JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: United States President Bill Clinton took a rare and politically controversial step Friday to combat rising oil prices and a possible energy crisis. Senior White House correspondent John King joins us now with the latest -- John.</s>JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Judy, for the first time since the Persian Gulf War, back in 1991, a U.S. president authorizing the release of some of the United States government's emergency strategic petroleum reserves: Up to 30 million barrels, U.S. President Bill Clinton announced today, would be drawn down, a million barrels a day for 30 days. The goal here, to increase supplies in the United States: 19 percent lower supplies now in the United States of oil than a year ago at this time, 65 percent lower in the New England region of the United States, one of the coldest regions as the winter approaches. The administration saying the president taking this controversial and dramatic step in a way to increase supplies a little bit, hopes to nudge down prices a little bit. But the biggest goal here is the psychological impact on the oil markets, to try to convince the OPEC cartel that if it does not increase production as promised, the U.S. government will intervene, perhaps release even more from the emergency reserves in the future, and to convince the oil markets that prices should come down, and again that the government will take additional steps if they don't. This, though, already a political issue in the United States. The vice president has called for this in recent days, Al Gore. The Republican nominee, George W. Bush, saying the president now doing this to help the vice president out politically as the election approaches. He says it's much more about the coming election than the coming winter. But the administration says this step hopefully will bring down prices a little bit. And they say there's already some evidence of success. Oil on the world markets hit $38 a barrel earlier in the week, down to around $32 a barrel today as the administration debates this. Again, the president says he might do even more if prices don't fall soon -- Judy.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, John King reporting from the White House.
President Clinton Authorizes Release of Oil From Strategic Petroleum Reserve