Every day, Saudi Arabia exports 9.3 million barrels of oil. That makes the Saudis the largest oil exporter on earth. And they need to be. Why?
Because the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a welfare state, a very wealthy welfare state. Seventy percent of the country is under 30, and 40 percent of those young Saudis are unemployed. That means each year the Saudi government has to make billion-dollar handouts to keep millions of Saudis happy.
The kingdom's biggest oil field has been in production since 1951 and its best years are behind it. Combined with the social uncertainties and pressures there, it's a bad cocktail brewing, and problematic for countries that rely on Saudi oil. And America doesn't need to be one of them.
We've got enough energy in the U.S. -- including the world's largest natural gas reserves. One thing is for sure: Saudi oil is a big problem spot for us. Let's put a plan in place before it becomes a bigger problem.