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President Biden’s decision to release 30 million barrels of oil from the government’s reserves held underground salt caverns along the Texas and Louisiana coasts is one of few tools he has at his fingertips to try to protect Americans against higher gas prices.

That release, he said during his State of the Union address, will help “blunt gas prices here at home.”

“I want you to know that we are going to be okay,” he said.

Russia’s attack on Ukraine sent energy prices even higher than last fall, when gas prices ticked noticeably higher alongside inflation costs. Russia is one of the world’s largest oil and gas exporters. But energy analysts say Mr. Biden has very few options to quickly lower prices given the complexities of the industry’s supply and demand.

Speeding up lease sales and permitting for oil-and-gas production on federal lands or interstate pipelines would still take years of development.

Still, Mr. Biden faces pressure from lawmakers to do more to target Russia’s energy sector, which he has avoided to prevent price increases.

Republicans and some Democrats are pushing to expand sanctions on Russia’s powerful oil and gas industry, the lifeblood of its economy. So far, U.S. sanctions aimed at punishing Russia have targeted its top financial institutions and Russian President Vladimir Putin himself.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D., W. Va.), who chairs the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, wants the White House to ban crude oil imports from Russia. Mr. Manchin acknowledged that such a move could increase gas prices for U.S. drivers but noted that domestic production could soften the blow.

Colorado GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert, arrived to the State of the Union address with an outfit reading “Drill Baby Drill”, a Republican slogan that’s been around for more than a decade to signal support for increased drilling of oil and gas.