Tag Archives: Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Heading Back To Energy Independence And Prosperity

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On Tuesday, The Washington Free Beacon posted an article about the recent actions of newly-confirmed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.

The article reports:

In a series of orders Monday evening, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum revoked Biden-era actions that blocked drilling across 625 million acres of federal waters nationwide—an area that is equivalent in size to a third of the continental United States—in the 19-million-acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and in the state’s 23-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve.

The actions, while expected, signal an abrupt change in how the Interior Department will approach oil and gas leasing issues during the Trump administration. Under Biden-era interior secretary Deb Haaland’s leadership, the agency pursued an aggressive climate strategy, severely restricting oil and gas drilling and mining while expanding green energy production on public lands and waters.

“We are committed to working collaboratively to unlock America’s full potential in energy dominance and economic development to make life more affordable for every American family while showing the world the power of America’s natural resources and innovation,” Burgum said in a statement.

Burgum unveiled a six-pillar plan to implement President Donald Trump’s energy agenda: address the national energy emergency, unleash American energy, deliver emergency price relief for American families, revoke former president Joe Biden’s offshore drilling bans, roll back regulations, and unleash Alaska’s resource potential.

The article notes:

And as part of the department’s new effort to roll back regulations, the Interior Department will eliminate at least 10 existing regulations for every new one introduced and “ensure that the costs of new regulations are offset by removing the costs of previous ones.”

“These actions will align U.S. energy policy with the nation’s current and future needs,” National Ocean Industries Association president Erik Milito said on Tuesday. “They will enhance energy security, bolster national defense, grow our economy, and keep energy affordable for every household and business, reducing reliance on foreign adversaries.”

Financial relief is coming for America’s families.

Finally…A Step Toward America’s Energy Independence

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On Monday, The Daily Caller reported the following:

The Biden administration announced on Monday it will proceed with the smallest possible oil and gas lease sale in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

This move barely meets the mandates set by Congress, under the shadow of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The Bureau of Land Management is compelled to auction drilling rights in this pristine wilderness by year’s end, despite vocal opposition from many within the Democratic Party, according to The Hill. This approach includes leasing exactly 400,000 acres—the least required by law.

Set for Jan. 9, the impending lease sale positions itself as a contentious prelude to the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump, who will assume office a mere 11 days later, The Hill reported. This timing is a potential pivot towards more expansive energy policies favored by the previous Trump administration, which executed the first such lease sale in 2021.

It has taken seven years to get this lease sale moving. The lease sale and the subsequent oil retrieved will be a boon to both the American economy and the people of Alaska, who receive revenue from drilling in their state.

The article notes:

The Biden administration had previously suspended several leases issued during the 2021 sale, citing “multiple legal deficiencies,” the outlet said. Citing the need for ecological preservation, the current administration is confining the upcoming sale to areas deemed to have the highest potential for oil and gas findings, explicitly avoiding regions critical for polar bear denning and migratory bird nesting.

The article concludes:

In 2023, Biden said that he had aimed to halt all drilling along the East Coast, West Coast, and in the Gulf, but legal defeats hindered these plans. He disclosed this in response to a question about fulfilling his extensive climate and green energy promises to younger constituents.

Hopefully, this lease sale will be utilized quickly as part of President Trump’s plan for energy independence for America.

Killing The Alaskan Economy

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On Thursday, The Daily Wire posted an article about some new Biden administration policies that will destroy the economy of Alaska.

The article reports:

The Biden administration announced on Wednesday that it would be canceling oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Preserve and move to ban drilling in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve. 

The announcement from the Department of the Interior means that seven leases for drilling given during the Trump administration will be rescinded and that 13 million acres in the National Petroleum Reserve will be off limits for drilling if the proposed rule is approved. The leases were held by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) and encompassed 365,775 acres. 

“Alaska is home to many of America’s most breathtaking natural wonders and culturally significant areas. As the climate crisis warms the Arctic more than twice as fast as the rest of the world, we have a responsibility to protect this treasured region for all ages,” President Joe Biden said in a statement. 

The announcement was opposed by top Alaskan officials, including Governor Mike Dunleavy and Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan. 

“Today the Biden Administration announced that it is cancelling legally-issued oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge section designated for oil and gas development. The leases AIDEA holds in ANWR were properly acquired in a sale mandated by Congress,” Dunleavy posted on X. “It’s clear that President Biden needs a refresher on the Constitution’s separation of powers doctrine. Federal agencies don’t get to rewrite laws, and that is exactly what the Department of the Interior is trying to do here.”

The article concludes:

Despite the fact that Biden canceled the Keystone XL pipeline expansion and aggressively pushed green energy, climate activists are still angry at Biden after he allowed the Willow oil project in Alaska’s North Slope to go forward, which could end up yielding 180,000 gallons of oil per day. The decision to end the leases and block drilling comes as gas prices across the country remain high. 

Hopefully the government of Alaska will bring a lawsuit that will go to the Supreme Court. This is government overreach.

Funding The Green Agenda At The Executive Level

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It would be nice if we were all very honest people who were not swayed by money or the promise of influence. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the way the world works. Today’s Daily Caller posted a story about White House Counselor John Podesta, who will be leaving the White House to take a position in Hillary Clinton’s campaign.

The article reports:

But his work came into fuller view earlier this week when he emerged as one of the architects of the new White House policy that seeks to end any future drilling for oil on Alaska’s coastal plain.

In fact, Podesta personally announced the policy in a White House blog post Sunday, waxing poetic that the move would ensure “this wild, free, beautiful, and bountiful place remains in trust for Alaska Natives and for all Americans.”

Shielding public lands from oil and gas drilling also is one of the main occupations of Hansjorg Wyss, a mysterious Swiss billionaire who personally hired Podesta as a “consultant” in 2013 just before he entered the White House, according to his White House disclosure form.

The problem is that because of the timing involved, there is a violation of federal ethics rules.

The article explains:

But it may be Wyss’s decision to personally hire the White House Counselor in 2013 as a “consultant,” and paying him $87,000 that could cause Podesta the most trouble.

A number of federal ethics rules, including President Obama’s “ethics pledge,” signed into law by the president on his first day in office, preclude political appointees from engaging in issues of interest to a former employer.

The period of disqualification applies to all work done within two years before entering the federal government. Podesta worked at Wyss’s HJW Foundation in 2013 and joined the White House in January 2014.

Wyss has a history of working to put federal lands off limits for energy exploration and for use as grazing property.

The article details more of Wyss’ activities:

He famously ponied up $35 million in 2010 to set aside 310,000 acres of land from development in Montana.

In January 2013, Wyss contributed $4.25 million to purchase oil and gas leases on 58,000 acres of land in Wyoming’s Hoback Basin.

Wyss sits on the governing council of the Wilderness Society, and on the boards of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and the Grand Canyon Trust.

In addition to Podesta, Wyss also hired Molly Mcusic to be his foundation president.

Mcusic served in the Clinton administration as a top assistant to Interior Secretary Bruce Babbit. She is best remembered for using the Antiquities Act to designate lands as “National Monuments.”

I wish we had someone in Washington uncorrupt enough to take on this sort of corruption. Americans are being denied the use of land that would add to the prosperity of the average citizen, and someone from another country is pulling the strings within an American administration. Would anyone be willing to wager how much of this story will make the major news outlets?