Harris, a longtime climate hawk who backed the original Green New Deal, said in Tuesday’s debate that the Biden-Harris administration has overseen “the largest increase in domestic oil production in history”
In a surprising turn of events, Vice President Kamala Harris, known for her strong stance on climate change and support for the original Green New Deal, claimed that the Biden-Harris administration has overseen “the largest increase in domestic oil production in history because of an approach that recognises that we cannot over rely on foreign oil.”
This statement from Harris, which contradicts the frequent claims by herself and President Joe Biden that they are leading the charge in the battle against global warming, left both supporters and critics taken aback. Following former President Donald Trump’s withdrawal of the US from the Paris Agreement on climate change, the Biden-Harris administration rejoined the international pact aimed at reducing emissions.
They also set an ambitious goal to cut US greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030, while pushing for the acceleration of renewable energy projects and a shift away from fossil fuels. Republican strategist Liam Donovan noted it was significant that Harris chose to “brag about something that President Biden has barely acknowledged – that domestic fossil fuel production under the Biden administration is at an all-time high” during a debate in energy-rich Pennsylvania.
According to the US Energy Information Administration, crude production averaged 12.9 million barrels a day last year, surpassing a previous record set in 2019 under Trump. Donovan suggested that the statement was “another sign of Harris’ sprint to the middle on energy policy and other issues.
Harris took it a step further, rebranding the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act – the administration’s flagship climate law – as a benefit to fracking and other drilling. This is due to lease-sale requirements inserted into the bill by independent West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, a key swing vote in the Senate and a staunch supporter of the fossil fuel industry.
However, Harris’s remarks have left some in the environmental community feeling let down. ‘Harris missed a critical opportunity to lay out a stark contrast with Trump and show young voters that she will stand up to Big Oil and stop the climate crisis,” said Stevie O’Hanlon, a spokesperson for the Sunrise Movement, one of the groups behind the Green New Deal. “”Harris spent more time promoting fracking than laying out a bold vision for a clean energy future.
“Young voters want more from Harris” on climate change, she added. “We want to see a real plan that meets the scale and urgency of this crisis. ””Her group is striving to mobilise young voters, “but we hear people asking every day, ‘What are Democrats going to do for us?” O’Hanlon said. “To win, Harris needs to show young people she will fight for us.
He added: “Other environmental groups were less critical, citing the imminent threat to climate action posed by Trump, who reversed over 100 environmental protections during his presidency.”
There is only one presidential candidate who is a champion for climate action and that is Kamala Harris,” stated Alex Glass, representing Climate Power, a liberal advocacy group. According to Glass, Harris “laid out a clear vision to invest in clean energy jobs and lower costs for working families.” In contrast, she claimed, Trump “will do the bidding of his Big Oil donors.”
Glass referred to the conservative Project 2025, penned by Trump allies, warning it could jeopardise millions of clean-energy jobs and allow oil companies to “profiteer and pollute.” While Trump has denied a direct link to Project 2025, he has supported some of its key concepts.
Mike Sommers, president and CEO of the American Petroleum Institute, the top lobbying group for the oil and gas industry, suggested Harris’ pro-fracking stance was a reflection of political reality in the closely contested election. “You have to be for fracking to be elected president in 2024,” he declared. “That’s good news for our industry and great news for American consumers.”
Asked why he was so confident about the need to support fracking, Sommers offered a one-word answer: “Pennsylvania.” Not only is it a key swing state in the election, Pennsylvania also “is the beating heart of the natural gas industry in this country,” Sommers said, second only to Texas in total production.
“You don’t win Pennsylvania without supporting fracking, and you don’t win the presidency without Pennsylvania,” Sommers said. In the debate, Trump disputed Harris’s claim that she will not try to ban fracking, but Sommers said he takes Harris at her word and welcomes her support for fracking and oil drilling more generally.
Asked if he was concerned about Harris’ past actions suing oil companies, Sommers said no. The oil and gas industry supports 11 million jobs, he said, and the price of gasoline “is determined by economics — supply and demand. There is no man behind the curtain” rigging prices.
As California attorney general, Harris “won tens of millions in settlements against Big Oil and held polluters accountable,” her campaign says. Her platform includes a promise to ”hold polluters accountable to secure clean air and water for all.”
Trump, meanwhile, has vowed to rescind unspent funds from the climate law and other programs, and said he will target offshore wind projects. He said Harris would move to restrict onshore oil and gas production if elected. “They’ll go back to destroying our country, and oil will be dead, fossil fuel will be dead,” Trump said.
A president’s power to restrict fracking, even on federal lands, is limited, and barring the practice on private land would require an act of Congress.
