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Exxon, others meet Trump over brutal oil price drops; Ted Cruz says Saudi Arabia has been ‘screwing Texas’

The president on Friday pledged that ‘we’ll get our energy business back,’ though it’s unclear what action the federal government might take

WASHINGTON — Executives from Irving-based Exxon Mobil and other top energy companies met Friday with President Donald Trump to discuss the devastating drop in oil prices caused by the coronavirus pandemic and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

With energy states like Texas facing severe pain, Trump vowed that “we’ll get our energy business back.”

“I’m with you 1,000%,” he told the gathered round table during the portion of the meeting seen by the press. “It’s a great business. It’s a very vital business and, honestly, you’ve been very fair. You’ve kept energy prices reasonable for a long period of time.”

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U.S. officials have sought to ease the problem, at least as it relates to the clash between Saudi Arabia and Russia. Trump on Thursday even caused a record percentage increase in oil prices by taking to Twitter to tease the prospect of a truce between the two countries.

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“Just spoke to my friend MBS (Crown Prince) of Saudi Arabia, who spoke with President Putin of Russia, & I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more,” he wrote.

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But the president later on Thursday somewhat scaled back his prediction.

“Hopefully they’ll announce something soon,” he said, referring to the two countries, during one of his nightly coronavirus briefings at the White House. “Now, can a deal be broken? Can something happen where it doesn’t happen? I guess.”

The oil industry has been in crisis for weeks as a global glut has caused prices to crater. While the economic standstill brought about by the COVID-19 outbreak is a major factor, the saber-rattling between Saudi Arabia and Russia has made matters worse.

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Those two countries last month couldn’t come to terms on how to deal with reduced demand. So Saudi Arabia decided to flood the market with crude oil.

That decision, which also caused gasoline prices to drop, may be welcomed by drivers in Texas and beyond. But it’s a doomsday scenario for Texas, with state comptroller Glenn Hegar this week saying there’s “no doubt” the state will be in a recession.

Texas leaders, as a result, have been pushing for solutions.

Texas Sen. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attended Friday’s meeting at the White House. Houston Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, a Democrat, recently joined with other lawmakers to push for legislation to assist workers in the energy sector in Texas and beyond.

Cruz has been particularly vocal, accusing Saudi Arabia of “screwing Texas.”

“Russia is our enemy — we understand that. They behave like our enemy, and they’re treated like our enemy,” he recalled telling Saudi Arabia’s ambassador in an interview this week with Mark Davis, a Dallas talk radio host. “You’re supposed to be our friend.”

He continued, “You need to decide: ‘Are you with us or are you against us?’”

Cruz took to Twitter on Friday to say that he had spoken again to the Saudi ambassador to the U.S. and that the diplomat assured him that the Middle Eastern country “will work with the U.S. to stabilize the global energy marketplace.”

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It’s unclear what steps might be taken to secure a truce — or if any agreement was reached Friday at the White House meeting, which was also attended by Kelcy Warren of Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners.

Some shale producers, such as Irving-based Pioneer Natural Resources, support the idea of working with Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut oil output to stabilize the market, The Wall Street Journal reported. But others, including Exxon, reportedly don’t support that idea.

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