As a wise FReeper once said, it's not that simple.
Half of our crude imports come from Canada and Mexico, and the bulk of that is refined in the US and the gasoline and other products sent back to those countries.
It makes economic sense because we have the refining capacity and transportation from those countries is relatively cheap.
Another factor is the type of refining capacity. We have a lot of capacity to refine heavy, sour crude like that produced in Canada, Venezuela and other countries. Refining this crude is more profitable than refining US light crude, to the point that the refineries make more money importing heavy crude.
Again, much of this will be re-exported.
I know it's essentially an ad from Conoco Phillips but this is a pretty good discussion.
Fair enough. You raise some valid points. But then one has to ask, would the price of the end product (e.g. gasoline, diesel, etc.) be cheaper if we were refining our own, higher quality crude oil? Our refineries might not make as much profit, but the price of the end product would presumably be lower.
Good article. Interesting. But it does sound like there should be more investment in domestic refineries that focus on the lighter crude that we produce here at home.