Spiegel Stuff: The Hill's 12:30 Report - Biden turns to Russian oil ban

BREAKING

President Biden just announced a U.S. ban on Russian oil, natural gas and coal in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

From Biden: "We will not be part of subsidizing Putin's war." https://bit.ly/3Cx80Ar

From Biden’s announcement: "Today I'm announcing the United States is targeting the main artery of Russia's economy. We’re banning all imports of Russian oil and gas and energy. That means Russian oil will no longer be acceptable at U.S. ports and the American people will deal another powerful blow to Putin's war machine."

Photo from Biden’s remarks: https://bit.ly/35GBzUe

For context on how important Russian oil is for the U.S.: Via Bloomberg, who first reported the news of the ban: “Russian oil made up about 3% of all the crude shipments that arrived in the U.S. last year and imports of Russian oil and petroleum products represented about 8% of the U.S. total.” https://bloom.bg/35ZJZWH

WATCH BIDEN’S ANNOUNCEMENT:

Watch Biden's full remarks here: https://bit.ly/3Mv3CGK

TIDBIT BEFORE THE ANNOUNCEMENT:

CBS News’ Weijia Jiang tweeted, “Minutes before the President is expected to announce a ban on Russian oil, ALL TV crews on the White House North Lawn have lost power again.” Photo: https://bit.ly/3vO775a

WHAT WILL THIS MEAN FOR GAS PRICES?:

Car and Driver’s Sebastian Blanco looks at predictions for peak gas prices: https://bit.ly/3vJk68i

The app GasBuddy suggests the peak could hit around Memorial Day.

HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AMID RISING GAS PRICES:

CNBC has a list of suggestions, including paying in cash to save money on gas: https://cnb.cx/3tE04JI

THE POLITICS OF A RUSSIAN ENERGY BAN:

Via The Hill’s Alexander Bolton: https://bit.ly/34pbNDn

‘THE FUTURE TURNS DARK FOR RUSSIA’S OIL INDUSTRY’:

Via The New York Times’s Stanley Reed: https://nyti.ms/3HYip9f

It’s Tuesday and today is International Women’s Day! I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send comments, story ideas and events for our radar to cmartel@thehill.com — and follow along on Twitter @CateMartel and Facebook.

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THE LATEST IN UKRAINE

Get these people out — and ASAP:

Ukraine and Russia have agreed to safe corridors for civilians to evacuate. https://bit.ly/3IXG0Z2

^ Yes, but: A group of civilians started evacuating, but the cease-fire was reportedly violated by Russians.

Video of Ukrainian evacuation buses: Via the Ukrainian foreign ministry. Watch: https://bit.ly/3HN4h2R

When the safe corridor is supposed to run: From 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time

More on what’s happening with evacuations, via The Hill’s Caroline Vakil: https://bit.ly/3IXG0Z2

HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE FLED THE COUNTRY SO FAR:

More than 2 million people, according to The Los Angeles Times. https://lat.ms/3IT13w4

The US and NATO are feeling more pressure:

Via The Hill’s Morgan Chalfant and Laura Kelly, “Russian President Vladimir Putin’s increased aerial bombardment of civilian areas in Ukraine has triggered allegations of war crimes and raised pressure on the West to take more direct action to save lives.” https://bit.ly/3pPT0bU

Where we stand: “President Biden has yet to publicly reject a no-fly zone, but U.S. officials have said the measure is a non-starter to avoid open military conflict between the West and Russia. But some experts and lawmakers warn that such declarations might embolden Putin to further carry out atrocities by drawing a line on the steps the U.S. and its allies are willing to take.”

What happens now: https://bit.ly/3pPT0bU

The New York Times is pulling its reporters out of Russia:

Concerned about staffers’ safety, The New York Times is pulling its correspondents out of Russia. https://bit.ly/35JB7o5

From a spokesperson for the Times: "For the safety and security of our editorial staff working in the region, we are moving them out of the country for now … We look forward to them returning as soon as possible while we monitor the application of the new law." The full statement from Puck’s Dylan Byers: https://bit.ly/35ElNsY

IN THE WHITE HOUSE

How long will our attention spans last?:

Via The Hill’s Niall Stanage, “Almost two weeks on from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the conflict commands Americans’ attention, the headlines and the airwaves. But that will not always be the case.” https://bit.ly/35B9PR0

Looking at recent history: “The media’s focus on Ukraine will become less intense too, as happened in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in which American forces were directly involved.”

And what will be interesting to watch: “The overarching political question is whether Americans, while not suffering the life-and-death consequences being visited upon the Ukrainian people, have the stomach to make sacrifices for a long fight in a faraway place.”

More on how this could play out in the U.S.: https://bit.ly/35B9PR0

IN CONGRESS

Let’s make this a September problem — that’s the best-case scenario here:

Via The Hill’s Jordain Carney, Lawmakers are working to avert another government shutdown at the end of the week. https://bit.ly/3KskYCh

When to expect the bill: “Negotiators worked through the weekend and are aiming to file the massive bill on Tuesday, a leadership aide confirmed to The Hill.”

Timing: Lawmakers must pass a funding bill by Friday to avoid a shutdown.

The timing is especially tricky: “The House is aiming to be able to vote on the yet-to-be-unveiled bill Wednesday … The Senate, meanwhile, is juggling a midweek retreat, which both parties are holding on Wednesday.”

So, of course, the timing is tight: https://bit.ly/3KskYCh

LATEST WITH THE CORONAVIRUS

Btw, you can order more free at-home COVID-19 tests:

Americans are able to order four more at-home COVID-19 tests online. Details from NBC News: https://nbcnews.to/3pN3oRo

Here’s the link to order: https://bit.ly/3fGgTwS

CASE NUMBERS:

Coronavirus cases in the U.S.: 79,344,301

U.S. death toll: 960,563

Breakdown of the numbers: https://cnn.it/2UAgW3y

VACCINATION NUMBERS:

Total number of vaccinations administered in the U.S.: 555 million shots have been given.

Seven-day average of doses administered: An average of 139,770 doses

For context: The U.S. population is roughly 331 million.

Breakdown of the numbers: https://bloom.bg/3iVTPLH

NOTABLE TWEETS:

Tuesday morning thoughts:

CNN’s Ariel Edwards-Levy tweeted, “is it weird that ‘instant’ and ‘overnight’ are synonymous as descriptions of celebrity but antonyms as descriptions of oats.” https://bit.ly/3603Apq

Oh good, good. Great.:

The Washington Post’s Aviva Loeb posted a photo of a trash bin in Washington, D.C. that is on fire. “So glad life in dc is back to normal,” she tweeted with a smiling heart emoji. Photo: https://bit.ly/3J6KnB2

^ This is right near McPherson Square in downtown Washington, D.C.

ON TAP:

The House and Senate are in. President Biden is in Washington, D.C., and will be in Texas this afternoon.

9:30 a.m. EST: President Biden received the President’s Daily Brief.

11:15 a.m. EST: President Biden left for Fort Worth, Texas.

12:30 p.m. EST: Senators meet for weekly caucus meetings. The Senate’s full agenda today: https://bit.ly/3HShibs

2:45 p.m. EST: The earliest time for first votes in the House. The House’s full agenda today: https://bit.ly/3pOePIK

3:30 p.m. EST: President Biden and Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough speak with health care providers on the effects of environmental exposures.

9:20 p.m. EST: President Biden returns to the White House.

WHAT TO WATCH:

Noon: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks with British lawmakers. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3CoQXAs

1 p.m. EST: White House press secretary Jen Psaki speaks with reporters aboard Air Force One. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3t1Fhkl

4:30 p.m. EST: President Biden and Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough deliver remarks on expanding health care for veterans affected by military environmental exposures. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3IPm7n0

IN LIGHTER NEWS:

Today is National Peanut Cluster Day.

*Yells dramatically into the abyss* Where did the froyo go?!:

Refinery29’s Elizabeth Gulino writes about the fad of frozen yogurt shops in 2012 and does “a very serious investigation” into what has happened to all of those frozen dessert shops. https://r29.co/3tHTK3I

And to brighten your Tuesday afternoon, here’s a toddler trying to blow out birthday candles: https://bit.ly/3IOfZLP

^ The entire video is worth watching.