let the oil price flatline is far more damaging to Russia than sanctions or hollow threats.
How do you propose to do that?
Our Welfare Man has done everything he can to inflate US Fuel Prices, refusing the Keystone Pipeline, cutting or denying Drilling Permits on all Federal Lands, invoking Global Warming as an excuse and turning the EPA loose to target Oil, Gas, and Coal....ignoring the lack of any new Refinery construction and refusing to embrace any move towards Energy Independence for the USA.
How does Europe refuse to buy Russian Oil and Gas?
Demand drives Prices....along with the Value of the Dollar for us in the USA.
Europe does not have the benefit of buying Oil with US Dollars....so y'all really are between the Rock and a Hard Place in that regard.
Notice the very small bumps due world tensions until the Iran/Iraq War...which affected Saudi and other Gulf States supply of oil to the World....then the next huge bump was when OPEC cut the supply......and what happens if Russia cuts back on its supply to Europe....at some point increased price offsets reduced output so it is a no cost move to the Russians.
The largest bumps are generated by Lack of Capacity/Production and sustained demand.....not War or threat of War alone.
Don't you think Putin and his Advisors have a Graph that shows that relationship somewhere to use in their deciding their course of action?