Bush to discuss oil prices with Saudi king

[RamboLiberal]

Source: Yahoo

President Bush said Monday that when he meets Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah later this week, he'll bring up the effect that high oil prices are having on the U.S. and global economies.

"Of course I'll bring it up to him," Bush said in a CBS News radio interview. However, he added that the capacity of the Saudis to raise production — and thus help lower prices — is limited.

"When you analyze the capacity for countries to put oil on the market it's just not like it used to be," Bush said. "The demand for oil is so high relative to supply these days that there's just not a lot of excess capacity."

However, Saudi Arabia has considerable additional production capacity. It's pumping a little over 8.5 million barrels a day, compared with about 9.5 million barrels a day two years ago, and has acknowledged the ability to produce as much as 11 million barrels a day.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080512/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_interview

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Bush In 2000: Bush Blamed Clinton Administration For High Gas Prices; Promised "Immediate Relief" By Using His "Capital" With Saudis And Kuwaitis. "Campaigning for president in a state particularly hard-hit by high gasoline prices, Texas Gov. George W. Bush on Tuesday blamed the nation's predicament on the Clinton administration, which he said is operating without an energy policy. "This is an administration that is hoping the issue goes away,' Bush said. ... 'The vice president seems to forget who's been in office for seven years,' Bush said. 'This is an administration that has been in charge, and the price of gasoline has risen steadily since they've been in office.' Asked what he would do as president to address the price at the pump, Bush said he would confer with oil-producing allies and ask them to pump more crude. 'I would use the capital my administration will earn with the Kuwaitis or the Saudis, to convince them to open up the spigot,' Bush said. 'That's where we will get immediate relief.'"

http://www.democrats.org/a/2006/04/bushs_ever-chan.php