[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 207 (Wednesday, December 1, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H6717-H6718]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      AMERICA'S PETROLEUM RESERVE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Kansas (Mr. Mann) for 5 minutes.

[[Page H6718]]

  

  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss President Biden's 
shortsighted decision to release 50 million barrels of oil from 
America's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, depleting this national security 
asset by nearly 10 percent when there is no oil supply shortage, only a 
manmade one.
  The United States' oil reserve is not a tool for the President to fix 
his own political problems. Sadly, this administration throws money 
away whenever the problems they create reflect poorly on them. We have 
seen this with COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns and vaccine mandates keeping 
people out of work, leftist political aims resulting in bad 
legislation, and a flagrant disregard for the national debt all leading 
to wasteful spending.
  Rather than drain one of our essential national security assets to 
temporarily mask the effects of their policies, this administration 
should instead encourage our domestic, independent oil and gas 
producers to take steps to get oil production back up. I shudder to 
think that the President might drain another 10 percent of our 
Strategic Petroleum Reserve 2 months from now if our oil production 
continues to wane.
  There are other solutions to this issue, like reinstating the 
Keystone pipeline and encouraging oil production on Federal lands just 
being two of them. Instead, this administration has canceled the 
Keystone pipeline, which would make 860,000 barrels of oil available 
daily, and has demanded a 50 percent fee increase for oil and gas 
leasing on Federal lands.
  Just 2 years ago, the United States was producing 2 million more 
barrels of oil per day than we are now. We are down from 13 million 
barrels per day to 11 million barrels per day. That means if we could 
lift regulations and find creative strategies to get our oil production 
back up, we could create 50 million barrels of oil in just 25 days 
rather than dip into the emergency reserves.
  Historically, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has only ever been used 
in cases of natural disaster and war. With global unrest from COVID-19 
and America's enemies looking to do us harm, this is not the time to 
needlessly weaken a national security asset that exists to provide 
energy to America in the event of an actual catastrophe in our country.
  The only catastrophe in America right now is this administration's 
bad policies. I oppose the President using our emergency oil reserves 
in this brazen political tactic. This is unnecessary, irresponsible, 
and dangerous.


                      Waters of the United States

  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in defense of Kansas farmers and 
ranchers who have the right to manage their own resources without 
overreaching regulation from the Federal Government.
  The Biden administration is hurting farmers, ranchers, and ag-
business owners. Recently, they withdrew from the Navigable Waters 
Protection Rule which sought to undo the harm caused by the Waters of 
the United States, or WOTUS, rule from 2015, through which the Federal 
Government aimed to exact regulatory control over nearly all bodies of 
water, regardless of their size or connection to larger waterways. 
Because of this legislative mess, farmers and ranchers have had to 
conduct their businesses under three different regulatory definitions 
of water in just the past 6 years.
  On a farm, water is the lifeblood of the operation, and farmers in 
Kansas don't need the Federal Government to tell them how to take care 
of it. Our farmers and ranchers are the original conservationists who 
continually update their practices to reduce water use and inputs to 
produce safe, affordable food while maintaining their water supply for 
generations to come.
  Instead of worrying about what farmers in Kansas are doing with their 
puddles, the administration should instead focus on curbing inflation, 
getting Americans back to work, fixing the supply chain, and securing 
our borders.

                              {time}  1030


                      service academy nominations

  Mr. MANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss one of my greatest 
privileges as a Member of Congress, participating in the service 
academy nominations process, which brings together my passions for 
engaging with young people, leadership development, and military 
service in this great country.
  I am proud to come from a State with a rich history of military 
service. President Eisenhower graduated from West Point in 1915, which 
is why I felt it was appropriate to host our State's nomination process 
in his Presidential library in Abilene, Kansas. After watching young 
Kansas men and women go through the extensive and competitive 
nomination exercise, one of the members of our selection committee 
said: ``Meeting and working with these young people gives me hope for 
the future of our country.''
  In the United States, we have a long tradition of young American 
patriots willingly embracing the duty to serve, to protect the 
homeland, to keep the peace abroad, and to secure our rights. Leaders 
serve, and I want to congratulate all the deserving young leaders who 
are recipients of service academy nominations. I thank them from the 
bottom of my heart for their willingness to sacrifice for this great 
country.

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