As the Russian invasion of Ukraine threatens to turn world energy markets upside down, almost every Republican governor in the country is calling on President Biden to increase domestic energy production, in some cases reversing orders he signed in the early days of his presidency to combat climate change. and to diversify U.S. energy sources with measures such as restarting work on the Keystone XL Pipeline.
“As governors, we call on President Biden to reverse his policies and restore U.S. energy independence for our citizens and our allies abroad,” the governors said in a statement released exclusively by CBS News. “By removing its bans on new oil and gas developments on federal land, building the Keystone XL pipeline and re-establishing regulatory reforms to streamline energy permits, we can protect our national energy security and sell to our friends instead of buying from our enemies, specifically. Russia “.
The statement was signed by 25 of the country’s 28 Republican governors, including moderates such as Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Conservatives such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. Only Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Vermont Gov. Phil Scott did not sign the statement.
Due to high energy costs, President Biden announced during his State of the Union that the United States and 30 other countries would release 60 million barrels of oil from reserves around the world. The United States will release 30 million barrels of oil from its Strategic Oil Reserve.
“We are ready to do more if necessary, united with our allies,” Biden said. “These steps will help reduce gas prices here at home.”
Republicans have harshly criticized the administration’s energy policies, which go back to its decision to revoke the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline in January 2021. The company in charge of the pipeline, which proponents say has shifted 830,000 barrels of from Alberta, Canada and Montana to the Gulf Coast, finished the project in June. It would probably have taken years to complete.
A White House spokesman noted that Keystone was never operational, so “any impact on prices” would be years later and the pipeline “would have done nothing for the current supply imbalance.” The White House also said that “there is no shortage of drilling leases that can be used nationwide to improve production.”
“Of the more than 37 million acres leased on the coast and on land to the oil and gas industry, nearly 60 percent are non-producing,” the spokesman said. “The Biden Administration has been clear: in the short term, oil supply should keep up with demand, here and around the world. It is not government policies that are affecting prices right now. These are decisions. which are taken over by supply and production by companies and producers. “
In November, the White House recommends that oil and gas companies pay more to drill in public lands. Many environmentalists expected more forceful action, such as an absolute ban.
Last month, the Biden administration halted decisions on new oil and gas drilling on federal land after a federal judge issued a ruling blocking the way officials calculated the costs of climate change. Despite the announcement of Mr. Biden halts new federal oil and gas lease in January 2021, a report by Liberal group Public Citizen showed that Biden outperformed former President Donald Trump in approving drilling permits during his first years in office.
The national average of a gallon of gasoline as of Thursday was $ 3.73, according to AAA, about a dollar more than a year ago. A CBS News poll Published on Tuesday, it found that 56% of Americans are concerned about their ability to pay for gas and 51% are concerned about paying for heat and electricity.
The first year of Mr. Biden in office has been plagued by high energy prices and inflation for up to 40 years. The same CBS News poll found that 30% of Americans approve of the president’s work on inflation.
“Family budgets have already been stretched after record inflation,” Republican governors said in a statement. “The people of our states cannot afford another peak in the gas bomb, and our allies cannot afford to be held hostage by Putin’s tyranny and aggression.”
In his State of the Union address, Mr. Biden also promoted ideas such as offering tax credits to Americans who weather their homes, doubling the production of clean energy sources, and reducing the cost of electric vehicles. The president said the goal is to combat the effects of climate change and reduce the energy costs of families by an average of $ 500 a year.
The Republican call for more domestic oil production comes when the Biden administration’s climate agenda is stalled on Capitol Hill. Democrats want to make a faster transition from fossil fuels and encourage the development of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar.
A new one United Nations Report published earlier this week found that further delays in reducing carbon pollution and preparing for climate change-related impacts could cause the world to “lose a brief window of opportunity and close quickly. to ensure a livable and sustainable future for all. “
Fin Gomez and Ben Tracy contributed to this report.
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