Putin's Ukraine war shows need for US-Europe 'Operation Energy Independence'
US is in immediate need of a systemic reset of its energy policies
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Over the last two decades, American innovations led to unprecedented breakthroughs across all energy sectors, including renewables and traditional forms of energy. And for a brief recent period of time these gains helped to secure a monumental national achievement: U.S. energy independence.
Sadly, in an even briefer period of time we quickly lost it due to policy decisions based on leftist Green New Deal political agendas embraced early on by the Biden administration.
As a result, Americans are paying skyrocketing costs for energy, food and other daily staples. Domestic prices will be further exacerbated by the new security threats and global instability arising from Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}END UKRAINE SLAUGHTER AND STAND UP TO RUSSIA, AMERICANS TELL BIDEN IN NEW POLL
All told, it is now abundantly clear the U.S. is in immediate need of a systemic reset of its energy policies.
Yet, it was evident from President Biden’s State of the Union address that his administration is set to double down on the same misguided policies that led to the loss of our energy independence, naively sticking to an almost exclusive focus on renewable energies at the expense of America’s vast arsenal of more conventional energy assets. Even more bizarre was former Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent tone-deaf commentary over the potential impact of battlefield emissions and concerns over whether war in Ukraine might distract Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attention from fighting climate change.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Do today’s liberal political leaders in Washington really expect our global allies, adversaries and competitors to take the U.S. seriously with such nonsense?
The world is not right at present. Accordingly, our clear objective here at home should be to quickly reestablish and permanently maintain U.S. energy independence. Not as a loosely held goal subject to varying political agendas, but as defined and permanent economic and national security imperatives. And we must do so by leveraging ALL U.S. energy resources.
Even European nations have now realized how blind allegiance to politically favored renewables and reliance on foreign energy sources threaten their economies and sovereignty, and they are changing course accordingly.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}If the right public policy choices are made, U.S. energy independence can be reestablished in short order.
Not dissimilar from Operation Warp Speed, which mobilized U.S. innovators, manufacturers and other front-line industries to produce a vaccine for COVID-19 in record time, we must now unshackle our full array of energy resources and technologies to meet today’s clear and present dangers.
Looking abroad, we must recognize that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has been enabled by two primary catalysts: unnecessarily high global energy prices and Europe’s reliance on Russian energy exports. Sadly, the Biden administration’s "keystoning" of critical domestic energy investments, punitive tax and regulatory policies, and the waiving off of Russian sanctions that helped to drive oil up over $100 per barrel have given Putin predictable leverage and additional means to generate billions to finance his military ambitions.
To address these challenges, there are four overarching objectives the U.S. needs to pursue.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}First, we must immediately leverage America’s vast and diverse array of resources and technologies across the entire energy spectrum, including all types of renewable and traditional assets. To do so, we must quickly clear the decks of unnecessary legislative, regulatory and legal roadblocks impacting domestic production and global supplies.
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Second, U.S. energy policy can no longer be subject to the political seesaw of whichever political party holds majority power at any particular time. This includes rampant regulatory and legal overreach based on political preferences. Doing so has led to an unstable and contradictory environment for critical public and private investments, resulting in unsustainable price shocks for American businesses, families and consumers. We must therefore apply realistic cost-benefit analysis to all current and future energy policies.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Third, technological viability assessments and national security threats must be fully evaluated and addressed within all government energy programs and policies. For example, much emphasis has been placed on electrifying large portions of our nation’s transportation system, while ignoring that the U.S. is currently dependent on raw materials from countries such as China. Meanwhile, federal and state politicians continue to set costly emissions requirements and price-spiraling fuel standards that are questionable in terms of environmental benefits or knowingly impossible to achieve.
Fourth, in the coming days and months we must make available cheap, clean and affordable energy to our European and Asian allies to deny Putin and other rogue actors the wherewithal to threaten or hold allied nations hostage over energy supplies. We must also help support our allies in diversifying their own energy resources and infrastructure to ensure their long-term safety and sovereignty.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}If the right public policy choices are made at the federal, state and local levels, U.S. energy independence can be reestablished in short order. This will require that we and other nations jettison many of the current domestic regulatory and political obstacles that impede our ability to produce and provide critical energy supplies in timely, cost-effective and safe manners.
Ultimately, this approach – call it Operation Energy Independence – if embraced will lower energy costs and drive down inflation for all Americans while advancing greater peace and prosperity throughout the world.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}K.T. McFarland was President Donald Trump's Deputy National Security Advisor. She is currently a CPAC board member. Steve Forbes is chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media. Steve Moore is an author, economist and former senior economic adviser to President Donald Trump.