Republicans Reportedly Preparing 90-Day Ban On Private Companies Selling Diesel Outside The U.S.

At the moment, the average gallon of gas in the U.S. costs $4.47, and a gallon of diesel sits at a record-high $6.52. Those prices may still be lower than they are in other parts of the world, but by U.S. standards, that's pretty expensive. Republicans, of course, could have stopped Trump's stupid war to make gas expensive, but that would have required having a backbone, so instead they began floating the idea of using power of the federal government to ban private companies from selling diesel outside the U.S. Initially, the idea sounded like something that would never go anywhere, but per the latest report from Politico, the White House is preparing a 90-day diesel export ban.

Ahead of a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Tuesday, Trump told reporters, "I've said let's not send out the diesel. We make a lot of diesel ... I've called for it. I've called ​for it within my people." That's not exactly a detailed or nuanced policy proposal, but there's only so much you can expect from an 8,000-year-old president whose brain is clearly leaking out of his ears. Reuters reported that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also claimed to be on board, saying the administration was looking into its options. Now, Politico reports Republicans say they're actually going to go through with a 90-day export ban. 

If Democrats were the ones suggesting a diesel export ban, you just know Republicans would be losing their minds over "government interference" and "Communist Trans Sharia Law" or whatever. Then again, this certainly wouldn't be the first time Republicans abandoned their supposed beliefs the moment they're no longer convenient. And they're clearly desperate for anything that might lessen Republican losses in an upcoming midterm election where even the Texas Senate appears to be in play for Democrats. 

It's hard to feel much sympathy for Republican politicians these days. And with voters increasingly fed up with higher prices and a pointless war that appears to have made it even more likely that Iran will develop a nuclear weapon, Republicans candidates have been calling for a ban. That includes Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK), who said Tuesday, "American fuel should stay home with Americans. The cost of diesel is just too damn high. I'm calling for a temporary pause of American diesel exports so that we can rebuild our reserves ahead of winter and put American and Alaskan families first."

Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA) and Mike Rogers (R-MI) have also called for the federal government to interfere with private business and were even willing to break with Trump on the war with Iran, calling for him to end it quickly. Hinson, of course, voted against September's war powers resolution that would have actually (potentially) done something to rein Trump in, but again, we're talking about Republican politicians here. You can't expect them to actually do anything. Just talk. And in this case, flail a little.

Even if you manage to ignore the blatant hypocrisy of Republican politicians suddenly calling for more "government interference," not less, the biggest problem with a diesel export ban appears to be the fact that it's unlikely to lower diesel prices significantly while risking a massive spike in gasoline prices. Oh, and there also may not be a legal way for the federal government to ban private companies from exporting diesel, and most experts think it's a bad idea anyway. As Politico put it:

A ban, the legal process of which is still being worked out, has created splits inside the administration and with the oil industry, which has warned that any short-term benefit would be outweighed by higher fuel prices in the future. Any halt to shipments would be the first restriction on U.S. energy exports since the Obama administration lifted a decades-old ban on oil exports in 2015.

...

Some GOP lawmakers, refining industry executives and even some administration officials are still trying to convince President Donald Trump that a ban would be a bad idea, one that could backfire by eventually raising prices for gasoline, jet fuel and other fuels, said people familiar with the discussions who were granted anonymity to describe internal White House communications.

OK, so yes, there's the risk that a diesel export ban could backfire and send prices higher at a time when regular people really don't need gas getting any more expensive, but what about the other risks? Oh, you know. It could just make everything worse, and even a lot of Trump's stooges reportedly recognize it's a terrible idea. From Politico:

A 90-day ban could cause diesel prices to drop in some U.S. regions in the short term as tankers of the fuel originally intended to go to Europe or Asia are instead pumped back into the U.S. fuel system, raising domestic supply. But refiners would eventually slow down production in answer to the loss of a major export market, causing prices to rise.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum have protested the idea of a total ban, people familiar with the internal discussions said.

Politico also reports that "Wright made a round of calls to energy CEOs on Tuesday night telling them a 90-day ban was likely to happen in the coming days" and that "[a] number of CEOs immediately began calling the White House to push back on the ban, the adviser said, cautioning that 'there's a lot of swirl so it might change.'" The advisor reportedly told Politico, "It's a terrible idea," as well. 

Another source, described as "[a]n external adviser to the administration," was quoted saying the White House had received "a bunch of frantic outreach" over the last several days. As Politico put it, these people are "worried the administration would repeatedly extend a ban and establish precedent for government intervention in energy markets — a playbook Democrats could use as well." Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Wright said:

The blunt tool of banning diesel exports definitely doesn't work because the U.S. exports a lot of diesel. We're the largest diesel exporter in the world, but that same refinery that produces diesel also produces gasoline and jet fuel. So, if you can't export the diesel that comes out of our refineries when you run out of places to store it, and you have to reduce U.S. refining, which would put upward pressure on gasoline prices and jet fuel prices.

So not everyone's on board, including some pretty important people in the administration. Will Trump and other Republicans go through with it? From the sound of it, we're going to find out soon, whether it sounds like a terrible, self-defeating idea or not.