Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) called on President Joe Biden to relax rules against U.S. oil production which have left the nation heavily dependent on Middle Eastern and Russian oil. Even after the invasion of Ukraine, which the president has condemned, the United States has continued to buy around 500,000 barrels of Russian oil per day.
Manchin continued, “The United States can and must ramp up domestic energy production and increase access to our abundant resources and technologies to both protect our energy independence and support our allies around the globe.”
“If there was ever a time to be energy independent, it is now,” Manchin added, accusing Biden of being “hypocritical” for continuing to allow the importation of Russian oil. “To continue to rely on Russian energy as they attack Ukraine is senseless.”
Manchin concluded, “In the coming days and weeks, the strategic value of American energy and what can be done to better position our nation on the global stage will be an ongoing topic in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.”
Upon taking office Biden, citing the so-called “climate crisis,” signed a series of executive orders ending or reversing Trump-era policies.
Most prominently, Biden placed a moratorium on leasing federal lands to oil and natural gas producers. He also paused construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, which has been a controversial issue since President Barack Obama’s time in the Oval Office.
These policies, however, have made the United States again dependent on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russian oil. Even as the United States has roundly condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, oil from the nation has continued to pour into the United States.
Though many Democrats have fallen into line with the White House on energy and climate policy Manchin, who has often broken with his party during the 117th Congress, has for some time expressed skepticism toward his party over the issue.
Because Biden has unilateral control over much of the United States’ energy policy, the White House would be able to significantly ramp up domestic oil production through a handful of executive orders.
Though the United States and its western allies have imposed tough sanctions on Russia, cutting several of its largest banks out of the SWIFT financial system, the nation remains as dependent on Russian oil as it was before the invasion of Ukraine.
If Biden heeds Manchin’s call to make changes to his energy policies, it is likely that the move will be praised by the GOP but will face heavy scrutiny from progressive Democrats and environmentalist groups.
“President Biden can’t claim to be addressing the climate emergency or caring about environmental justice if he continues to treat the Gulf of Mexico and coastal communities as sacrifice zones,” said Kristen Monsell, a legal director for the group, calling for Biden to reverse the lease.
“I would also note that, on oil leases, what this actually justifies, in President Biden’s view, is the fact that we need to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, on oil in general, and need to look at other ways of having energy in our country and others,” Psaki argued.
She said that energy sanctions against Russia “remain on the table.”
There has been as yet no indication that Biden will put such sanctions in place or radically change course in his attitude toward domestic energy policy, but Manchin’s statement indicates that there is at least some bipartisan support for the move.