroyed infrastructure.
Congress must appropriate funding to fully replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
The recent spending bill set aside $218 million for maintenance and repairs and another $171 million to begin refilling stockpiles.
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers summed up the Biden damage: "Joe Biden's disastrous green energy policies sent gas prices soaring across the country, making the past four years painfully unaffordable for Americans filling their gas tanks to commute to work, take their children to school, and travel during the summer and holiday seasons."
Trump's refilling the reserve Biden recklessly drained.
But the real strategic reserve sits beneath American soil — and Trump's unleashing it.
Sources:
- Diana Furchtgott-Roth interview, "Trump's energy dominance rewrites the Strategic Petroleum Reserve after Biden drawdowns," Fox News Digital, January 19, 2026.
- Cathy McMorris Rodgers and John Barrasso letter, "Rodgers, Barrasso Call Out Biden Administration for Continued Abuse of Strategic Petroleum Reserve," House Energy and Commerce Committee, 2023.
- Strategic Petroleum Reserve Oil Releases analysis, Congress.gov Library of Congress, October 2021-October 2022.
- Chris Wright statements, multiple sources, January 2026.
- White House statement via Taylor Rogers, Fox News Digital, January 19, 2026.