I will start this post by agreeing with my esteemed and talented colleague, Mike LaChance, that Biden’s presidency is worse than imagined . . . which is a remarkable achievement, as I anticipated that it would quickly descend into a morass of scum and villainy.
However, there is hope that some stiff-spined Republicans learned a lesson or two from how the #Resistance Democrats responded to former President Donald Trump’s attempt to enact policy that was actually supported by regular Americans.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott plans to protect the state’s oil and gas industry from the Biden administration’s climate agenda by “identifying opportunities for litigation” over federal environmental regulations.
“We’re here for a singular purpose today,” Abbott said after a roundtable meeting with industry leaders in Odessa. “To make clear that Texas is going to protect the oil and gas industry from any type of hostile attack launched from Washington, D.C.”President Joe Biden has outlined an ambitious climate change agenda, with the goal of transitioning away from fossil fuels. He has said he hopes to decarbonize the U.S. power sector by 2035 and reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.Among his early proposals: tougher methane regulations for producers, incentives to encourage consumers to buy cars that do not run on gasoline, required disclosure of climate risks from public companies and pausing oil drilling on public lands.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has already begun challenges related to immigration, filing a lawsuit over the 100-day moratorium on deportation issued by Biden.
The order was temporarily blocked from being enforced by a federal judge on Tuesday.Biden’s executive orders also paused new oil and gas leases on public lands and ended federal subsidies for fossil fuels “as consistent with applicable law.”The Statesman notes that oil and gas industry leaders in Texas have expressed concerns for smaller oil producers that likely do not have the funds to comply with stricter environmental regulations while also still dealing with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Democrats seem very unhappy with this move.
The Texas Democratic Party said in a statement that Abbott “isn’t being honest with working Texans” about Biden’s plans, noting the new White House is “actually projected to create energy jobs” and analysts have predicted the Biden administration will be a “positive catalyst” for oil and gas prices.“Abbott needs to be upfront and honest with working Texans about how jobs are going to change over time,” the party’s communications director Abhi Rahman said. “Sticking our heads in the sand and fighting these global economic trends is actually what will hurt regular working Texans.”
It is interesting to note that Texas enters 2021 as the world’s ninth largest economy.
“While 2020 brought unique challenges, Texas continued to shine as a beacon of hope and opportunity,” Abbott said. “Texas’ ranking as the world’s ninth largest economy is because of the hardworking men and women of the Lone Star State, our commitment to economic freedom, our state-of-the-art infrastructure and business climate. As we cultivate an environment of growth and opportunity, Texas will continue to build an even brighter future for all Texans.”Since 2015, Texas has been recognized as the world’s 10th largest economy — ahead of Canada and South Korea and behind Brazil. Texas’s economy overtook Brazil’s to become the ninth largest economy in the world, according to 2019 GDP data from the International Monetary Fund.
I look forward to Texas taking bold legal action. After all, you don’t mess with Texas.
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