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Biden to Shrink Oil Production Even More?
President Joe Biden campaigned on ending the Keystone XL Pipeline, and on his first day, he delivered. Biden also campaigned on “no more drilling on federal lands, period. Period, period, period.” He has mostly lived by that promise, only opening up (limited) exploration after a court ruling forced his hand.
He has been consistently against drilling for oil or building the pipelines that would transport it.
But now that Biden desperately wants more oil in America, this anti-drilling position leaves him in a bind. How to get oil when you insist on leaving our oil in the ground?
Biden has a three-part plan for oil without drilling, and all three parts are bad.
First, Biden is repeatedly tapping the strategic oil reserve, announcing another 10 million barrels on Thursday. This puts the reserve at its lowest level in nearly 40 years, according to Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA).
Welcome 2 Pres Biden America where the strategic oil reserve is at the lowest level since 1983 & the OPEC cartel is reducing oil production by 2M barrels a day = ga$ price$ will be on the rise AGAIN Time to reverse the energy policies put in place on day 1 by Pres Biden
— Chuck Grassley (@ChuckGrassley) October 6, 2022
This is an act of desperation and a short-term fix, obviously timed to bring down gasoline prices the month before the midterm elections.
Second, Biden tried to lobby OPEC to increase oil production. Lacking any real leverage, OPEC said no.
And so enter Act Three in this oily play for drill-less oil. This act is set in Venezuela. Biden is reportedly lifting sanctions on Venezuela’s corrupt and oppressive government so as to allow Chevron (a company to which he has very interesting connections) to drill there.
It’s all deeply embarrassing for the Biden administration. Captive to an environmental movement that wants to end drilling in the U.S. based on a dream of a zero-carbon future, Biden is now reaping what he sowed.
The irony is that Biden knows (or used to know) better than to listen to his party’s extreme ideological base. Biden has often given in to this base, though, and the result now is him sucking up to Saudi Arabia and Nicolas Maduro, begging them to do what he’s afraid to: Drill, baby, drill.
Original Article: https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/biden-wants-oil-but-not-drilling-or-pipelines?utm_source=ground.news&utm_medium=referral
