(Oil & Gas 360) By Greg Barnett, MBA – The United States is producing more crude oil than any country ever has, rebuilding its emergency petroleum buffer, exporting record volumes of crude and fuels to allies, and still confronting stubbornly high gasoline prices at home.At the same time, it is asking producers to drill even more into a market where natural gas prices can turn deeply negative and oil price signals remain volatile.The result is an energy policy moment defined not by scarcity, but by coordination risk: every lever must be pulled in the right order, at the right force, and for the right duration.“The Price Signal Is Real—Act on It”U.S. crude oil production averaged 13.6 million barrels per day in 2025, a record, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), with nearly half coming from the Permian Basin. Yet the Trump administration is pushing for still higher output as global oil prices respond to geopolitical disruption in the Middle East.Speaking at S&P Global’s CERAWeek in Houston in March, Energy Secretary Chris Wright delivered a blunt message to producers.“Prices went up to send signals to everyone that can produce more: ‘Please, produce more,’” Wright said, calling the price spike a market invitation rather than a policy dilemma.That message has been echoed inside the White House. On April 15, Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum held calls with the CEOs of major U.S. oil producers urging them to increase drilling as gasoline prices climbed and oil markets reacted to disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz, according to POLITICO.Producers Hear the Signal—But Don’t Fully Trust ItThe ask, however, collides with recent shale history. U.S. producers were burned badly by over‑drilling during the last decade, and executives are now reluctant to commit capital without confidence that prices will remain supportive long enough to earn returns.At CERAWeek, Chevron CEO Mike Wirth warned that oil markets are being driven as much by perception as by physical supply.“They’re uncertain, they’re unpredictable,” Wirth said, noting that production decisions lag price signals by months, not weeks.Secretary Wright himself has acknowledged the tension. In a Bloomberg interview, he said that sustained low prices would eventually slow drilling, even as the administration works to lower regulatory costs.“If prices are too low for an economic incentive, you’ll see some drilling reduce on the margin,” Wright said.Burgum has framed the dynamic in more optimistic terms. Speaking at Semafor’s World Economy forum in April, he said producers are watching prices closely—but remain cautious.“They’re all leaning in because they’re getting a price signal that ‘hey, there’s a time to invest,’” Burgum said, while emphasizing temporary regulatory relief rather than mandates.Exports as Diplomacy—and Market Pressure ValveOne reason Washington wants U.S. production capacity visibly expanding is its role in energy diplomacy. The United States is now a major exporter of crude oil and refined products, supplying Europe and parts of Asia as those regions reduce dependence on Russian energy.Administration officials have repeatedly tied exports to strategic influence. “We can sell energy to our friends and allies. We can lower the cost at home,” Burgum said at a liquefied natural gas export event in Louisiana last year, rejecting the notion that exports and domestic affordability are mutually exclusive.Wright has been even clearer that exports will remain unconstrained, even during price spikes.The administration “will not restrict U.S. crude or LNG exports to lower domestic prices,” Wright said at CERAWeek, signaling to producers that global markets remain open.That posture treats exports not as a problem to be capped, but as a pressure‑release valve, one that only works if upstream production continues to grow.Gasoline Prices: The Political ConstraintDespite record production and exports, U.S. gasoline prices surged above $4 per gallon nationally in April, according to AAA. Wright has been explicit that this is driving policy urgency.“We’ve changed refining regulations on gasoline so we can produce additional gasoline this summer,” Wright said in a televised interview. “That’s going to help tamp down prices”.The administration has also coordinated releases from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and signaled flexibility on fuel standards, attempting to influence prices without capping exports or directly ordering producers to drill.Meanwhile, Gas Is Too Cheap to UseEven as oil policy strains to prevent price spikes, the gas market shows the opposite pathology. At the Waha Hub in West Texas, natural gas prices were negative on more than 40% of trading days in 2024, hitting lows near –$5/MMBtu, as associated gas overwhelmed pipeline capacity.Producers continue drilling for oil even when gas has negative value, because oil pays the bills.As one analyst told Reuters, negative gas prices are “a sure sign the region needs more pipes,” not less drilling.Every Lever, Pulled Just SoThe current U.S. energy strategy requires simultaneous precision:Encourage more drilling, without collapsing prices.Export fuels to strengthen alliances, without angering domestic consumers.Refill the SPR, without signaling panic.Clear gas bottlenecks, without slowing oil output.Too much pressure on any single lever, exports, production, releases, or regulation, risks breaking the balance. America has abundance. What it lacks is slack. In this system, drilling more is only the beginning; what matters is how carefully every other lever is pulled in response.By oilandgas360.com contributor Greg Barnett, MBA.The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Oil & Gas 360. Please consult with a professional before making any decisions based on the information provided here. Please conduct your own research before making any investment decisions. About Oil & Gas 360 Oil & Gas 360 is an energy-focused news and market intelligence platform delivering analysis, industry developments, and capital markets coverage across the global oil and gas sector. The publication provides timely insight for executives, investors, and energy professionals. The post U.S. Drill More: How Washington is pulling every energy lever at once appeared first on Oil & Gas 360.