Governor Mike Dunleavy expresses frustration with the Biden Administration with a recent appearance on Fox Business, stating that he’s been seeking guidance from the White House on energy regulation and how it’s affecting Alaska.
On Fox Business Tonight, Dunleavy discussed the impact President Joe Biden’s fossil fuel crackdown has on Alaska, “We’re trying to get a meeting with the White House. We haven’t been able to talk to the President yet. We want to be able to sit down with him and have a discussion about Alaska’s role in America’s energy dependence and what we have to offer. Just as importantly for Washington, what we don’t do up here in Alaska. We don’t flare our gas. We put our gas right back into the ground. We probably produce oil and gas better than any other place in the world with regard to our environmental regulations. We’d love to have a discussion with him.”
Dunleavy explains how he’s yet to be able to schedule a meeting with the Biden Administration, “We’re trying to get a meeting, we’d like to have a conversation. I’m sure it’s going to happen, hopefully here soon. Nonetheless, before more decisions are made that impact Alaska and America’s energy independence, it’d be great to have a conversation.”
Alaska almost immediately felt the effects when President Joe Biden took office directing, on January 27th, to halt oil and gas leasing across federal lands and waters. That decision affected Alaska jobs and the economy as a whole, as a result. That decision went hand-in-hand with another decision to halt activity in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Dunleavy discusses that Biden Administration decision, “ANWR is a huge wilderness area. This just touches a small, small portion of ANWR. Nonetheless, it’s probably one of the last opportunities here in Alaska for a significant oil find. Again, under the Trump Administration opportunity, we took advantage, leases were sold and like you, we read about it in the paper that the current administration is trying to go back on the sale and trying to hold it.”
The Biden Administration plans to deliver an interim report on the temporary halting of oil and gas sales by the summer.
