At a recent meeting in Florida, former president Donald Trump allegedly sought $1 billion in contributions for his campaign from top oil and gas executives in return for reversing some of Biden’s policies from the first day in the White House. These allegations led Democrats in the House to launch an investigation into Trump’s request just when the former president is expecting the outcome of the New York hush-money trial. Nonetheless, Trump is a vocal critic of Biden’s environmental agenda and has promised to change that if he wins the November general election.
Biden spent billions of dollars promoting environmentally friendly policies. Through various grants and programs, the Biden administration has been pushing renewable energy policies since Democrats took over the White House office. California stands at the forefront of this plan as a state that has done the most in regards to implementing environmentally friendly policies, with Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Democratic state leaders forcing Californians to switch to using alternative energy sources. In just a few years, California managed to turn a huge surplus into a massive budget deficit, which now puts the state’s future growth in question. Meanwhile, California has one of the highest energy prices, and it’s expected that the trend of rising prices will continue in the years to come.
A report that changes everything
A recent report states that the energy policies of the Biden administration are leading to higher costs for Americans. Released by Rep. James Comer, the Republican Chair of the U.S. House Oversight Committee, the report suggests that these policies are raising expenses, making people poorer, and damaging the economy.
“The Biden Administration weaponized the power of the executive branch to wage a war against American-made energy production and cement in place radical, far-left energy policies that jeopardize domestic energy development, overload America’s power grid, and raise costs on all American consumers and businesses,” Comer told Fox News Digital.
“From day one, the House Oversight Committee has worked to expose the Biden Administration’s radical climate agenda,” he added. “The Committee will continue to fulfill its responsibility to hold this Administration accountable for its detrimental Green New Deal policies that are impacting Americans across the country.”
Pause on liquefied natural gas exports
The report criticizes President Joe Biden for several actions, including a temporary pause on exports of liquefied natural gas, higher gas prices, and a strong drive towards using more electric energy. These criticisms are supported by an analysis from the American Action Forum, a conservative group, which notes that as of the end of April, Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency had introduced 38 new rules and completed 63 others in 2024. These regulations, spanning 33,138 pages, are projected to cost the U.S. economy more than a trillion dollars. Additionally, the report points out the financial burden of shifting America’s energy reliance more towards the electric grid.
Controversial policies
The White House has implemented various policies due to worries about climate change, such as halting the creation of new export sites for liquefied natural gas (LNG). This suspension has sparked significant controversy, leading to a group of state and Congressional leaders forming a coalition to oppose it. A group of states has even filed a lawsuit questioning the legality of this pause. Despite this, the Department of Energy under Biden has stood by the decision, stating it won’t affect existing LNG sales. The White House also maintains that the U.S. remains a top LNG exporter even without new sales.
“Before issuing any new LNG export decisions, DOE is embarking on a transparent process to ensure we are using the most up-to-date economic and environmental analyses to determine whether additional approvals of LNG exports to non-FTA countries are in the ‘public interest,” the DOE said in February.
Rising energy costs
Comer’s reports come as Biden’s Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, took questions from lawmakers last week about Biden’s energy policies. During these discussions, Republicans highlighted the rise in energy costs, which federal data shows have increased by over 35% since Biden assumed office. Granholm defended her department’s actions during the hearing, including Biden’s earlier decision to use the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve to combat rising gas prices.
