Media watchdog NUKES Biden's claim his policies are not 'holding back domestic energy production'​

THREAD\n\nPresident Biden recently said \u201cit\u2019s simply not true that my administration or policies are holding back domestic energy production.\u201d\n\nI figure the fact checkers likely won\u2019t touch this one, so I did the homework.\n\nBiden\u2019s claim isn\u2019t true. I explain. pic.twitter.com/dLfbeP7WFt

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872093

This opposition to domestic energy production isn\u2019t new. When Biden first took office, he moved to ban new oil and gas leases on federal land (a huge slice of US energy) via executive order.\n\nThe measure was eventually stopped by the courts.https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/25/climate/biden-climate-change.html\u00a0\u2026

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872093

Biden also proposed ending a wide range of tax benefits for drilling and exploration, something supporters said would hopefully \u201cdiscourage additional oil and gas development.\u201d\n\nThis makes the process more expensive, particularly when competing with heavily subsidized renewables.pic.twitter.com/w4fS3iI4uy

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872095

Taken together, these early moves represent what climate activist Bill McKibben said \u201cmay well mark the official beginning of the end of the fossil-fuel era\u201d arguing \u201cthey send a decisive signal about the end of one epoch and the beginning of another.\u201d https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-biden-administrations-landmark-day-in-the-fight-for-the-climate/amp\u00a0\u2026pic.twitter.com/eaMJ9PUfrf

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872097

All of these federal efforts came with a clear goal in mind: sending a signal that the days of fossil fuels would be ending soon.\n\nAgain, once upon a time, the corporate press was comfortable admitting this was the goal:https://time.com/5934090/joe-biden-climate-executive-order/?amp=true\u00a0\u2026

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872098

And it wasn\u2019t just Biden acting on his own. \n\nAs @SaysSimonson wrote about for @FreeBeacon, Dems in Congress have pushed to restrict domestic energy production even as prices have climbed:https://freebeacon.com/politics/how-dems-helped-spike-gas-prices/\u00a0\u2026

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872098

And there were numerous hearings where Democrats have demonized the oil and gas industry in colorful but seriously dubious ways, making the industry\u2019s standing on that side of the aisle clear.pic.twitter.com/cqwalOqdnN

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872100

Now, to be clear, the impacts of some of these efforts have been overblown.\n\nDespite trying to ban new drilling on federal lands, lots of plans have moved forward to do so - more than under President Trump\u2019s first year (largely b/c of Obama-era rules), but fewer than last year.pic.twitter.com/smVuE47qXc

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872102

But it\u2019s intellectually disingenuous for President Biden to pretend that he and his party haven\u2019t taken action to make domestic energy production more difficult and, as a result, have made energy more expensive.\n\nThey\u2019ve done a lot with the explicit goal of doing just that.

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872103

Increased costs have always been a good-faith concern about climate efforts among lots of people, left, right and center.\n\nBiden and his team ignored those warnings and helped make the bed they find themselves laying.\n\nRather than admit that, now they\u2019re trying to memoryhole it.

— Drew Holden (@Drew Holden) 1646872103