Free Republic

President Biden will visit Saudi Arabia this month after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed Thursday to increase production, according to multiple reports. OPEC’s decision to expand production could help Biden tamp down domestic inflation, which at 8.3% was near a four-decade high in April, driven in part by soaring energy prices.

This marks the president's departure from his campaign promise of isolating Riyadh over the murder of columnist Jamal Khashoggi Joe Biden will reportedly visit Riyadh later this month and meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, abandoning a campaign pledge to make Saudi Arabia "a pariah" for the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. The Riyadh trip, first reported by the Washington Post and New York Times, suggests Biden has prioritized his need to bring oil prices down and thereby punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine, over his stand on human rights. The visit will be added on to...