Republicans offered a motion to block the previous question on the House floor on Wednesday night. If the previous question was blocked, the House could consider Republican-led H.R. 6858, the American Energy Independence from Russia Act, to support American energy production across the country.
But, for the fifth time, Democrats blocked the motion in support of the bill only one week after President Joe Biden urged American oil companies to start producing more oil and threatened them with punishment if they did not respond. If the Republican-led bill passed, it would have provided a solution Biden is looking for by supporting the production of American energy across the country and helping lower the rising cost of gas.
On Wednesday, the bill was offered by Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN), who also offered up the bill twice last month. However, it was shot down — for the fifth time — as 221 Democrats in the House voted against the motion.
The bill was initially introduced by Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Bruce Westerman (R-AR) to promote American energy independence at the end of February. The bill would have:
- Immediately approved the Keystone XL pipeline.
- Removed all restrictions on liquified natural gas (LNG) exports
- Restarted oil and gas leasing on federal lands and waters — which Biden’s administration halted.
- Protected American energy and mineral development from attacks by the administration.
- Require the administration to submit an energy security plan within 30 days and requires Biden’s energy secretary to develop a plan to replace oil drawn down from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR).
As House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has called for the U.S. to “replace Russian energy with American energy independence & accelerating energy exports to our allies” to show strength to deter adversaries in the past, Biden is instead looking to countries such as Venezuela and even possibly Iran for oil, until he finally reversed course on Thursday by urging oil companies to start producing and accusing them of “hoarding” federal oil leases.
Several House Republicans spoke on the House Floor in support of this resolution, including Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA).
“In order for the U.S. to become energy independent and secure, we must have an all of the above approach to energy policy,” said Miller-Meeks. “We must unleash our natural resources and produce our own clean, efficient energy here at home to ensure low energy prices and promote American jobs in our communities.”
“Rather than promoting policies that hamper U.S. energy production and ceding security to adversarial nations like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela, we should promote exploration here at home and unleash our potential,” the Republican continued. “We must ensure that the current ban on Russian energy is sustainable by prioritizing U.S. energy production, including biofuels.”
“Just last week, the President released a budget proposal that included $45 billion in new taxes on domestic energy production,” she said, hammering Biden for his destructive policies. “This comes on top of other disastrous decisions over the past year and half, such as those to halt the Keystone XL pipeline and the current delay over the five-year program for offshore energy leasing in the Gulf of Mexico.”
“These policies are not working for hard-working American families and businesses who are dealing with high inflation and skyrocketing gas prices.”
Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter.
