众议院最早将于周三就一项法案进行表决，该法案将把拜登政府禁止俄罗斯石油和能源产品进口到美国的禁令合法化，审查俄罗斯加入世界贸易组织的情况，并加强全球马格尼茨基人权问责法案，以便美国可以进一步制裁俄罗斯。
立法投票的节奏会非常快——绕过通常的立法程序，这清楚地表明，立法者希望惩罚俄罗斯入侵乌克兰。虽然它得到了民主党和共和党的支持，但一些共和党人一直在抨击拜登政府禁止俄罗斯石油进口的决定，尽管两党都呼吁这样做。
共和党人虽然赞扬政府禁止俄罗斯石油的决定，但很快转向批评天然气价格上涨，因为一些众议院议员指责拜登涉嫌拒绝美国的石油和天然气生产，因为政府可能会考虑与委内瑞拉和沙特阿拉伯达成石油协议。
“首先，拜登总统，不要再乞求独裁者生产我们美国需要的能源。不要去俄罗斯。不要去伊朗。当答案就在我们脚下时，不要去委内瑞拉。众议院共和党党鞭史蒂夫·斯卡利斯在新闻发布会上对记者说:“是时候让拜登总统对美国能源说‘是’了。”。
众议院共和党人一个接一个地轮流批评政府。
新墨西哥州众议员伊维特·赫瑞尔说:“我们永远都不应该认为，在能源方面，外国石油比美国独立要好。”。
“我们睡在自己做的床上，”阿肯色州众议员布鲁斯·韦斯特曼说。“当你允许能源政策被欧洲的儿童、华尔街觉醒的投资者、以及那些真正认为电动乘用车将解决能源危机和气候危机的政客所左右时，就会发生这种情况。”
“我们不需要购买俄罗斯的能源，但我们也不需要购买伊朗或委内瑞拉的能源。我们需要在美国生产各种形式和各种类型的能源，而且要比世界上任何人都做得好，”韦斯特曼补充道。
德克萨斯州众议员August Pfluger表示，拜登今天在德克萨斯州时，应该会见石油和天然气高管和公司。
“除了预先计划的会议，他应该做的是会见石油和天然气高管和公司，”普夫卢格说。“他应该做的不是呼吁恐怖主义政权满足我们的需求，而是呼吁国内生产商，他们比世界上任何人都更清楚如何生产我们需要的能源，以及我们在世界各地的合作伙伴和盟友需要的能源。”
“总统的第一个电话应该打给得克萨斯州米德兰市市长，而不是马杜罗，”他补充说。
周二在众议院，共和党领导人凯文·麦卡锡抨击拜登去年关闭了Keystone XL管道。
“民主党人想把飞涨的物价归咎于俄罗斯。但事实是，他们脱离了政策，这是我们在这里的原因。第一天，总统取消了Keystone管道，并停止了在联邦土地和水域的新的石油和天然气租赁。然后，他给普京的管道开了绿灯，”麦卡锡说。
“如果我们想降低价格和保护环境，我们必须优先考虑美国的能源独立。我们脚下有自然资源。我们拥有世界上最好的工人:钻井、建造管道、运行钻机，并以最清洁的方式提取天然气，”他说。
“我们只需要那些不会碍事的政客，”他补充道。
众议院议长南希·佩洛西星期二在给民主党人的一封信中宣布了这项能源立法。她宣布制定禁令之前，美国总统乔·拜登(Joe Biden)周二早些时候宣布禁止俄罗斯石油和能源进口。
佩洛西上周强有力地支持潜在的石油禁令，并在当时表示，立法将迫在眉睫。
“因为这项立法是当务之急——无论是从道德上还是从我们的安全利益上——众议院今天将在议会上审议这项立法。佩洛西在给民主党人的一封信中说:“我们希望我们有一个强大的两党投票。”。
该法案将禁止俄罗斯石油和能源产品进口到美国，采取措施审查俄罗斯加入世界贸易组织的情况，并重新授权和加强全球马格尼茨基人权问责法案，以便美国可以对俄罗斯实施进一步制裁。
凯文·迪奇/盖蒂图片社
众议院议长南希·佩洛西离开美国国会的民主党党团会议..
尚不清楚众议院的法案是否会在参议院提出。
参议院多数党领袖查克·舒默周二表示:“我们首先必须看看众议院通过了什么，然后我们将与政府讨论，并找到最佳方式来确保石油进口禁令严格而严厉。”
众议院民主党人赞扬拜登的声明，并驳斥了对政府只是在立法者提出两党立法迫使其采取行动的批评。
“我不认为任何事情造成了任何压力，”众议院民主党党团主席哈基姆·杰弗里斯周二早上告诉记者。
杰弗里斯在谈到拜登时说:“他一直以来对美国人民都非常清楚和透明。“我对拜登总统的持续领导非常有信心，我不认为任何人迫使他做任何事情。”
禁止俄罗斯石油和能源进口的决定可能会给美国人带来更多痛苦，立法者对此非常清楚。
杰弗里斯承认美国人目前面临的高油价，并发誓民主党将尽其所能减轻钱包的压力。
“我当然希望我的共和党同僚不要继续在乌克兰、欧洲、西方和民主的生存危机上玩弄政治，因为这是眼下的利害所在。我们必须对弗拉基米尔·普京和俄国施加最大的压力，直到他们停止侵略和屠杀乌克兰的无辜人民。这可能是全世界都需要的一些牺牲，”杰弗里斯说。
“当然，我们看到了乌克兰人民令人难以置信的牺牲，”他补充道。
杰弗里斯还暗示，政府可能会要求美国人暂时在家工作，以帮助缓解天然气危机，避免每天通勤。
当被问及他是否认为联邦政府和企业应该考虑改变他们的政策时，即使科维德危机已经缓解，杰弗里斯说:“我不想评论政府可能正在考虑的任何具体措施，但我认为一切都应该放在桌面上，采取全员参与的方式。这不仅仅是政府的时刻。这是全美国的时刻。”
但白宫新闻秘书珍·普萨基周二明确表示，白宫不会要求美国人减少天然气消费。
“嗯，我们都不打算做预测...我们也不会告诉美国人呆在家里，”普萨基说。
GOP blames Biden for gas prices after pushing for Russian oil ban
The House is set to vote as soon as Wednesday on a bill that would codify the Biden administration's ban on the import of Russian oil and energy products into the U.S., review Russia's access to the World Trade organization and strengthen the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act so that the U.S. can further sanction Russia.
The vote would be remarkably fast-paced for legislation -- bypassing the usual legislative process in a clear indication that lawmakers want to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. And while it has support from both Democrats and Republicans, some Republicans have been lashing out at the Biden administration for its decision to ban Russian oil imports amid a chorus of bipartisan calls to do so.
Republicans, while they commended the administration for its decision to ban Russian oil, quickly turned critical of gas price hikes, as some members of the House accused Biden of allegedly turning his back on U.S. oil and gas production as the administration potentially weighs making oil deals with Venezuela and Saudi Arabia.
"First of all: President Biden, stop begging dictators to produce the energy that we need here in America. Don't go to Russia. Don't go to Iran. Don't go to Venezuela when the answer is right beneath our feet. It's time for President Biden to say yes to American energy," House Republican Whip Steve Scalise told reporters during a press conference.
One after another, House Republicans took turns to criticize the administration.
"Never should we think that foreign oil is better than American independence when it comes to energy," Rep. Yvette Herrell of New Mexico said.
"We're sleeping in the bed that we made," Rep. Bruce Westerman of Arkansas said. "That's what happens when you allow energy policy to be dictated by children in Europe, by woke investors on Wall Street, and by politicians who actually think that electric passenger vehicles are going to solve an energy crisis and the climate crisis."
"We don't need to be buying Russian energy, but we don't need to be buying Iranian energy or Venezuelan energy. We need to produce energy of all forms and all types here in the US and do it better than anybody else in the world," Westerman added.
Rep. August Pfluger of Texas said Biden should meet with oil and gas executives and companies while he is down in Texas today.
"In addition to his pre-planned meetings, what he should be doing is meeting with oil and gas executives and companies," Pfluger said. "Instead of calling on terrorist regimes to fulfill our needs, what he should be doing is calling on the domestic producers who know better than anybody else in the world, how to produce the supply of energy that not only we need, but that our partners and allies around the world need."
"The president's first phone call should have been to the mayor of Midland, Texas, not to Maduro," he added.
On the House floor Tuesday, Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy hit Biden for shuttering the Keystone XL pipeline last year.
"Democrats want to blame surging prices on Russia. But the truth is, they're out of touch policies are why we are here in the first place. On Day 1, the President canceled the Keystone Pipeline and stopped new oil and gas leases on federal lands and waters. Then, he gave the green light to Putin's pipeline," McCarthy said.
"If we want to lower prices and protect the environment, we must prioritize American energy independence. We have the natural resources under our feet. We have the best workers in the world: drilling the wells, building the pipelines, running the rigs, and extracting the gas in the cleanest way possible," he said.
"We just need politicians who will get out of the way," he added.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the energy legislation in a letter sent to democrats Tuesday. Her announcement to codify a ban comes on the heels of President Joe Biden's announcement earlier Tuesday to ban Russian oil and energy imports.
Pelosi last week forcefully threw her weight behind a potential oil ban and at the time, signaled legislation would be imminent.
"Because this legislation is an urgent imperative – both morally and for our security interests – the House will consider this legislation on the floor today. It is our hope that we have a strong, bipartisan vote," Pelosi said in a letter sent to Democrats.
The bill would ban the import of Russian oil and energy products into the United States, take steps to review Russia's access to the World Trade Organization, and reauthorize and strengthen the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act so that the United States can impose further sanctions on Russia.
It's unclear if the House bill would forward in the Senate.
"We first have to see what the House passes, and then we'll discuss things with the administration and find the best way to make sure that the oil import ban is tight and tough," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday.
House Democrats commended Biden's announcement and rebuffed criticisms that the administration only acted after lawmakers introduced bipartisan legislation to force its hand.
"I don't think that anything has created any pressure," House Democratic Caucus Chair Hakeem Jeffries told reporters Tuesday morning.
"He's been very clear-eyed and transparent with the American people all along the way," Jeffries said of Biden. "I'm very confident in President Biden's continued leadership and I don't think anyone has pressured him into doing anything."
The decision to ban Russian oil and energy imports is likely to cause more pain at the pump for Americans, which lawmakers are keenly aware of.
Jeffries acknowledged the high gas prices Americans are currently facing and vowed that the Democratic Party would do what it can to relieve the pressure on wallets.
"It's certainly my hope that my Republican colleagues won't continue to play politics with an existential crisis for Ukraine, for Europe, for the West and for democracy because that is what is at stake right now. And we have to apply maximum pressure on Vladimir Putin and Russia until it ceases and desists with respect to its aggression and the slaughtering of innocent individuals in Ukraine. It may be some sacrifice that is required across the world," Jeffries said.
"Certainly, we are seeing incredible sacrifice by the Ukrainian people," he added.
Jeffries also hinted that the administration could potentially ask Americans to work from home for the time being to help ease the gas crisis and avoid the daily commute.
Asked if he thinks the federal government and businesses should consider changing their policies, even as the COVID crisis has eased up, Jeffries said: "I don't want to comment on any specific steps that the administration may be contemplating, but I think everything should be on the table in terms of an all-hands-on-deck approach. It's not just an all of government moment. It's an all of America moment."
But White House press secretary Jen Psaki made clear Tuesday that the White House isn't about to ask Americans to cut down on their gas consumption.
"Well, we're neither going to make a prediction...nor are we going to tell Americans to stay home," Psaki said.
