Many of the nation’s Republican U.S. Senators, including Oklahoma’s James Lankford aren’t happy about the President’s decision announced last week to delay permits for 17 major natural gas projects,including creation of the largest LNG port in Louisiana.
They fired off a letter blasting the administration for what it did. The Senators charged the delay came at the request of what they called the “radical climate lobby.”
“This ‘LNG Plan’ drafted without input from Congress could have significant economic, environmental, and national security consequences domestically and globally. It would be reckless to jeopardize our advantage, especially in a world where energy is frequently being used as a geopolitical weapon,” complained the Senators in their letter.
Lankford and the others said without the U.S. LNG exports,European leaders will now have to decide between depriving their own citizens of energy or actively funding Russia’s war on Ukraine.
“Limiting U.S. LNG exports do not have any impact on the world’s demand for natural gas. Instead, countries including Russia and Iran will simply produce more energy that is subject to less stringent environmental regulations. As a result, limiting American LNG exports in the name of stopping climate change could do just the opposite and add to global emissions,” continued the Senators.
They weren’t finished in their criticism of the President’s decision.
“We strongly urge you to stop this shortsighted effort. As the President of the United States and as the Secretary of Energy, you should be championing – not undermining – American LNG exports and the environmental, economic, and national security benefits to the United States and our allies.”
One of the leaders of the letter was Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and he wasn’t hesitant to criticize the President.
“This announcement is another blatant attack in the Biden administration’s day 1 campaign against America’s oil and gas industry and the American workers who sustain it. The Biden administration has always been controlled by the fringes of the Democrat Party, including radical climate activists, and that control is only deepening as the 2024 election approaches,” said the Senator in a statement.
West Virginia Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin joined in on the criticism of the White House and said he wants to investigate, using his capacity as Chairman of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He charged the announcement reminded him of the “ill-advised and unlawful pause on oil and gas leasing in the name of climate.
“If the Administration has the facts to prove that additional LNG export capacity would hurt Americans, they must make that information public and clear. But if this pause is just another political ploy to pander to keep-it-in-the-ground climate activists at the expense of American workers, businesses, and our allies in need, I will do everything in my power to end this pause immediately. Let me be crystal clear: America’s LNG policy should be based on facts, not politics.”
Others who signed the letter were Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mo.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), and John Kennedy (R-La.).