President Joe Biden responded to criticism of his administration’s domestic energy policies, saying it is “simply not true.”
Biden announced on Tuesday the United States would be banning all imports of Russian oil, gas, and energy. He commented on the claim that his administration or policies are “holding back domestic energy production.”
He explained, “It’s simply not true. Even amid the pandemic, companies in the United States pumped more oil during my first year in office than they did during my predecessor’s first year. We’re approaching a record level of oil and gas production in the United States, and we’re on track to set a record of oil production next year.”
Biden continued, “In the United States, 90 percent of onshore oil production takes place on land that isn’t owned by the federal government. And of the remaining 10 percent that occurs on federal land, the oil and gas industry has millions of acres leased. They have 9,000 permits to drill now. They could be drilling right now, yesterday, last week, last year. They have 9,000 to drill onshore that are already approved.”
Watch his comments below:
"It is simple not true that my administration or policies are holding back domestic energy production" — Biden pic.twitter.com/xprxeQAHfs
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 8, 2022
The president’s comments come as Americans are struggling to pay at the pump. Fox News noted the country is experiencing the highest gas prices since 2008.
“Putin’s war is already hurting American families at the gas pump since Putin began his military buildup on Ukrainian borders,” Biden warned. “And with this action, it’s going to go up further. I’m going to do everything I can to minimize Putin’s price hike here at home and coordination with our partners.”
Last week, Biden said he would approve a release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve amid concerns about rising gas prices, as IJR reported.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement, “President Biden was clear from the beginning that all tools are on the table to protect American businesses and consumers, including from rising prices at the pump.”