LARRY KUDLOW: Kamala Harris' energy agenda will blow inflation sky-high
Does she, or doesn't she? Is Kamala for fracking, or against it? Does she want to promote the expansion of fracking, or doesn't she? It's all mysterious and confusing.
She, of course, maintains that while her values are the same, she's not for a fracking ban anymore, but a campaign spokesperson yesterday continued to muddy the waters by saying Kamala will not promote the expansion of fossil fuels.
Except, here are some inconvenient facts. Very early in the game, the Biden-Harris administration canceled the Keystone XL pipeline. What does that tell you? Then, over the course of their term, they closed fracking in ANWR. What does that tell you?
They also closed fracking in the National Petroleum Reserve. They also stopped drilling in the oil- and gas-rich state of New Mexico. It took a court decision to open up even minimal leasing in the Gulf of Mexico, and more recently, the Biden-Harris administration stopped LNG exports, a decision that was an energy, economic and foreign policy blunder.
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Oil production has gone up because of today's high prices, and also from leasing permits made during the Trump years. However, the Baker Hughes rig count has fallen by half since 2019, as the tax and regulatory war on fossil fuels has slowly but surely wiped out smaller and more entrepreneurial producers.
Meanwhile, the big oil companies like Exxon and Chevron have acted more like investment managers, as they're returning capital to their shareholders, instead of opening up new drilling. Can't blame them, because if Kamala wins, the war on fossil fuels will intensify.
If you won't permit drilling in Alaska, or you won't build new pipelines, or you'll stomp out clean-burning fuels like natural gas, or if you oppose nuclear, it almost doesn't matter whether technically you're for or against a fracking ban.
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Baseload power over the next 50 to 100 years should come from clean-burning natural gas and nuclear, but Biden-Harris will block that. The handwriting is on the wall, isn't it? Energy dominance, or even independence, will be out the window. Our oil-producing enemies in Russia, Iran and Venezuela will be the winners.
Electricity prices in particular, and inflation in general, will once again blow sky-high here at home. That's the riff.
This article is adapted from Larry Kudlow’s opening commentary on the Oct. 22, 2024, edition of "Kudlow."