Topline
President-elect Donald Trump accused President Joe Biden of “doing everything possible to make the TRANSITION as difficult as possible” on Monday after Biden enacted a new ban on offshore drilling that Trump can’t unilaterally undo.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump arrives at his Mar-A-Lago Club for New Year’s Eve on December 31, … [+]
Key Facts
Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday that Biden is using “costly and ridiculous Executive Orders on the Green New Scam and other money wasting Hoaxes” to hinder the transition process, without explicitly mentioning the offshore drilling ban.
Biden on Monday announced a permanent ban on 625 million acres off the U.S. coastline, including the entire East Coast, eastern Gulf of Mexico, the coasts of Washington, Oregon and California, and parts of the Northern Bering Sea, citing the need to prevent “irreversible damage” like the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Biden invoked the 1953 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which gives presidents broad authority to implement drilling bans, but does not give them the authority to reverse them—meaning Trump could need to seek congressional approval to reverse the measure.
Trump told Hugh Hewitt Monday “it’s ridiculous” and he will “unban it immediately,” while his spokesperson Karoline Leavitt called the decision “disgraceful” and “designed to exact political revenge on” Trump voters, vowing the incoming Trump administration would “drill, baby, drill,” invoking a phrase Trump frequently used on the campaign trail.
Chief Critic
Ron Neal, chairman of the Independent Petroleum Association of America Offshore Committee and president of Houston Energy L.P. and CEO of HEQ Deepwater, said the ban “represents a major attack on the oil and natural gas industry” in a statement, but acknowledged “it may not directly affect the currently active production areas in the Outer Continental Shelf and adjoining coastal areas.” Experts say the ban won’t have much of an economic impact, CNN reported, citing Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis at the Oil Price Information Service, who said it’s “not particularly consequential for US exploration and production going forward,” since there are already numerous rigs operating in the Gulf and projects typically take 6-8 years to complete.
Contra
Trump also banned some offshore drilling as president, enacting a prohibition on future drilling in the Eastern Gulf and Atlantic coasts of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. Trump, however, made Biden’s climate initiatives and energy policy a key target on the campaign trail, vowing that “on Day 1, I will approve new drilling, new pipelines, new refiners, new power plants, new reactors, and we will slash the red tape,” he said during a campaign stop in September. Trump has also promised to reverse Biden’s policies to further electric vehicle production and end offshore wind projects.
Crucial Quote
Environmental advocates praised Biden’s announcement. Joseph Gordon, director of the nonprofit ocean preservation group, Oceana, called the move an “epic ocean victory” in a statement thanking Biden “for listening to the voices from coastal communities and contributing to the bipartisan tradition of protecting our coasts.”
Key Background
Offshore U.S. oil production has been falling and as of 2022, accounted for just 15% of all federal offshore acreage, primarily in the Gulf, as onshore drilling has surged, according to the Energy Information Administration. U.S. oil production set a global record last year, led by shale oil drillers in Texas and New Mexico, exceeding exports from Saudi Arabia and Russia. The production surge is linked to more efficient drilling techniques, rather than domestic drilling policies, however.
Further Reading
Biden permanently bans offshore drilling in 625 million acres of ocean, making a Trump reversal difficult (CNN)
Biden issues ban on offshore oil and gas drilling in most federal waters. Trump vows to undo it (Associated Press)
Biden’s move to permanently block offshore oil drilling sparks Trump’s ire (ABC)
Read the full article here