On Tuesday morning, President Joe Biden announced that he would be making available 50 million barrels of oil from the national Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The release is designed to ease a perceived tightness in supply and lower gas prices that have been rising in advance of the holiday travel season. Of those 50 million, 18 million had already been authorized by Congress. Republicans have seized on claims of rapidly rising gas prices, along with fear-mongering over “empty store shelves” to create a narrative that not only is inflation soaring, but both Thanksgiving tables and Christmas living rooms are going to be bare. And somehow, all of this can be blamed on Biden. The truth is that gas prices were already in decline even before the strategic reserves were tapped. The Houston Chronicle reports that while prices remain higher than they were a year ago—when travel restrictions and a greater fear of the pandemic strongly impacted consumption—they’ve fallen over the past week. When it comes to product availability, The Wall Street Journal reports that the “shelves overfloweth” at the nation’s largest retailers. But Republicans are riding a disaster narrative. Don’t expect that train to stop soon. Read more