Commentary
“There’s a lot going on right now, but the idea we’re gonna be able to, you know, click a switch, bring down the cost of gasoline is not likely in the near term, nor is with regard to food.” – President Biden, June 1, 2022
That’s odd, on January 20, 2021, his first day in office, he was able to “click a switch” that effectively ended our energy independence.
Most of us remember it as the day he revoked the permit President Trump granted to construct, connect, operate and maintain the Keystone XL pipeline, an obvious spiteful action against the former president.
But revoking the pipeline was but one action in a multi-faceted presidential action with the innocuous title “Executive Order on Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis,” to advance environmental justice. More details on this later.
It was during Biden’s visit to Japan on May 24, 2022 – 489 days after he signed that executive order – that the ulterior motive behind it came to light, as he gave an off-the-cuff response to Japan’s prime minister, admitting that high gasoline and diesel prices are just part of his overall plan for transitioning us to renewables in the Green New Deal.
“(When) it comes to gas prices, we’re going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it’s over, we’ll be stronger and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over.” – President Biden, May 24, 2022
During his hastily-called televised remarks to talk about the jobs report on June 1, 2022, he offered, “As your president, I remain committed to doing everything in my power to blunt the impact on American families, and that’s exactly what I’m doing. I’m going to continue to use every tool available to me to further blunt those price hikes as we move forward.”
On his first day in office, he “clicked the switch” that triggered his assault on the oil and gas industry. One would think he could reverse those orders just as easily. Except that would force him to make an ego check.
As he spoke, the price of gasoline at the pump averaged $4.62 per gallon, the highest Memorial Day gas price in more than a decade. Americans paid 53 percent more than the $3.03 price last Memorial Day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The price for a gallon of gasoline just two days before Biden signed the “Keystone XL killer” was $2.37.
It is estimated that American families will spend at least $5,000 a year for gasoline, compared to $2,800 a year ago.
President Biden continues to vilify the oil industry, discouraging investment in the industry and enacting policies that drive up costs. His agencies have aggressively issued regulations making it difficult to increase production.
The president and his minions keep telling the lie that the U.S. is producing record amounts of oil per day. It’s their deceitful way of responding to the need for more production. As a matter of fact, we are not even projected to return to the record level of 12.8 million barrels per day in February 2020, until 2023, according to projections.
Meanwhile, he continues to tap the national emergency reserves, producing no noticeable price relief, and now has plans to beg OPEC, especially Saudi Arabia, to increase drilling.
The fact that drilling in the United States is done in a much cleaner manner than in Saudi Arabia is meaningless to Biden. He couldn’t care less about emissions there. It tells you something about his interest in global climate change.
Back to that multi-faceted executive order.
In Section 2. He orders the immediate review of agency actions taken during the Trump era. Existing regulations, orders, guidance documents, policies and other actions promulgated, issued or adopted then that are inconsistent with the new administration’s agenda.
It included reducing methane emissions in the oil and gas sector, establishing ambitious fuel economy standards, appliance and building efficiency standards, and protecting our air from harmful pollution.
In Section 4. He places a moratorium on all activities of the Federal Government relating to the implementation of the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
In Section 5. He orders agencies to capture the full costs of gas emissions, taking global damages into account, and establishes a working group to determine the methodology for carrying out the activity.
In Section 6. He finally revokes the Keystone XL pipeline, almost as if it’s an afterthought. In it he cites that the Obama-Biden administration, “after an exhaustive review” considered the proposed pipeline “would not serve the U.S. national interest,” and “would not be consistent with his administration’s economic and climate imperatives.”
In Section 7. He revokes Trump orders dealing with “Waters of the United States,” “Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth,” “Review of Designations under the Antiquities Act,” “Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy,” “Promoting Energy Infrastructure and Economic Growth,” “Accelerating the Nation’s Economic Recovery from Covid 19,” and “Efficient Federal Operations.”
Interestingly, he also rescinds the Trump administration’s draft guidance on “National Environmental Policy Act Guidance on Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions.”
The administration claiming to oppose disinformation, peddles it on a regular basis.
It’s just 157 days until the midterm elections. May God continue to bless the United States of America.
