Declaring regulatory warfare on American energy was one of the most short-sighted, moronic things that the Biden administration has chosen to do. By attacking American energy here at home, our economy has been sucker punched in its jaw, our national security footing has been weakened, and hardworking taxpayers and families in every zip code across the country have been affected. To add, our nation’s adversaries have been emboldened, and are salivating at the prospect of American energy being wiped out in its entirety. Unfortunately, the Biden administration’s war on American energy has recently sprouted new legs, and I’ll tell you how.

In late January, an announcement was made that all pending liquid natural gas (LNG) export permit applications for export projects would be paused. What exactly does this mean? Well, it means that liquid natural gas exports from the United States have been halted entirely. What you may not have known is that the United States was the largest exporter of liquid natural gas in the entire world just last year. Does it seem a little odd to you that the Biden administration would choose to kneecap American energy following a year of notable success on the world stage?

The long-term consequences are worth thinking about as well. Domestic energy producers will have virtually zero incentive to invest in new jobs and operations that can help America return to the level of energy freedom that we had under President Trump. We would also see jobs being lost by hardworking Americans who simply want to support their families and put food on the table. When construction of the Keystone XL pipeline was halted, that’s exactly what had happened. No matter how you look at this, the picture is far from rosy.

Recently, I joined 149 other House Republicans in sending a letter to President Biden demanding that he put American energy first and stop his new war on liquid natural gas exports. Make no mistake, House Republicans understand that Americans are struggling with soaring energy costs, and we’ve already taken concrete steps, such as passing the Lower Energy Costs Act that would unleash American energy dominance and cut energy prices for every American. I will continue to fight for energy freedom and confront this administration when it does the opposite.

Some Welcome News

On January 26^th, I joined a bipartisan group of members from the North Carolina delegation in sending a letter to North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey urging him to reject proposed homeowner insurance rate hikes by the North Carolina Rate Bureau. This week, Commissioner Causey announced that he has rejected these proposed hikes based on the feedback he had received. North Carolinians are already at their wits end – they’ve been saddled with crippling inflation and ballooning interest rates with no end in sight. The last thing they need to bear the brunt of is a surge in home insurance costs that will only exacerbate the financial strain that sits upon their shoulders. I commend Commissioner Causey on his decision.

Preserving Academic Freedom

This week, the American Bar Association announced new changes to its accreditation standards following a letter I had sent them last year after a U.S. Court of Appeals Judge was accosted by a group of law students at Stanford Law School who decided to protest at a lecture he was invited to give. This means that law schools across the nation must adopt free speech and academic freedom policies if they are to preserve their respective accreditation statuses. Free speech and academic freedom have long been recognized as hallmarks of a free society – and yet, they have come under siege on college campuses across the nation by far left opportunists. I commend the American Bar Association for its decision to revise its accreditation standards and place more scrutiny on law schools that fail to enforce policies that allow for an open exchange of ideas without the threat of reprisal.

Quote of The Week

“Taking a longer look at America’s future, there can be neither sustained growth nor more jobs unless we continue to have an assured supply of energy to run our economy.”

-President Gerald Ford

Have a blessed weekend,