Democrats wince at progressives’ push to limit domestic energy production

Democratic leaders worry that far-left lawmakers are stepping on the party’s message by prodding President Biden to declare a “climate emergency” and clamp down on U.S. oil production.

A policy wish list recently unveiled by the House Progressive Caucus called on Mr. Biden to declare a national climate emergency and executive action including invoking the Defense Production Act, ending new drilling leases on federal lands and in U.S. waters, reinstating a crude oil export ban and eliminating subsidies for oil companies.

The proposals — if invoked — would blunt domestic energy production and likely raise energy costs. 

That doesn’t jibe with Democratic leaders’ plans. They are promising voters various ways to reduce record-high gasoline and energy prices that have become a top issue just months before the midterm elections.

“I can’t speak for the Congressional Progressive Caucus,” said Rep. Pete Aguilar of California, vice chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. “What I can tell you is the House Democratic Caucus is focused on delivering results and relief to people who need it, people who are feeling the pinch of higher gas prices.”

The lawmaker in charge of making sure Democrats over in the Senate win elections had a similar message.

“With what’s going on in Ukraine, we want to make sure we’re able to keep prices stable,” said Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan, chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. “I think that should be our focus right now.”

While Mr. Biden is not expected to bow to the demands of the Progressive Caucus, it opens the entire party to criticism and questions about their stance on energy in an already difficult election year.

The party’s far-left wing, however, insists presidential executive action is necessary to deliver on promises to combat climate change and expand the social safety net. Those promises stalled in the 50-50 split Senate with Mr. Biden’s $1.75 trillion Build Back Better Act.

Some progressives rejected the notion that doubling down on climate change puts their colleagues in a difficult position with voters, despite current energy prices. Others admitted that it very well could. 

Rep. Mark Pocan, Wisconsin Democrat and a leader of the Progressive Caucus, said they’re not necessarily calling on Mr. Biden to act imminently, despite wanting a climate emergency declaration.

“These are all good things the president could do. Clearly, timing is going to come into play with everything,” Mr. Pocan said. “But I think the impetus was since Build Back Better doesn’t appear to be moving very fast, what aspects could we get done?”

Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat and member of the far-left “Squad” on Capitol Hill, conceded that the pivot to cleaner energy would cause a headache for her colleagues if high gasoline prices persist.

“Of course, if we are in the same situation with these kinds of policy positions [come October], it could be a messaging problem,” she said. 

Though oil prices have recently dipped from record-highs, gasoline prices remain near record territory, leading many Democrats to accuse big oil companies of price gouging and a desire to haul executives in for congressional testimony. Historical trends show that it’s normal for gasoline costs to reduce at a far slower pace than oil in a volatile energy market.

The national average for a gallon of unleaded fuel was $4.27 on Friday, down just six cents from a week ago. Oil, meanwhile, has seen a roughly 20% dip to around $105 per barrel compared to brief peaks last week around $130 or higher.

Democrats also blamed fossil fuel companies for the thousands of unused federal drilling leases but have more recently come around to more aggressively pushing executives to ramp up production.

Republicans jumped at the opportunity to hammer Democrats and Mr. Biden for what they describe as a concerted effort to limit domestic energy production to raise the price of fossil fuels and push consumers toward clean energy. Republican lawmakers point to actions taken by Mr. Biden and his administration, such as canceling the Keystone XL pipeline or significantly reducing the number of new federal drilling permits, as evidence.

“Every day before Biden has been in office, every time he took an action that was going to harm the energy industry, we showed you the prediction of what would happen. Well, that day has come,” said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, California Republican. “I’m sorry, they’re out of excuses. Every action they’ve taken has put us in this place.”