[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 47 (Wednesday, March 16, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H3763-H3768]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                BRING BACK AMERICAN ENERGY INDEPENDENCE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Jacobs of California). Under the 
Speaker's announced policy of January 4, 2021, the gentleman from 
Louisiana (Mr. Johnson) is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of 
the minority leader.


                             General Leave

  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that 
all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend 
their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my 
Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Louisiana?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, we have another crisis, yet 
another crisis, created by the policy choices of this White House.
  The national average price for a gallon of gas reached $4.32 on 
Sunday; and, yes, that is the highest price in U.S. history.
  Last Thursday, we also learned that U.S. inflation soared 7.9 percent 
over the past 12 months. That is the largest spike in consumer prices 
in 40 years.
  Now, the Washington Democrats' blame game is in full swing. Just to 
get this straight, at first, according to Democrats, they said 
inflation ``wasn't happening.'' Then inflation was ``merely 
transitory,'' they tried to convince us. Then inflation somehow only 
hurt

[[Page H3764]]

rich folks; that was the only line of reasoning.
  But Washington Democrats' latest fiction might be their greatest yet: 
That the past year of steady, unrelenting price increases for gas and 
consumer goods is actually Vladimir Putin's fault.
  Yes, that is right, Madam Speaker, Vladimir Putin. He didn't kill the 
Keystone pipeline. Joe Biden did. Vladimir Putin didn't ban drilling 
for oil on Federal lands. Joe Biden did that. Vladimir Putin didn't 
pass trillions upon trillions in unnecessary government spending in a 
single year. Joe Biden and the Washington Democrats did that.
  Madam Speaker, what is so hard about just being honest with the 
American people? President Biden should accept responsibility for the 
past year of rising prices and pledge to correct course. He had better, 
or we are in for more and more pain.
  The President should do everything in his power to make it easier, 
not harder, for America to produce more oil and gas. This would lower 
prices for the American people. It would make our country and Europe 
less dependent on foreign energy. But instead, President Biden says he 
actually ``can't do much right now'' about the skyrocketing gas prices.
  The Democratic Caucus leader said the issue of gas prices ``hasn't 
come up'' during his party's caucus meetings. Really? You haven't made 
time to discuss any solutions to the number one issue facing Americans 
right now?
  Now that the Biden administration and Congressional Democrats know 
they are in a tight spot, here is the thing: They are trying to 
convince the American people that an American President can't control 
gas prices in the United States but Russians can. Good luck with that.
  I thank my colleagues for being here tonight for my Special Order 
hour this evening.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. 
Meuser).

                              {time}  1730

  Mr. MEUSER. Madam Speaker, we have a very, very serious energy crisis 
here on our home shores. As fuel continues to rise, the Biden 
administration continues to point fingers at anybody but themselves--
they have done it many times before--for this self-inflicted crisis.
  There are statements such as this is Putin's fault. The fact is, 
though, that the numbers truly tell a different story, and they do, in 
fact, tell the truth.
  This situation cannot be denied by many of our colleagues here in the 
House, that we are issuing virtual propaganda about the realities of a 
national crisis.
  On January 20 of last year, a gallon of gas cost $2.39. After a year 
with the Biden administration, and with much of the House leadership 
supporting, we shut down the Keystone pipeline; paused leases for 
energy development; failed to approve even one permit for drilling, not 
one; imposed new regulations on the energy industry; threatened higher 
taxes on energy companies; and, yes, actually warned banks and 
financial institutions not to make investments in our domestic energy 
industries.
  Yet, what is coming from the White House, and many in this House, is 
to blame Putin for the gas prices. It is just horrible propaganda.
  Last week, the President actually told the American people that he 
``can't do much right now'' to lower gas prices. Yes, you can. Yes, it 
can be done.
  Meanwhile, they are looking at Iran, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, and, up 
until recently, Russia. So why don't we look at central Pennsylvania, 
west Texas, New Mexico, Louisiana?
  Create American energy and American jobs. We need to reverse the 
policies that have depressed production, throttled back investment, and 
led to higher gas prices at the pump and for heating people's homes 
nationwide.
  Madam Speaker, energy security is national security. I think we have 
all heard that. It has never been more important to be reminded of it 
than today. We must reverse these damaging policies now and safeguard 
our Nation's security for today and tomorrow.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, from energy States like 
ours--Pennsylvania, Louisiana, and the others--we have been saying this 
for a long, long time: Energy security is national security. Now, 
everybody recognizes it.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Tiffany), 
another gentleman who knows quite a bit about this issue.
  Mr. TIFFANY. Madam Speaker, 2 weeks ago, we were here and heard about 
how President Biden was going to use every tool at his disposal, every 
tool, to combat skyrocketing energy costs.
  Now, this is the same administration that told us the border was 
secure. That was about a year ago, a little less than a year ago. The 
border was secure. And we just saw in the last month, once again, 
record numbers of people coming in illegally to our country across the 
southern border.
  Of course, as the gentleman from Louisiana just said, inflation was 
``transitory,'' and we are starting to hear that his chief economic 
adviser is saying maybe it is not so transitory. We are seeing record 
numbers now, this month, in regard to inflation.
  Well, it all started January 20, 2021, with the shutdown of the 
Keystone pipeline and all the other actions that were taken to limit 
production here in America.
  We saw what is turning out to be a foreign policy disaster, the okay 
of the Nord Stream pipeline that is delivering natural gas to Western 
Europe, something the previous administration would never do.
  This is all part of the green fantasy here in America that has become 
America's nightmare.
  Back home in my district, it is $2.85 a gallon to heat your home with 
propane right now. Propane is used by about a third of the homeowners 
in the district that I live in. They paid $1.50 in August 2021. They 
paid $0.80 a gallon in August 2020. That is what they are facing.
  President Biden came to my district right after the State of the 
Union speech, came to Superior, Wisconsin. Once again, we were anxious 
to hear how he is going to use every tool, every tool possible, to 
provide energy for America.
  But we didn't hear a thing about rerouting the pipeline through 
northern Wisconsin that is held up because a permit is not issued by 
the Governor of Wisconsin and his Department of Natural Resources.
  We didn't hear a single thing about Line 5 that goes through the 
Straits of Mackinac--the Governor of Michigan shut down that permit 
last year--a major throughput to Canada and the entire Midwest.
  We didn't hear a word about rebuilding the refinery in Superior, 
which we hope is complete soon. He was there on an infrastructure tour. 
That refinery produces all kinds of asphalt. Don't you think that would 
be a really good time--infrastructure, asphalt--to talk about 
rebuilding that refinery?
  Finally, he didn't say a thing about a natural gas plant that is 
proposed for Superior, Wisconsin, nearly a billion-dollar investment to 
produce clean electricity with natural gas.
  We didn't hear a word about producing more fertilizer for those 
farmers to grow our crops. We didn't hear a word about that.
  This President does not understand security. Job security, thousands 
of jobs--two of the major pipeline manufacturers in the United States 
are right in Wisconsin. We didn't hear a thing about economic security, 
the inflation that is, in part, a result of these increased energy 
costs. We didn't hear a thing about national security, and that is what 
is at stake.
  The Biden administration has let us down on all three fronts, job 
security, economic security, and national security.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for his 
remarks.
  Madam Speaker, when we think about energy States, of course, we 
probably think about Texas first. I am delighted to yield to the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Babin), who represents that State so well.

  Mr. BABIN. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague and friend across the 
Sabine River from me, Mr. Johnson, for having this Special Order.
  President Biden and the Democrats hate the facts because the facts 
are not

[[Page H3765]]

on their side. If we are being honest, the facts haven't been on their 
side for a very long time. Nevertheless, they continue perpetuating the 
lie that domestic energy is somehow bad, and foreign energy is somehow 
good.
  So, join me. Let's take a look at the facts here. The refineries, 
petrochemical plants, and American businesses in and around my 
district, the 36th Congressional District of the State of Texas, are 
unmatched worldwide.
  For years, they have showcased what our country does best, and that 
is producing superior, high-quality petroleum products by leading in 
technological innovation.
  The best and brightest Americans are constantly discovering new ways 
to enhance safety, lower emissions, and provide the world with 
affordable and reliable energy.
  But the left, the leftist Democrats, they don't seem to care. They 
would rather lambaste the American public for not buying a $60,000-plus 
electric vehicle. In fact, they would rather help tyrants and communist 
countries become energy powerhouses than to spend even one cent 
supporting U.S. oil and gas jobs, American ingenuity, or our state-of-
the-art facilities.
  And in the name of what, eliminating greenhouse gases? Give me a 
break.
  Here is a reality check. When we increase our dependency on foreign 
nations for our energy needs, we increase our carbon footprint. Simple.
  America makes the cleanest energy on the planet--fact. Foreign oil 
and gas are not produced using the stringent environmental regulations 
that we have here in America, not to mention foreign oil must travel 
farther on less safe and less environmentally friendly modes of 
transportation to get that product here.
  If Biden and my Democrat colleagues want to talk about cleaner 
energy, they must first accept the fact that we, America, lead in 
reducing harmful pollution worldwide.
  Americans are sick of suffering from Biden's anti-oil and gas agenda 
that supports dirtier energy, funds corrupt governments, kills their 
jobs, weakens our national security, and raises the cost of everything.
  I spent $125 filling up my Ford F-150 pickup truck this past Monday, 
just as an example.
  But here is the bottom line: If Biden and the left honestly believe 
that foreign energy is the best option, then they really do not care 
about the environment or the security of our own Nation, the United 
States of America.
  Acknowledge the facts. Put America first. Unleash our energy sector. 
Help the environment. End our dangerous dependence on foreign 
adversaries.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank Dr. Babin. That is 
Texas strong, as we expected.
  Madam Speaker, one of the strongest Republican delegations in our 
Congress comes from another State, Tennessee. I am delighted to yield 
to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Rose), one of the hardest working 
men in Congress.
  Mr. ROSE. Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding time 
tonight.
  Madam Speaker, despite what President Biden and congressional 
Democrats have to say, higher prices at the fuel pump are not because 
of a Putin price increase.
  The price of a gallon of gas increased from $2.31 a gallon since 
President Biden's inauguration to $3.48 the week before Putin's 
invasion of Ukraine. That is a 50 percent increase before the invasion 
of Ukraine even began.
  But make no mistake, the Biden administration is doing everything 
they can to blame the increase on Russia's invasion of Ukraine. They 
have turned to their allies in the mainstream media to carry their 
talking points.
  But I urge all Americans not to let the headlines or TikTok 
influencers fool you. This is a crisis caused by President Biden and 
congressional Democrats' anti-energy policies, not Putin's invasion of 
Ukraine.
  Unfortunately, we all knew this was coming when President Biden said 
on the campaign trail that he would ``transition away from the oil 
industry.''
  During his first days in office, President Biden declared war against 
American energy. He moved his plan into action by canceling the 
Keystone pipeline and other projects, imposing new regulations on the 
oil and gas industry, and stalling new leases on oil and gas projects 
on Federal lands.
  If the President has a legitimate plan to lower energy prices and 
fight inflation, we, the American people, would love to see it.
  But until we do, I can only guess the President's plan is what he has 
done since taking office: spend trillions of dollars and hope Americans 
purchase expensive electric vehicles. That is not a plan. It is a pipe 
dream.
  The truth is that this is not the America President Biden inherited. 
Under President Trump, America was energy independent, even a net oil 
exporter. Inflation was well under control. Gas was less than $2.50 a 
gallon, and our enemies were our enemies, not potential trade partners.
  But the price of a gallon of gas, along with inflation, has increased 
every single month since President Biden was inaugurated. The resulting 
harm to our country has been mostly self-inflicted and largely driven 
by Democrats' massive deficit spending and by the fact that the 
President has declared war on the U.S. oil and gas industry from his 
first day in office.
  Every step he has taken to hinder the oil and gas industry diminishes 
capitalism, the very engine of our economy and our relatively high 
standard of living.
  Whether it is in our schools or with our healthcare decisions, 
President Biden's administration wants you to do what they say instead 
of trusting what has made us the most prosperous country in the history 
of the world.

  Republicans in Congress stand ready to implement policies to make 
America energy independent again. It is time for the President to 
reverse the war against American energy and recognize that the solution 
to his energy crisis exists right under our feet. Still, the President 
refuses to pull his head out of the sand to tap into it.
  He will stop at nothing to satisfy his leftwing base, even if it is 
at the expense of everyday, hardworking Americans, who I am proud to 
represent in middle Tennessee.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, a lot of comments there from 
the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Rose), and we will stay on that theme 
for the great State of Tennessee.
  Madam Speaker, I am happy to yield Mr. Burchett, another gentleman 
from that great State, for more common sense.
  Mr. BURCHETT. Madam Speaker, I greatly appreciate Chairman Johnson 
for heading this up day after day.
  I just wonder, have the Democrats been to the gas pumps lately? I 
used to love to go to the gas pumps and talk to folks to see what was 
going on. Now, honestly, I am afraid to even make eye contact with 
somebody because they are going to light you up, Madam Speaker.
  I know we see a lot of these little, cute stickers. That is not my 
thing. I don't want to cause any vandalism with our President pointing 
at the pump saying, ``I did that,'' but the truth is, he did do this.
  If they would listen to what is going on, they would know that 
America is ticked, and they should be. The national gas average today 
is $4.30 a gallon. The average a year ago was $2.87.
  In 2020, gasoline or oil was around $17 a barrel, and today, I 
believe it has dropped to $95. I heard someone from the White House 
earlier bragging about how oil has dropped. I mean, that is the 
Washington way, to not talk about how it was at $17 a couple of years 
ago, but talk about how it has dropped from over $110 down to $95.
  Madam Speaker, we need to turn the spigots back on. We need to get 
back into the oil business. The oil and gas companies, we have been 
told that they have the permits, and then they boast about that, that 
they are not drilling because of it.

                              {time}  1745

  The truth is, Madam Speaker, not enough pipelines have been permitted 
to move the product. If they get it, there is nowhere for it to go. 
There is no storage capacity. There is no way to move the product. The 
pipelines have to be completed, and that is part of the master plan 
here.
  As has been stated by Members on this floor and other times, I have 
heard, $7 a gallon and electric vehicles are in. That is no way to 
drive innovation, Madam Speaker. Innovation is

[[Page H3766]]

driven through creativity, through capitalism, not by crooked 
politicians and evil folks trying to change the American agenda.
  Electric cars are not affordable yet. Over $50,000 a car. That is 
ridiculous. You have got over eight adapters on the plugs. It takes 
several hours to charge. I don't know if you have ever driven across 
country or not with a family but stopping 8 hours at a truck stop is 
not my idea of a vacation.
  Renewables aren't reliable sources for our power grids. Democrats 
seem to double down, though, on these crazy woke environmental agenda 
issues. It just creates higher energy bills for Americans, Madam 
Speaker, and increases costs for business. That is why everything is 
up.
  If you look at the price of fuel, I filled up my daughter's Dodge 
diesel the other day, and it cost me over $100. Why are we doing this 
to ourselves? We can turn the spigots back on. We can put Americans 
back to work. We can increase our economy. We can show the world that 
we are leaders.
  As the Ukrainian President stated so eloquently this morning, our 
President needs to lead the world. It is a shame when a country that 
small has to call on a power as great as America and tell its leaders 
to lead once again. Until things change, though, Madam Speaker, Biden's 
economy is a bust.
  I appreciate Chairman Johnson and his truculent behavior. He has 
raised this from more than lackluster, and I want to praise him for 
that.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I appreciate my friend. He 
has been a faithful participant in the Special Order hours, getting the 
message to the American people, and it is so important right now.
  Madam Speaker, I yield next to the gentleman from California (Mr. 
LaMalfa), another gentleman who has been very faithful to deliver this 
message to the American people week in and week out.
  Mr. LaMALFA. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Louisiana (Mr. 
Johnson) for faithfully helping us get the message out, facilitating 
that because what is really important is that we are talking to the 
American public about this situation that we don't have to be in.
  Indeed, we have seen with the fairly new Biden administration that 
inflation has risen tremendously. Now, I don't get pleasure out of 
bagging on the President or anybody else in this, but we just have to 
go to the core of the issue. The policies that have been put into place 
have harmed the U.S. economy, harmed regular families.
  The cost of fuel has been an especially noticeable part of this. In 
my home State of California, we always enjoy--enjoy--extra costs 
because of the way things are done there. If it is $4 for a gallon of 
gas in the rest of the country, it is $5.50 in my home State because of 
the dumb things we do out there.
  So this recent surge, indeed, is affecting everybody, but it is an 
even greater burden on rural residents that have to drive longer 
distances. Maybe their jobs in agriculture or timber or mining are more 
based on the usage of fuel and other inputs that are fuel related. So 
that means that there are fewer exports of things that are produced in 
rural America, fewer services, there is going to be less employment as 
a result of this, too, because of the high cost of everything.
  We are talking to some truckers. We are seeing there is a point where 
they can't deliver anymore because they can't afford the fuel and that 
will be soon. Imagine that, when you go to the retail level, and you 
can't get the normal things off the shelf you are used to. We are 
already seeing that. There are fewer food choices, fewer choices. You 
are waiting longer for parts to come to repair vehicles or do anything 
else.
  When rural residents, especially, have to drive longer to do 
anything, whether it is to take kids to school, get to health services, 
pick up goods they need to do their job, it is just that much greater 
of a burden at these prices.
  Take law enforcement, for example. Now, cops, especially rural ones, 
they have got a lot of driving to do to cover those rural areas, and 
their costs are going through the roof. That means counties, small 
cities are bearing a greater burden just to try and keep patrols out 
there. So that is indeed a detrimental effect on basic public safety.
  Farmers, too. We are getting ready to plant our crop on our farm 
here. I don't even want to know what the fuel price is to top off my 
tanks, but I have to because it is so high. That is going to be passed 
on to the shelves for people to buy food all across the country or the 
farmer is going to go out of business if he can't get the price he 
needs to at the store.
  Rural jobs are extremely important for our economy. They are 
producing things that people eat, the fiber they use to make clothes 
that people wear, the wood and paper products we use for our homes and 
our business.
  It is really, really high time we take action and produce energy in 
this country because we can, we should, and we can affect the world 
market and make it where Russia is not making a killing off their 
energy because it is a supply-and-demand issue. If we fill the 
marketplace with low-cost energy, it will bring all this back in line. 
We will be in a better position as a Nation to help our colleagues, our 
neighbors in the western part of Europe, and cripple Putin's ability to 
make a killing off what he is doing.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for his 
comments. There are so many consequences to these bad policy choices, 
and I appreciate his illuminating many of those tonight.

  Madam Speaker, I yield next to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. 
Clyde), another faithful messenger for the truth in America.
  Mr. CLYDE. Madam Speaker, while the devastating war in Ukraine is 
heartbreaking, we cannot turn a blind eye to the crises that President 
Biden has created here at home, especially when the American people are 
paying for his failed policies.
  Last week, inflation hit another new, 40-year high of 7.9 percent in 
February, continuing to impose a hidden tax on every solitary American.
  Prices at the pump, utility bills, and costs in the grocery store 
checkout line just keep getting worse.
  Yet, instead of reversing his disastrous policies and reducing 
government spending in order to alleviate the pain inflicted on 
Americans' wallets, President Biden pivots to offer deceptive excuses.
  First, we were told inflation was just transitory, that is it, but 
when price hikes continued, the new spin comically became that 
inflation is a good thing.
  A good thing, really? Struggling Americans would beg to differ, Mr. 
President.
  When that messaging failed, the talking points quickly evolved to 
blame higher prices on corporate greed. It appears the Biden 
administration enjoys pointing fingers at others instead of admitting 
the truth.
  Now, in light of Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, the Biden 
administration's convenient scapegoat is Russian President Vladimir 
Putin, disingenuously labeling the ongoing inflation as Putin's price 
hike.
  Make no mistake, inflation was skyrocketing long before Putin's 
troops set one foot into Ukraine. These are most certainly President 
Biden's price hikes. He is responsible, and no amount of dishonesty can 
hide the truth from the American people.
  In fact, Americans simply can't afford to buy any more of Biden's 
deceptive excuses. Instead of playing the blame game while workers, 
families, and small businesses suffer, the Biden administration and 
congressional Democrats must reverse course on their wasteful spending 
and failed economic policies. We must return to the America-first 
principles that truly helped the American people thrive.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend. He has a 
way of putting it so clearly, and I am grateful for his voice. It is so 
consistent.
  Madam Speaker, I yield next to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. C. 
Scott Franklin), who came to Congress after 26 years of distinguished 
service as a naval aviator and knows of what he speaks.
  Mr. C. SCOTT FRANKLIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, I always appreciate 
my colleague from Louisiana's leadership on these important issues and 
I appreciate the time he is yielding me.
  Madam Speaker, as my colleagues have shared, the Biden administration

[[Page H3767]]

has been defined by a series of self-inflicted crises. These include 
failed leadership on the world stage, runaway inflation, and a 
deliberate failure to secure our borders. In fact, you could say they 
are having a record year, record high inflation, record violent crime, 
record gas prices, record numbers of illegal immigrants, seizures of 
illegal drugs all at our southern border. The common denominator in 
each of these disasters is the President himself.
  The President listened to the State Department over the 
recommendation of his generals, which led to last year's disastrous 
withdrawal from Afghanistan.
  He shut down American energy production, which led to skyrocketing 
gas prices long before Russia invaded Ukraine.
  He catered to the radicals, flooding our economy with trillions in 
free money, and that has created the rampant inflation that we are 
experiencing today.
  On the border, his reversal of President Trump's policies has led to 
nearly two million migrants pouring across our southern border since he 
took office. That is more than the population of 15 of our States. 
Think about that, the equivalent of creating a State or two every 
single year with the number of people crossing the border.
  These disasters were completely self-inflicted, and American families 
are paying the price.
  Despite our political differences, I take no joy in watching this 
administration fail. When our President fails, America fails.
  Madam Speaker, the American people need and deserve a true leader. If 
the President is incapable of leading, he has a duty to surround 
himself with smart people willing to give him good counsel in the best 
interests of our Nation. Listen to the smart ones and not those with a 
track record of failure, and then act on it.
  The President should focus on American energy independence, which 
will bring down gas prices here at home and help our allies abroad. He 
should not be talking to a Venezuelan dictator when we have reliable, 
affordable energy right here at home. He also needs to stop the out-of-
control spending and reinstate tough border policies to protect our 
communities.
  For the sake of our country, this administration must stop 
administrating and implementing the worst ideas of the D.C. political 
class and lead decisively.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from Florida for bringing that 
wisdom to the floor tonight. There has been a theme here this evening 
with all of my colleagues who have participated in this Special Order 
hour. We have an energy crisis, the latest crisis that has beset the 
American people because of terrible policy choices from this White 
House and the Democrats in Congress. It is just plain and simple, those 
are the objective facts.
  It seems like almost a decade ago now, but just a little over a year 
ago, if you rewind to the Trump years, you can recall, and everyone 
will know again more objective truth, objective facts, how well we were 
doing in all of these areas.
  President Biden came in and did exactly the opposite. I mean, when 
President Trump took office, he came in--I remember very vividly the 
first time he came and spoke with the House Republicans in our 
conference, and he told us, among the first commitments he made to us--
I mean, this is January of 2017. He was just taking office. We had just 
begun that Congress, and he came and spoke to us and said, ``I don't 
want to talk about energy independence anymore. I want to talk about 
energy dominance.'' Dominance, he said.

  Of course, from an energy State like mine in Louisiana, the Louisiana 
delegation was delighted to hear that because we know what it means not 
only for our State's economy but for the stability, the security of our 
entire country.
  I will tell you what, more objective fact, President Trump delivered 
on that promise. In a very short period of time, we became not only 
energy independent again, but energy dominant, just as he said. We 
became a net exporter. All boats were rising. The economy was doing 
well. In fact, we had the best economic numbers in the history of the 
world, not just the history of the United States. Prior to COVID, we 
had the best economy because of the policy choices that were made. We 
advanced those policies through the Congress; President Trump led on 
them, and his administration did a fantastic job. Because of that, our 
energy stability, our energy security, all of that was well in place.
  And then President Biden comes in, and he does instinctively, I 
guess, exactly the opposite. Again, in very short order, he reversed 
all of those great trends. As has been articulated so many times 
tonight, among the first executive orders he issued--I mean immediately 
upon taking office in January 2020--was an executive order that killed 
the Keystone pipeline. There were more than 42,000 jobs related to that 
project just killed overnight; as well as all the energy independence 
and energy dominance that that would have meant for us.
  And then he issues the moratorium on Federal production on Federal 
lands. Well, that killed a State like Louisiana. Not just on the land, 
but right offshore as well. Of course, that is a big part of our 
economy and in the other energy States. It was just devastating.
  At the same time, while he is killing the Keystone pipeline, he is 
ending Federal production on Federal lands, he green lights the Nord 
Stream 2 pipeline. That was Putin's project. So he empowers Russia, he 
fuels the war machine for Putin because, of course, he can supply oil 
all over Western Europe, and that filled his coffers.
  Listen, it was mentioned tonight these stickers that are on the gas 
pumps all over the country, these ``I did that'' stickers that have 
President Biden's picture. It is funny. We don't support vandalism, 
right? But, I mean, I see them all over Louisiana, and it is 
devastating.

                              {time}  1800

  President Biden is pointing to the sticker shock, the cost that it is 
taking everyone to fill their tanks, and it is exactly right. That is 
very telling. A picture is worth 1,000 words. He is responsible. These 
are the results of policy choices.
  And as Mr. Franklin of Florida said a few moments ago, these problems 
are completely self-inflicted. And because of that, let's always 
remember, they can be easily reversed. The President could just do the 
opposite of what he has done since he took office; reverse course and 
fix this dilemma for the American people.
  But you know what? He won't do that. I don't know if it is because he 
is beholden to the radical left environmentalist agenda, the climate 
agenda, or if he has some sort of ulterior motive. I am not sure.
  But I will tell you what: My constituents are asking that question 
openly right now, and millions upon millions of the American people who 
are suffering because of these policies are beginning to ask that as 
well.
  Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield to the gentlewoman from 
California (Mrs. Steel), who has a few more things to say about this 
issue.
  Mrs. STEEL. Madam Speaker, I am sorry I am just a little late 
because, actually, the Education and Labor Committee, we are doing 
markups right now.
  I rise to address the ongoing energy crisis and the impact it is 
having on families in Orange County. The picture you see here is a 
snapshot of what gas prices looked like for my constituents in the past 
week. But I heard--actually, this is in Orange County.
  Last week, same time--this isn't my district, but in Sacramento that 
we have actually hit over $9 per gallon. These prices have increased 30 
percent in the last year.
  Gas prices in Orange County, and across the country, are rising every 
single day. One reason for these skyrocketing costs is policies enacted 
by this administration that have weakened our energy independence and 
made us dependent on foreign oil.
  With the President taking the necessary step of banning Russian oil, 
it is even more important that we return to our former energy 
independence. We cannot turn from one foreign dictator to another to 
meet our energy needs. We have the resources right here to bring down 
costs and produce the cleanest energy on Earth.

[[Page H3768]]

  I urge all my colleagues to join me in pursuing policies to secure 
our energy independence.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I am so grateful the 
gentlewoman came to participate. We know she is very busy. It has been 
a long day in the Education and Labor Committee. We are grateful she is 
doing that great work.
  Madam Speaker, I know that the time is winding up for our Special 
Order hour. There was a lot going on on Capitol Hill today. I am 
grateful to my Republican colleagues for coming in and participating 
and helping to share this very, very important message with the 
American people.
  There is a lot of spin going on in the country right now, from TikTok 
influencers, to media types who are engaging in the spin for the White 
House at their request, and the American people see through it. They 
are making and being made to make difficult choices for their families.
  Hardworking Americans are suffering right now because of these policy 
choices. There is crisis after crisis after crisis everywhere we look 
because of, frankly put, poor leadership in the White House.
  I believe that we will have a change in all of this come November in 
the next election cycle, and with the presidential election that will 
follow 2 years later. And it can't happen soon enough because the White 
House has shown no intention, no indication that they will reverse 
policies, as they should, as we mentioned a moment ago could be easily 
done to alleviate the pain for all these Americans. But for whatever 
reason, they will not do it.
  Madam Speaker, I will wind down this evening. I want to thank my 
colleagues for being here, participating in this really important 
Special Order hour, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities toward the President.

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