It is widely recognized that Americans cast their votes on November 5 for President Trump to address the nation’s illegal immigration issues and combat inflation caused by “Bidenomics.” However, voting for President-elect Trump was also a vote for dependable and affordable energy, an issue he identified as essential for controlling inflation. Now, he is delivering on his promise to make America energy-dominant. Recently, President-elect Trump appointed Chris Wright as the next Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE). Wright will be the first Secretary in many years with real energy experience, serving as the CEO of Liberty Energy, North America’s second-largest hydraulic fracturing company. He is a rare leader who openly advocates for the positive impact of energy on humanity and is deeply knowledgeable about the history of energy’s remarkable ability to lift people out of poverty, hunger, and disease. DOE Nominee Chris Wright said, “Energy matters. It not only matters for human lives, it’s a winning political position. No one wants expensive gasoline to fill their tanks. No one wants to struggle to afford to pay their heating bills or to have their electricity go out. These are winning issues and they matter.”
Despite VP Kamala Harris’s campaign team saying that she was now for hydraulic fracturing, “fracking,”—a technology used with directional drilling to reach oil and gas deposits—voters were skeptical based on her prior comments against the technology. In Pennsylvania—a leader in natural gas production—62% of those participating in exit interviews said fracking was a key factor in their vote. They clearly wanted their state to continue to prosper from their position, ranking second in the U.S. production of natural gas with its accompanying jobs and economic benefits.
When voters in Michigan went to the polls, they remembered the Biden-Harris administration’s push for electric cars with onerous regulations that would limit what cars would be available for purchase in the future, hoping to eventually remove gasoline cars from sale to the American public. That would mean fewer jobs for Americans as electric vehicles require less manpower to make and maintain having fewer parts. It also would make America dependent on China, which dominates the EV battery supply chain and is pushing its electric vehicles for export, as Chinese manufacturers make them cheaper than Western countries due to their subsidization, cheap energy from coal, and low labor costs. Seven in ten potential American voters opposed government mandates restricting vehicle choice.
Americans not only voted for a President who is committed to making America energy-dominant, but voters in Western states also took a stand against efforts to restrict the use of natural gas, a vital and affordable energy source. In Washington state, for example, voters approved Initiative 2066, which mandates that the state’s utilities must provide natural gas service to any individual or business that requests it. The initiative also prohibits the state’s Utility and Trade Commission from approving multi-year rate plans that require or encourage the discontinuation of natural gas service. Additionally, it puts an end to incentives such as government subsidies and rebates designed to push customers and developers to electrify their appliances and buildings. Voters felt that officials had overstepped, and the initiative will take effect 30 days after the election.
Voters in Berkeley, California—the first U.S. city to try to ban natural gas—rejected a proposed tax on using natural gas in new buildings. The proposed tax was $2.9647 per therm of natural gas for buildings of 15,000 square feet or larger, minus residential and government buildings, to fund decarbonization programs. The measure was designed to discourage natural gas use in new buildings after a 2019 ban passed by the city council was struck down by a federal court. Berkeley’s proposed natural gas tax, which required a simple majority to pass, received less than one-third of the vote.
Opponents of the Berkeley gas tax said businesses and nonprofits would be harmed. Alta Bates Summit Medical Center CEO David Clark said before the vote that the natural gas tax would lead to increased operating expenses. “Should the measure pass, retrofitting our existing facilities to eliminate natural gas usage would be cost prohibitive and require major construction,” Clark said. “Any additional financial burden imposed would consequently lead to difficult decisions regarding staffing, resources, and ultimately, may impact patient care.” The story of medical care described applies to all fields of endeavor, including residents in their own homes. When given a chance, voters rejected artificially high energy prices.
Polling data revealed that nearly two-thirds of Americans support boosting domestic oil and natural gas production, despite the Institute for Energy Research (IER) identifying 250 ways the Biden-Harris administration and its allies have made it more difficult to produce these vital resources. During his campaign, President Biden promised to phase out fossil fuels, and he did his best to fulfill that commitment. However, he soon realized that this approach led to higher costs and unforeseen consequences, such as the need to overhaul the entire transmission grid to accommodate intermittent wind and solar energy, along with the necessary backup power. Exit polls indicated that economic stability and inflation—issues closely tied to energy policy—were top concerns for voters.
Opposition in Blue States to President-Trump Energy Policies
Despite the clear electoral mandate for his policies, President-elect Trump is encountering significant resistance from Democrat-led cities and states regarding his push for American energy dominance and the continued use of fossil fuels. California, for instance, has implemented stringent regulations pushing residents to purchase electric vehicles instead of gasoline-powered ones, including a ban on the sale of internal combustion engine vehicles after 2035. Over 12 states are following California’s lead in mandating electric vehicle sales. California has even received a waiver from the Biden-Harris administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), allowing the state to set its own electric vehicle rules. President-elect Trump’s EPA should revoke that waiver, giving states the freedom to choose the types of vehicles they wish to purchase.
Meanwhile, New York state has imposed strict regulations on the use of natural gas. It has prohibited hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to extract oil and natural gas from shale basins, despite having vast untapped energy potential. Although New York sits atop a portion of the Marcellus shale basin, it produces less than 1% of the natural gas it consumes, relying heavily on imports. The state’s ban on hydraulic fracturing blocks access to around 12 million acres of the Marcellus Shale—an underground formation rich in natural gas reserves that have helped fuel energy production booms in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio.
New York was also the first state in the United States to ban gas stoves in new homes and apartments. The Democratic-controlled state legislature passed a bill that prohibits natural gas and other fossil-fuel hookups in new residential buildings and some new commercial buildings. It also prohibits other gas-powered appliances such as water heaters, furnaces, and clothes dryers in new residential buildings, in addition to banning gas stoves in new homes. These policies are sure to be unpopular with upstate residents who annually cope with grueling winters.
Conclusion
Americans on November 5 sent a clear message that they want an all-of-the-above energy approach, as well as energy from below the surface, which are tremendous as IER chronicles in its North American Energy Inventory. They do not want government mandates and restrictions, or political creations of energy shortages to force people to do as the government wishes. They demonstrated this by electing President Trump for another term and President-elect Trump is not wasting any time in nominating Chris Wright to the post of Secretary of Energy—a CEO of a major fracking company, who is well versed in the economics and benefits of energy. He has a mandate to bring affordable and abundant energy back to Americans, who have seen gasoline prices rise over 50% and residential electricity prices rise over 20% under the Biden-Harris administration’s energy policies. Wright and Trump will not get any help from blue states who want to continue with the Biden-Harris campaign of ridding the United States of the use of fossil fuels, but those states will deny their citizens the job growth and economic benefits of using all of our country’s resources.
