On Friday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “The Story,” Senior Adviser to President Joe Biden Gene Sperling stated that the Biden administration’s plan to allow some more drilling on federal land is “not at all” an admission that previous blocking of drilling leases was a mistake.
Host Martha MacCallum asked, [relevant remarks begin around 3:40] “The oil industry has made it clear that they feel like the administration has basically condemned their industry and doesn’t want them to grow, wants them to shrink over time. … I could put up a whole litany of soundbites that back that up. But I think it’s interesting because now the administration is saying that they’re going to make new leases available to drill on federal land, which is something that the president ran against. He said that he wouldn’t do that. He stopped them. So, — and I know that there’s mixed reaction to this decision about whether or not it’s being done in a way that will actually make a difference in lowering gas prices, but is that an admission that that was a mistake back then?”
Sperling responded, “No, not at all. There are many things we need to do that this period chose we need to do to have energy independence.”
He added, “One of the other things the president did is put 180 million more barrels of oil supply on the market. That was a major thing we’ve done to increase the supply of oil and ask our other countries to put another 60 million on themselves. In terms of the oil industry, we are, next year, projected to be at record production. Natural gas is at record production. We’ve always thought — known that was part of the mix in having energy independence along with things like encouraging more electric cars, encouraging more energy efficiency. And we also believe that you could do more at this time to give consumers relief across the board.”
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