Biden Administration’s War on Fossil Fuels, Not Putin’s War on Ukraine, Is Why Gas Prices Are Sky-High

A man pays for gas in Irvine, Calif., on April 1, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Commentary

On March 31, the White House released a “fact” sheet titled, “President Biden’s Plan to Respond to Putin’s Price Hike at the Pump,” which begins with this tall tale: “Americans face rising prices at the pump because of Putin’s Price Hike.”

Actually, that isn’t true. A more accurate sentence would have read something like: “Americans face rising prices at the pump because of President Biden’s anti-energy policies.”

Consider. As of this writing, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline stands at $4.23.

One year ago, well before Vladimir Putin began amassing forces on the border of Ukraine, the price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $2.87. And, even more telling, the day Biden entered the Oval Office, the price for a gallon of regular gasoline was only $2.33.

In other words, the price for a gallon of gasoline has steadily increased since the day Joe Biden was elected. However, this shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering on the campaign stump Biden said, “I guarantee you we’re going to end fossil fuel.”

What’s more, this was hardly an isolated incident. Throughout his campaign for president in 2020, Biden made it crystal clear that his administration would wage war on fossil fuels.

Yes, it’s true that gas prices have increased somewhat more rapidly since Putin’s forces entered Ukraine; but it’s downright disingenuous for Biden to even attempt to pin the blame for record-high gas prices on Putin.

Fortunately, a large portion of Americans see through the administration’s feeble attempt to blame rising gas prices on Putin.

According to a recent poll conducted by Quinnipiac University, 41 percent of Americans blame rising gas prices on “the Biden administration’s economic policies.” On the other hand, only 24 percent of those polled blamed rising gas prices on “the war in Ukraine and sanctions against Russia.”

Yet, the fact that many Americans believe that the Biden administration’s war on domestic energy production is the primary reason they’re having to pay through the nose to fill their tanks hasn’t deterred the Biden administration from doubling down on its war against American energy production.

Instead of admitting that killing the Keystone XL pipeline, increasing regulations on oil and natural gas production, ending new leases on federal lands, and other counterproductive policies courtesy of the Biden administration are wreaking havoc on domestic production capabilities, we’re told it’s all Putin’s fault.

Indeed, as the White House writes: “The fact is that there is nothing standing in the way of domestic oil production. The United States is already approaching record levels of oil and natural gas production.”

Once again, that is simply not true. The administration, beginning literally on day one, has erected huge roadblocks that have led to decreased oil and gas production. Moreover, at its height of production during the Trump administration, the United States was producing nearly 13 million barrels of oil per month.

As of today, more than a year into the Biden administration, the United States is producing 11 million barrels per month.

In its “fact” sheet, the White House also claims that “Right now, the oil and gas industry is sitting on more than 12 million acres of non-producing Federal land with 9,000 unused but already-approved permits for production.”

This misleading statement has been debunked many times. As American Petroleum Institute President and CEO Mike Sommers explains, “Just because you have a lease doesn’t mean there’s actually oil and gas in that lease, and there has to be a lot of development that occurs between the leasing and then ultimately permitting for that acreage to be productive.”

At this point, it would behoove Biden to come clean with the American people concerning his role in sky-high prices at the pump. After all, many Americans hold him responsible for the price hike.

Perhaps Biden should take a page out of President Harry Truman’s playbook. Truman, never one to pass blame for his decisions onto others, ascribed to the notion, “The buck stops here.” By this, Truman meant that ultimate responsibility for policy decisions and the like lies with the president.

President Biden, whether you like it or not, the buck stops with you. Please quit blaming others for your poor policy decisions and consider reversing course on your war against U.S. energy production.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.