well from that last bush book (bernstein) we already know oil prices are on their mind for election time.
now continuing to fill the strategic reserve at this time could be seen as prudent. however, prudent is generally the last word that comes to mind when i think of the current administration. so my imagination searches for other possibilities. if you pump up demand and speculation to a breaking point, you can possibly get prices to collapse ... i think. can't you? what would happen if prices get over $50, and then they suddenly stop filling the strategic reserve, release oil from it, resolve the yukos problems and get oil flowing freely from iraq? i'd bet all of those are easily accomplished, in fact or in appearance. and with saudia arabia already pumping at its max and all the speculation ... pop!
maybe. i dunno. not a market i follow. just speculating wildly. (but i'd think putin can be persuaded; he did come to the defense of bush earlier this summer on terror warning issues. actually, if i were conspiratorially minded, i might speculate that the handling of yukos is part of a larger plan anyway. but if i were that conspiratorial, i'd start foaming about illuminati and greenspan manipulating the futures market :-P)
