These are very, very serious things which I think are likely to push the U.S. and the world — I mean, Europe is already in recession — and they’re likely to put the U.S. in some kind of recession six to nine months from now.

Jamie Dimon (JPMorgan CEO)

Living in California, I learned that so-called progressives still believe in Santa Claus as adults. How else is it possible to define “energy deregulation” as deregulating energy producers but capping the price utilities can charge? Which is what the California Legislature (AB 1890) did in 1996, resulting in the recall of Gov. Gray Davis (D) and bankruptcies. The same nonsense has Europe and the USA now teetering on economic ruin.

After banning fossil fuels, cutting the EU economy off from Russian gas and oil, and telling Americans solidarity with the Ukraine is worth exorbitant energy prices, Joe “Big Lie” Biden is about to get dope-slapped by voters. A clever slogan like “Putin’s price hike” isn’t fooling anybody, because the energy crisis began in 2021 – before Russia invaded Ukraine – and his fossil-fuel sanctions led to a 25% increase in Russia’s corporate profits between March and August.

Green politicians blame Putin to divert voter attention from their malpractice; 50% decrease (down $400 billion) in oil and gas investment since 2014, lots of nuclear plant closures after the Fukushima disaster, and ongoing over-investment in unreliable renewables. They left the world ill-prepared for a post-Covid boom and subsequent rebound in the demand for energy.

Unreliable: like a wind drought in Europe or solar failing the Texas energy grid. Ill-prepared: like nuclear power plants shut down ahead of schedule, fewer federal-land leases to the oil and gas sector, or Wall Street’s disinterest in oil-and-gas. This combined to constrain first-world companies and households in 2022:

  • European aluminum smelters, gas factories, and fertilizer plants have closed
  • German unions claim the country’s manufacturing sector is about to collapse
  • 11 million households in the UK are behind on their utility bills
  • 20 million households in the US are behind on their utility bills.
  • An August heatwave pushed the Texas grid to the limits for seven straight days
  • The California grid operator had to ration consumers

Europe is already in a recession, and American is not far behind (if not already), because liberals accelerated the end of fossil fuels at the worst possible time. When COVID capsized the US economy, the President could have cancelled the Jones Act, which prevents foreign-owned ships from transporting American LNG from the Gulf coast to New England. That’s just a peek into the green energy-insanity trifecta.

One, they enacted lucrative production tax credits for solar and wind, resulting in overbuilding, and subsidized negative prices that pushed reliable power plants off the grid. This backfired, because a plummet in wind and solar production left California on the brink of blackouts, until natural gas saved the day (providing over 50% of the state’s night-time energy).

Two, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has such stringent regulations for design and safety that the last two reactors were built in 2016 and 1996. The approval process is too long and the safety standards too subjective. Severe radiation accidents – like almost all commercial airline crashes – result from human error; thus, it’s absurd to assume no lessons have been learned or technologies improved.

Three, Democrats made hydrocarbons less abundant, despite needing cheap fossil fuels to update the energy grid, and construct more battery storage and clean energy plants. Natural gas is the primary driver of less carbon emissions, but they oppose new drilling and pipelines. This hurts the environment and taxes America’s poorest citizens.

To win in November 2020, Biden promised a “return to normalcy” and Democrats promised to “build back better.” Back then, a gallon of regular cost $2.11, diesel cost $2.37, and heating oil cost $1.01. Nothing normal or better about energy costs on Biden’s watch. A year ago, Americans paid $3.27 for a gallon of regular gas and $3.46 for diesel. Today, they pay $3.92 for regular and and $5.12 for diesel (source: AAA). A gallon of heating oil has risen from $1.45 to $3.77 in 2022 (source: Trading Economics).

The Democrat “transition away” from fossil fuels is not “better” – nor is the Inflation Reduction Act, which grants more power to the EPA, raises taxes on oil and gas, and further subsidizes unreliable solar and wind companies. The price-dip of summer and mid-term hopes of Democrats have vanished, because voters are tired of Biden’s double-talk (blame Putin for higher gas prices and take personal credit for lower prices) and paying the consequences.

Too bad 2024 is still two years away, because he deserves the same butt-kicking Jimmy Carter got in 1980.

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By Spencer Morten

The writer is a retired CEO of a US corporation, whose views were informed by studies and work in the US and abroad. An economist by education, and pragmatist by experience, he believes the greatest threat to peace and prosperity are the loudest voices with the least experience and expertise.