Tuesday morning on FOX and Friends, Ainsley Earhardt interviewed Fox News contributor and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich to discuss his reaction to Germany “pulling the plug on the Nord Stream Pipeline from Russia” as Putin sent tanks into separatists regions of Ukraine. He also discussed the ineffectiveness of the Biden Administration’s handling of Russia.
Gingrich shared that he believes Germany is doing the right thing, while President Biden is doing nothing but signal weakness. Gingrich explained that “what President Biden should do is release all of the regulatory blocks to allow American liquefied natural gas to replace Russian gas [and] maximize oil production to drive down the price,” noting that “every day the price of gasoline is high, Russia makes a billion dollars in net profit.” He adds that any serious sanction must involve “going after Russia’s energy,” reducing the price of it to drive it off the market.
In response to Ainsley’s inquiry about how Biden’s inaction affects Americans, Gingrich said that “if this crisis develops the way it probably will, which is an ineffective American response, [we could see] a steady increase in Russian military pressure, but I think the oil market will react by going much higher. Some people forecast $200 a barrel [for oil], which under Trump was about $40 a barrel. It will be a huge hit on the American people and a huge profit for Vladimir Putin.”
Gingrich also sternly called out the Biden Administration for following the “Obama model” of weakness as they are avoiding war by surrendering their own interest. Regarding the removal of American diplomats out of Ukraine, Gingrich asserted that saying to your ally “we don’t trust enough that you’ll be able to survive to keep our embassy fully staffed,” is a serious signal of weakness. With Biden’s do-nothing policy, Gingrich is weary that there is a 50-50 chance that Russia will go much further.