Speculators are a distant early warning system here, and they are telling the policymakers about an impending disaster should war with Iran come to pass.

But just because the speculators happen to be right about the impact of war with Iran on oil prices doesn’t mean that they should be given carte blanche to dominate the oil futures markets.

We know that Wall Street speculation shoulders part of the blame for rising gas prices, and that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has done little to stop it. But I didn’t know that even the weak CFTC rules established last year were being challenged in federal court. And the outcome of that court case could lead to speculation running rampant without a check from federal regulators.

Sanders went so far as to accuse Gensler of breaking the law for not implementing the Dodd-Frank regulation on position limits. He cited the now well-worn quote by Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson, that the price of oil under regular market conditions should be $60-$70 a barrel (it’s currently trading at around $100). Sanders also cited the recent lawsuits from the CFTC against Parnon Energy, Arcadia Petroleum and Arcadia Energy for driving up prices during the spike of 2008, and stated that the same conditions exist today.

Sen. Bernie Sanders has joined the increasing call for a crackdown on speculation in the oil markets. His letter to Barack Obama calls on the President to inform the Commodity Futures Trading Commission that they must impose strict limits on oil speculation, which is required in the Dodd-Frank law. He also wants Obama to ask for the immediate resignation of any CFTC commissioner who won’t impose these position limits on oil trading.