The continued kneecapping of the American energy industry by the Biden Administration is an equally-hammered on talking point by Republicans. Florida Republicans such as Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL-3) and Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL-26) have been easily some of the most vociferous, and Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL-10) is undoubtedly a persistent member of the group. A recent tweet by Mast says that "inflation is already costing American families $8000 per year and a diesel shortage is going to make it even worse. We need to unleash domestic energy production NOW."
Inflation is already costing American families $8000 per year and a diesel shortage is going to make it even worse. We need to unleash domestic energy production NOW.https://t.co/NdQ7lbERP1
— Rep. Brian Mast (@RepBrianMast) November 5, 2022
The tweet links to a short blog post on Mast's page, where he says that "on Day One of his presidency, Joe Biden canceled the Keystone XL Pipeline. That was the beginning of his war on domestic energy. Now, we’re seeing the impacts." He notes that the sharp decline in diesel production will lead to shortages, which will in turn raise prices even higher. "But instead of addressing this issue by reversing his failed energy policies that put America last, President Biden is busy kissing up to foreign dictators and blaming domestic producers," Mast says.
Mast links his post to an article on Fox Business which specifically states Mansfield Energy, a major fuel supplier, has issued a warning to consumers that they have less than 25 million barrels of diesel in reserve, half its normal amount.
However, the company states that this shortage is effectively more a matter of price than it is of true lack of physical product, for while "some cities might run dry on diesel for a few days, at least at the terminal level. But the fuel supply chain is dynamic, and suppliers will rally to fill in any gaps in supply."
Nonetheless, as Mast notes in his blog post, "America is blessed with abundant natural resources. There is no reason that the President of the United States would rather sit with dictators than American oil company executives."
