Kamala's Fracking Flip Flop Speaks to Geopolitical Importance of Pennsylvania

A stark choice between an America First and America Last energy policy, with fracking at the heart of the matter

Before she crashed and burned in the 2020 presidential primary, Kamala Harris voiced her unequivocal opposition to “fracking.”

The San Francisco Democrat, then a U.S. senator for California, famously told CNN viewers “there’s no question I’m in favor of banning fracking.”

The innovative drilling technique causing such consternation for far-left environmental activists makes it possible for American energy companies to access oil and gas deposits previously beyond reach. That’s particularly true in the Marcellus Shale region of Pennsylvania.

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But instead of celebrating American ingenuity, Harris has spent her political career attempting to suffocate domestic energy production at the behest of her benefactors. During her two terms as a state attorney general and her brief stint as a U.S. senator, Harris has been a persistent zealot for radical, anti-energy climate policies such as the Green New Deal. As vice president under Joe Biden, the San Francisco leftist has doubled down even further on her antagonism toward the oil and gas industry. As president, she would further accelerate Biden administration policies that restrict America’s ability to project economic and military power—all in the name of climate change.

An Epiphany that Calls Out for Dismantling

Now Harris has had an “epiphany” on fracking—given the importance of winning an energy producing swing state like Pennsylvania. The Trump campaign must drill down deep into her long and copious history of anti-energy activism.

During her time as attorney general, Harris sued no less than the Obama-Biden administration over proposal to allow fracking off the Pacific Coast. Unfortunately, a federal district ruled in her favor—denying average people, whom she claims to represent, the ability to access affordable and reliable energy.

Left-leaning green activists, with the help of a compliant media, have turned “fracking” into a pejorative term. It’s worth unpacking whatit really does. Formally known as hydraulic fracturing, engineers who take part in the process inject water mixed with sand and chemicals into a well at high pressure, producing a fluid that fractures the rock and releases trapped oil or natural gas. This works to the great advantage of Pennsylvania residents who benefit from heightened economic activity. The Marcellus Shale Coalition, a trade group that supports companies who helped make the “Natural Gas Revolution” possible, has detailed stats on the jobs and revenue that have flowed into the state.  

But another factor at work could trip Harris up.

America First Energy Policy, or America Last?

Under President Trump, the U.S. became a net exporter of energy for first time in decades. That’s thanks in no small part to fracking exercises in the Marcellus Shale that make America less dependent on energy from unfriendly international sources. Harris does back flips and somersaults on the question of fracking because Pennsylvania clearly sits in a critical geopolitical position. Smart, innovative drilling techniques don’t just translate into domestic benefits. They also put America in position to export precious oil and gas resources overseas. Making Europe less reliant on Mother Russia is no brainer that even Harris can process.

The Institute for Energy Research (IER), a Washington D.C. nonprofit that supports free market energy polices, has the lowdown on how the U.S. became energy independent in 2019 for the first time since 1957. If Harris had her druthers as a U.S. senator, Americans would have lost out on this opportunity. Fortunately, President Trump had the ability to pursue an America First energy policy with the support of more sensible congressional figures who recognized the importance of domestic energy production.

Here’s how IER describes that transformative effects of Trump’s pro-energy policies that could be reinstated:

U.S. energy production in 2019 was higher than U.S. energy consumption for the first time in 62 years.  Thus, the U.S. attained the long-held goal of “energy independence”—which is not to say that we did not import or export energy, but that we produced more energy than we used. One can thank the oil and gas industry and its use of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling for that milestone as production in those industries increased a combined 11 percent in 2019. Total U.S. energy production increased by 5.7 percent in 2019 while U.S. energy demand decreased by 0.9 percent.

Flip-flopping Into a Fracking Trainwreck

The Harris flip-flop on energy is not limited to fracking.

She has been a key player in an America Last energy policy that began with shutting down the Keystone XL Pipeline.

But that was just the beginning of her malice toward blue collar workers and American households now riddled with high energy prices and inflation. The American Energy Alliance, a grassroots outfit that engages in energy and environmental policy, lists 175 ways Vice President Harris, and other anti-energy extremists in her party, have made it more difficult to produced oil and gas.

The only way Harris can run away from her train wreck of a record is if the Republicans let her.

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