Just such an event seems to have occurred in May, with the passage of a bill to halt deliveries of crude oil to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

FORBES: Strategic Oil Move

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve was authorized in 1975 and began receiving crude oil in 1977.

FORBES: Our Strategic Petroleum Opportunity

Crude oil's recent slide is a result of ample supplies and recent speculation that the Federal Reserve may soon allow interest rates to rise, which would reduce the supply of easy cash investors have been using to buy commodities like oil.

NPR: Oil Prices Down Sharply For A 2nd Day

The government bought this oil, which it calls the Northeast Heating Oil Reserve, in late August by trading in 2.8 million barrels of valuable crude and taking the hit for a nasty refining markup.

FORBES: Strategic Feel-Good Reserve