By PTI
WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden announced that his administration has worked with 30 other countries to release millions of barrels of oil from American strategic reserves to maintain the global oil prices in the midst of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In his maiden State of the Union Address on Tuesday, Biden said his administration was taking robust action to make sure the pain of the US sanctions is targeted at Russia’s economy.
He vowed that his administration will use every tool at its disposal to protect American businesses and consumers. “To all Americans, I will be honest with you, as I’ve always promised. A Russian dictator, invading a foreign country, has costs around the world,” Biden said.
“Tonight, I can announce that the United States has worked with 30 other countries to release 60 million barrels of oil from reserves around the world. America will lead that effort, releasing 30 million barrels from our own Strategic Petroleum Reserve. And we stand ready to do more if necessary, unified with our allies,” Biden said.
“These steps will help blunt gas prices here at home. And I know the news about what’s happening can seem alarming. But I want you to know that we are going to be okay,” he said, assuring his countrymen that he would ensure that inflation remains under control.
Biden said his plan to fight inflation will lower the costs and lower the deficit.
The US president said 17 Nobel laureates in economics say his plan will ease long-term inflationary pressures and top business leaders and most Americans support his plan.
Biden said that he is the only president ever to cut the deficit by more than one trillion dollars in a single year.
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“Lowering your costs also means demanding more competition. I’m a capitalist, but capitalism without competition isn’t capitalism. It’s exploitation and it drives up prices,” he said.
When corporations don’t have to compete, their profits go up, your prices go up, and small businesses and family farmers and ranchers go under.
“We see it happening with ocean carriers moving goods in and out of America. During the pandemic, these foreign-owned companies raised prices by as much as 1,000% and made record profits,” he added.
Biden announced a crackdown on these companies overcharging American businesses and consumers.
As Wall Street firms take over more nursing homes, quality in those homes has gone down and costs have gone up, he said, adding, that ends on my watch Medicare is going to set higher standards for nursing homes and make sure your loved ones get the care they deserve and expect.
“We’ll also cut costs and keep the economy going strong by giving workers a fair shot, provide more training and apprenticeships, and hire them based on their skills, not degrees,” he said.
Biden urged Congress to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act and paid leave.
“Raise the minimum wage to USD 15 an hour and extend the Child Tax Credit, so no one has to raise a family in poverty,” he said.
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“Let’s increase Pell Grants and increase our historic support of HBCUs, and invest in what Jillour First Lady who teaches full-time calls America’s best-kept secret: community colleges. And let’s pass the PRO Act when a majority of workers want to form a union they shouldn’t be stopped,” he said.
Biden urged the lawmakers to make sure corporations and the wealthiest Americans start paying their fair share.
“Just last year, 55 Fortune, 500 corporations earned $40 billion in profits and paid zero dollars in federal income tax. That’s simply not fair. That’s why I’ve proposed a 15 per cent minimum tax rate for corporations,” he said.
“We got more than 130 countries to agree on a global minimum tax rate so companies can’t get out of paying their taxes at home by shipping jobs and factories overseas. That’s why I’ve proposed closing loopholes so the very wealthy don’t pay a lower tax rate than a teacher or a firefighter,” said the president.
