THE GLARING OMISSION: Tom Steyer Claims “America’s Dependence On Foreign Oil Is The Lowest In Two Decades.”

THE TRUTH: The United States Is Now Increasing Its Dependence On Oil From Saudi Arabia.

By More Than 20 Percent, The United Sates Is Now Increasing Its Dependence On Oil From Saudi Arabia. “The United States is increasing its dependence on oil from Saudi Arabia, raising its imports from the kingdom by more than 20 percent this year, even as fears of military conflict in the tinderbox Persian Gulf region grow. The increase in Saudi oil exports to the United States began slowly last summer and has picked up pace this year. Until then, the United States had decreased its dependence on foreign oil and from the Gulf in particular.” (Clifford Krauss, “U.S. Reliance On Oil From Saudi Arabia Is Growing Again,” The New York Times , 8/17/12)

• Several Oil Refining Companies Are Buying More Crude From Saudi Arabia And Kuwait Because Of The “Insufficient Pipeline Connections Between United States And Canadian Sands Fields.” “In the United States, several oil refining companies have found it necessary to buy more crude from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to make up for declining production from Mexico and Venezuela, insufficient pipeline connections between the United States and Canadian oil sands fields, and the fallout from the 2010 BP disaster, which led to a yearlong drilling moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico.” (Clifford Krauss, “U.S. Reliance On Oil From Saudi Arabia Is Growing Again,” The New York Times , 8/17/12)

• Former Obama Staffer Says “Vulnerability Will Remain” Until We Have Access To Canadian Oil. “Many oil experts say that the increasing dependency is probably going to last only a couple of years, or until more Canadian and Gulf of Mexico production comes on line. ‘Until we have the ability to access more Canadian heavy oil through improved infrastructure, the vulnerability will remain,’ said David L. Goldwyn, former State Department coordinator for international energy affairs in the Obama administration. ‘The potential for an obstruction of the Strait of Hormuz therefore poses a physical threat to U.S. supply as well as a potential price shock on a global level.’”” (Clifford Krauss, “U.S. Reliance On Oil From Saudi Arabia Is Growing Again,” The New York Times , 8/17/12)

But President Obama Rejected The Keystone XL Pipeline. “President Barack Obama’s decision yesterday to reject a permit for TransCanada Corp.’s Keystone XL oil pipeline may prompt Canada to turn to China for oil exports.”(Theophilos Argitis and Jeremy Van Loon, “Canada Pledges To Sell Oil To Asia After Obama Rejects Keystone Pipeline,” Bloomberg, 1/19/12)