On The Money — Biden bracing for blowback at the pump

Happy Wednesday and welcome to On The Money, your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line. Subscribe here: digital-release.thehill.com/newsletter-signup.  

Today’s Big Deal: President Biden is trying to prepare Americans over the price-tag of holding Russia accountable. We’ll also look at the future of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, the prospect of a trucker blockade of D.C., and Big Tech using China and Russia to fight against antitrust legislation. 

For The Hill, we’re Sylvan Lane, Aris Folley and Karl Evers-Hillstrom.  Reach us at slane@digital-release.thehill.com or @SylvanLane, afolley@digital-release.thehill.com or @ArisFolley and kevers@digital-release.thehill.com or @KarlMEvers. 

Let’s get to it. 

 

WH preps public for sanctions sticker shock  

The White House is prepping the public for the likelihood that sanctions on Russia will have a ripple effect that hits their pocketbooks. 

President Biden and other administration officials acknowledge the steps the U.S. and European nations are taking to deter Moscow from further aggression against Ukraine are likely to spur higher gas prices. But they argue defending an ally and trying to stop a war in Europe is a worthy cause.  

• Oil prices climbed Wednesday, with the price of a barrel of West Texas Intermediate Crude for April delivery rising 33 cents to $92.24 shortly after 5 p.m.  
• Experts believe prices are likely to shoot higher if Russia’s invasion into Ukraine widens and western nations impose new sanctions — and higher still if Russia’s actions in eastern Europe disrupt the energy market to which it is a major contributor. 

“Should the Russian incursion into eastern Ukraine turn into a full-fledged invasion, it is likely that the global and U.S. economies will absorb yet another supply shock,” wrote Joe Brusuelas, chief economist at audit and tax firm RSM, in a Tuesday analysis.  

• Gasoline prices were up 40 percent and natural gas utility service prices rose 24 percent on the year in January, according to the Labor Department’s consumer price index (CPI).  
• They fueled much of the 7.5 percent annual increase in overall prices seen last month.   

Brusuelas said the energy shock unleashed by war in Ukraine would likely push oil up to $110 per barrel, reduce U.S. economic growth by nearly 1 percent over the next year and stoke inflation close to 10 percent. 

“As costly as another European war would be in human and economic terms, its economic burden in the United States would fall hardest on the middle and working classes,” Brusuelas wrote.  

Brett Samuels and Sylvan have more here. 

MORE SANCTIONS

Biden imposes Nord Stream 2 sanctions 

President Biden on Wednesday announced sanctions against the company behind a controversial Russian natural gas pipeline in response to Moscow’s decision to send troops into eastern Ukraine.   

Biden said in a statement that his administration would put sanctions on Nord Stream 2 AG, the parent company of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and its corporate officers.  

“These steps are another piece of our initial tranche of sanctions in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine. As I have made clear, we will not hesitate to take further steps if Russia continues to escalate,” Biden said. 

• The move comes after Biden announced other sanctions against Russian financial institutions, elites and sovereign debt. 
• White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday that the pipeline is “dead at the bottom of the sea” after Germany halted the project. 
• The Kremlin has vowed to respond, with one Russian official stating that Americans will feel the “consequences” of higher gas prices stemming from sanctions. 

The Hill’s Rachel Frazin has the story here.  

Read more: Five things to know about Nord Stream 2 shutdown 

 

ANTI-ANTITRUST

Big Tech allies point to China, Russia threat in push to squash antitrust bill 

Big Tech’s numerous allies in Washington are repeating a similar message as they lobby lawmakers to abandon antitrust legislation: The U.S. needs tech giants at full strength to counter China, Russia and other threats to national security.    

The last-ditch effort comes as the Senate gears up to consider the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, a bipartisan bill that would prevent dominant digital platforms from favoring their own services and empower antitrust enforcers to scrutinize the largest tech firms.  

Tech-funded advocacy groups and think-tanks have ramped up the national security argument, which has appeared to sway a number of senators, amid Russian aggression in Ukraine.  

• Tech giants and their advocacy groups have inundated lawmakers with calls, emails, op-eds and political ads warning that the antitrust proposal will give Beijing the upper hand in the technological arms race.  
• Amazon and Meta bankroll more than 100 different Washington-centric groups, including influential conservative and liberal organizations and have developed ties to former U.S. national security officials who oppose the antitrust bill. 
• The bipartisan group of lawmakers pushing the antitrust bill say that the tech sector needs more competition to promote innovation.  

The shift from portraying themselves as national champions to a hedge against the Chinese Communist Party has come despite many major tech companies’ big presence in China.   

Read more from Karl and Chris Mills Rodrigo. 

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RETURN OF THE GUARD

Pentagon approves National Guard deployment ahead of DC trucker convoy 

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has approved hundreds of unarmed National Guard troops to be deployed in Washington, D.C., ahead of a truck convoy protest against pandemic restrictions that is expected to coincide with President Biden‘s first State of the Union address.  

The Department of Defense (DOD) said that Austin had approved a request that had been made by the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) for assistance from National Guard members.  

• According to the DOD, the approval will allow about 400 D.C. National Guard members to “provide support at designated traffic posts, provide command and control, and cover sustainment requirements.” 
• Beginning at 1 p.m. on Feb. 26, “50 large tactical vehicles” will be placed at these traffic posts on a 24-hour basis. The deployment has been approved to last through March 7.  

The Hill’s Joseph Choi has more here. 

VIRTUAL EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT

America’s Report Card—Friday, Feb. 25; 12:30 PM ET/9:30 AM PT

Ahead of the State of the Union, The Hill takes stock of the administration’s response to the pandemic and its impact on the economy. We’ll discuss legislative priorities in a midterm year and the potential for any bipartisan action. Join us for interviews with Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C), Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.),  WH Sr. Advisor Cedric Richmond and more. RSVP today.

 

Good to Know  

Target announced this week that it will drop its mask requirement for shoppers and employees inside stores. 

The company updated its website on Monday to reflect the change, saying that customers and staff will only be asked to wear masks in order to adhere to local regulations.  

Here’s what else we have our eye on: 

• The European Union has approved sanctions against key members of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle. 
• The Canadian government began lifting a freeze on more than 200 bank accounts linked to recent protests in the country. 
• House lawmakers introduced a bill that would eliminate subsidies for the construction of professional sports stadiums. 
• Twitter on Wednesday said accounts highlighting Russian disinformation on the social media platform had been improperly suspended. 
• Several Ukrainian government websites were down following a cyberattack on Wednesday, a Ukrainian official confirmed on Telegram, with banks’ websites also affected. 
• Lawmakers are drawing heat over their pushback to a federal grant program meant to reduce harm among drug users with “safe smoking kits,” with advocates decrying the claims that taxpayer money is being spent on “crack pipes.” 

 

That’s it for today. Thanks for reading and check out The Hill’s Finance page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you Thursday.