Ron Wyden: “in the last few days, the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia has said--and it has been widely reported by our country's…”

“in the last few days, the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia has said--and it has been widely reported by our country's two largest wire services--that Saudi Arabia was not contacted by the Bush administration over OPEC's recent decision to cut oil production by 1 million barrels per day. I was very troubled by these comments by the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia. I want to read specifically what the Saudi Foreign Minister said when he was asked whether the United States had expressed its disappointment over OPEC's cut in oil production. The Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia said: I didn't hear from the Bush administration. I'm hearing it from you that they are disappointed. This ought to be troubling to every Member of the Senate. Up and down the west coast of the United States, our constituents are getting mugged by high gasoline prices. In community after community, citizens are paying more than $1.90 a gallon. The high driving season is just upon us, and escalating gasoline prices are going to be devastating to consumers and to our economy overall. We all understand consumer spending is a major driver of our economy today, and it is going to be harder and harder to grow the economy and create private sector jobs if these gasoline prices continue to skyrocket. I am hopeful my colleagues on both sides of the aisle will support the resolution I have introduced urging that OPEC increase production.”