President Joe Biden’s energy policy has hurt our economy, especially with his war on gas. His stringent regulations targeting the nation’s oil and gas sectors have increased oil and gas prices and contributed to the increase in inflation.
Since taking office, his administration has overturned numerous pro-drilling policies of his predecessor, President Trump, significantly crippling domestic energy production and putting us at the mercy of our enemies, including Russia, Iran, and Venezuela.
Here are 6 critical things about Biden’s War on Gas…
1) Biden’s Impact on Production and Pricing:
Despite oil prices soaring to 50% higher than in 2019, U.S. oil production remains stunted compared to pre-Biden forecasts.
The Energy Information Administration projected 2023 oil output at 14 million barrels per day before Biden’s policies intervened, resulting in actual production falling short by 1.1 million barrels per day.
Key policy actions include:
- Canceling the Keystone XL pipeline could supply over 830,000 barrels of oil from Canada to U.S. refineries.
- Halting new federal land permits and lease sales
- Slashing lease approvals by over 90% from historical averages
Estimates are that the United States has foregone between 1.2 and 3.5 billion barrels of oil due to Biden’s policies.
Biden has made it costlier to develop domestic oil while reducing costs on heavily subsidized renewable energy and coddling countries like Venezuela and Saudi Arabia to get increased oil supplies.
From 2001 through 2020, under both Democrat and Republican administrations, the Department of the Interior averaged nearly 2,000 new leases totaling 2.3 million acres annually.
During Biden’s first year as president, new leases plunged to 120, covering only 75,000 acres.
2) Regulatory Assault on American Energy:
Since assuming office, President Biden has initiated an unprecedented regulatory campaign against the fuels that constitute the backbone of America’s energy infrastructure. These fuels traditionally account for four-fifths of the nation’s energy supply.
A study estimates that if not for the reversal of Trump-era policies favoring oil and gas drilling, the United States could have produced between 1.2 to 3.5 billion additional barrels of oil.
This production increase could have neutralized the 1.3 million barrels per day output cuts voluntarily undertaken by OPEC and Russia, potentially mitigating rising oil prices. The economic impact of reduced drilling and lost oil production due to Biden’s policies ranges from $104 billion to $396 billion.
3) Restrictions on Leasing and Offshore Development:
Under the Biden administration, the issuance of new leases for onshore drilling has reached its lowest levels since World War II, severely limiting access to federal lands for energy development.
The administration canceled three lease offshore sales in 2022 and proposed a five-year leasing plan with historically low sale volumes for 2025-2029.
These actions have compounded the challenges for U.S. oil production, which heavily relies on federal offshore areas.
4) Global Energy Dependency and Strategic Reserves:
Biden’s policies have increased America’s reliance on foreign energy sources, strengthening adversarial nations like Russia, China, and Iran while driving up costs for consumers and producers.
The administration’s decision to release significant volumes from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to alleviate domestic fuel prices also drew scrutiny, especially regarding the destinations of exported oil and the involvement of entities connected to the president’s family.
Over 5 million barrels from the SPR were shipped to Europe and Asia. Among the beneficiaries was a subsidiary of a Chinese state-owned gas company in which Hunter Biden’s private equity firm held a $1.7 billion stake, which purchased one million barrels from the U.S.
Biden has depleted the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) of 260 million barrels of oil, placing it at a 40-year low.
5) Impact on Natural Gas and Energy Infrastructure:
The Biden administration’s policies have also hurt natural gas production, where regulatory barriers and delayed permit approvals have stifled pipeline expansions and new projects.
The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that interstate natural gas pipeline capacity additions reached a record low in 2022 based on data collected over 27 years.
Here’s what Biden has done in just the last year:
- Suspended quarterly lease sales
- Delayed Drilling Permits. He’s slowed approval processes and stalled new projects.
- Access to federal lands for development has been restricted.
- New regulations and costs burden energy producers, driving up prices for everyone.
- In August 2023, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) banned new oil leasing on 1.6 million acres in Colorado, designating nine zones as “areas of critical environmental concern.”
- Restricted oil and gas leasing across 11 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico
- In September 2023, The Department of the Interior (DOI) announced the smallest number of oil and gas lease sales in history, focusing instead on offshore wind development under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
- In April 2024, The Biden administration banned drilling on 13.3 million acres in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve, citing a commitment to conservation and addressing the climate crisis. This decision affects nearly half of the Reserve’s 23 million acres, further limiting new oil and gas leasing. The decision was part of his administration’s push to “meet the urgency of the climate crisis.”
Actions such as the ban on future liquified natural gas (LNG) export terminal permits have further limited America’s energy export capabilities, impacting relationships with international allies dependent on U.S. energy supplies.
And it’s forced Europe to buy LNG from Russia.
6) The Private Sector’s Response and the Economic Consequences of Biden’s bad policies
In response to federal restrictions, more oil and gas production is shifting to private and state lands, with fewer regulatory hurdles.
In 2005, about 68 percent of our oil and 62 percent of our gas came from private and state lands.
It has risen to roughly 75% and 90%, respectively. It’s also no accident that most of this production occurs in Republican-led states, including Wyoming.
The president’s foolish actions will lock in his climate zealotry. OPEC and Russia will gain market leverage and geopolitical strength.
Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency has proposed tailpipe emission standards that would force the sale of electric vehicles, which will reach two-thirds of the market in 2032.
His Department of Transportation has proposed Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency Standards that would achieve the same result: effectively removing fuel choice from American car purchases.
To achieve those sales levels, automakers are already cutting back on sales of gas-powered vehicles as the standard requires increasing efficiency improvements over time. The results are stunning. Ford reported it is losing nearly $60,000 per electric vehicle it sells.
Biden has also proposed removing oil and gas tax deductions and raising royalty rates and fees on the oil and gas industry — even as he is spending over $300 billion in tax money for his green energy transition, which some believe is over three times that amount–well over $1 trillion.
Biden is now conspiring with Iran and Venezuela to put more oil on the global market despite sanctions on both countries. He has even released $6 billion in frozen funds to Iran during his prisoner swap negotiations… money Iran is using to support terrorist groups throughout the Middle East, to develop their nuclear weapons program, and to boost their oil production.
President Biden’s energy policies, characterized by stringent regulations, reduced leasing opportunities, and strategic reserve maneuvers, have fundamentally reshaped America’s energy landscape.
While aiming to address environmental concerns and climate change imperatives, these policies have a devastating economic impact on global energy dynamics and the nation’s long-term energy security.
Action Steps:
1) Pray for our country.
2) Volunteer, donate (money/time), and vote to replace these radicals in Congress, the Senate, and the Presidency.
3) Order my new book, The Great Deception: 10 Shocking Dangers and the Blueprint for Rescuing the American Dream
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Unchecked government spending is pushing the nation to the brink of economic collapse. The looming specter of inflation, deficits, and soaring debt threatens to shatter the stability we once took for granted. The radical socialists, in their pursuit of misguided policies, are inadvertently devaluing the very currency that forms the backbone of our economic strength.
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It allows you to share these dangers and a solution to cutting through the deception with friends and family.
It exposes under-the-radar and little-known behind-the-scenes reasons America is falling backward and how to make it move again.
Click here to get The Great Deception – Craig Huey
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