Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is urging President Donald Trump to release oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve as crude prices climb above 110 dollars per barrel amid escalating conflict in the Middle East. Schumer said the reserve exists for moments of global crisis and argued that tapping it now would help stabilize markets and ease rising fuel costs for American families.

The call marks a reversal from Trump's first term, when Schumer and other congressional Democrats blocked his effort to use pandemic relief funds to refill the reserve while oil prices were near 29 dollars per barrel. At the time, critics described the proposal as a bailout for the oil industry. Schumer later supported former President Joe Biden's decisions to draw down the reserve to address high fuel prices and supply disruptions tied to global conflicts.

The reserve currently holds about 415 million barrels, well below its total capacity of more than 700 million, following multiple drawdowns under Biden. The White House defended Trump's current energy strategy, pointing to record domestic production, while Energy Secretary Chris Wright said restoring secure shipping routes in the Middle East would be the most effective way to bring prices down. The administration has not announced plans to release oil from the reserve.