When You Vote, Vote Your Pocketbook!
George Foster
Founder / Chief Executive Officer
The final debate between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden gave a stark contrast between the two candidates on a myriad of issues, but when the Vice President said he would eliminate the oil and gas industry that just confirmed what we already assumed.
And, since the majority of Foster Marketing’s clients are in the oil and gas industry, we were flummoxed that former Vice President Biden would completely eliminate the oil and gas industry (and admit it). Here are his comments: Biden Eliminates Oil & Gas Industry.
The oil and gas industry supports 10 million jobs or 5.6% of the total U.S. employment; provides cheap fuel for both vehicles and energy feed stock; gives us, the U.S., energy independence and security; and provides support for non-profits and communities where energy companies are situated.
And the elimination of the industry not only effects those directly in the industry, but also millions more indirectly. I can remember telling someone during an oil downturn in the early ‘80s when quite a few folks had lost their jobs that “we’re all in the oil and gas business.” Whether you were a restaurant, a hotel, an airline, a hospital … everyone was touched by the slump or revival of the oil and gas industry.
The Biden Plan: No Fossil Fuels
The Biden plan is shrouded in his Climate Plan for a “Clean Energy Revolution and Environmental Justice.”
Ironically, according to the American Petroleum Institute (API), “U.S. carbon dioxide emissions are at their lowest level in a generation, and we’re continuing to see progress” and that the U.S. recorded the largest emissions decline of any country last year, down 140 million tons from the previous year.
The first element of the oil and gas plan: “Take executive action on Day 1 to not just reverse all of the damage Trump has done, but go further and faster.” This involves reinstating Obama-era policies and regulations that President Trump rolled back, including allowing drilling on federal lands. It also includes an emission requirement on vehicles that has been adopted by many countries, but it remains to be seen whether this can be achieved in the foreseeable future.
Biden has had many anti-drilling statements, including: “Number one, no more subsidies for [the] fossil fuel industry. No more drilling on federal lands. No more drilling, including offshore. No ability for the oil industry to continue to drill, period, ends, number one.” Several times, Biden has stated he was against fracking. In a March Democratic primary debate, he said, “No more – no new fracking.” His running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris has said the same.
His policy positions will increase the cost of all energy to all Americans. Without fracking available, the U.S. would produce significantly less oil, and be far less energy-independent than the net energy exporter status that it currently enjoys. Some in the know predict gasoline prices of more than $6 per gallon.
The former Vice President has a $2 trillion energy plan that includes expanding clean energy jobs. It pushes policies that sound great, but will be devastating when implemented. Look only to the recent power outages in 100-plus degree weather in California. Local political leaders are encouraging citizens to turn off appliances and air conditioners in the summertime to avoid further blackouts.
Solar and wind are intermittent and unreliable electricity generators. Depending on the strength of the wind blowing or the intensity of sunshine, they produce either too much or too little electricity for the needs of the electric grid, which needs to be maintained in constant balance between supply and demand for electricity. This problem and related costs escalate with increasing solar and wind on the grid, despite claims that their low marginal and operation cost should make them competitive to coal, gas and nuclear capacity.
With increasing shares of solar and wind on the grid, Germany’s electricity prices massively increased since 2000, when government support for solar wind was massively expanded.
German household electricity prices have more than doubled to over 0.3€ per kWh ($0.35 per kWh depending on currency exchange rate) since 2000 when the modern renewable energy law started to massively incentivize solar and wind capacity on the German grid. BDEW Strompreisanalyse July 2020 p. 7
The Republican Platform: All of the Above
The Republican Party platform favors an “all-of-the-above” energy strategy that involves responsible development of all our energy resources; and results in a domestic, secure energy supply that is stable, reliable and affordable. Other general goals of the strategy include the creation of jobs, spurring economic growth, lower energy prices and a strengthened domestic energy industry.
With respect to oil and gas, the platform claims that the use of imported oil is undesirable in that some of the money sent overseas may wind up in the hands of nations, or other groups, that want to harm the United States.
The main response, favored in the platform, is the opening up of offshore areas, federal lands and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas development.
In addition to reducing oil imports and increasing energy security, the platform states that the resulting domestic oil and gas development will result in large numbers of new jobs. It also explicitly states its support for the Keystone XL oil pipeline (from Canada to refineries in the United States) for similar reasons. It also expressed support for natural gas fracking and opposed new federal regulations on the practice, saying that state regulations are sufficient.
The platform states that it supports the development of renewable energy in general, but that it was opposed to government loan guarantees for renewable projects. It instead favors a “market-based approach” to renewable energy development.
Denmark and Germany, the two most aggressive pursuers of solar and wind electricity in Europe, have the highest household electricity prices in the EU according to Eurostat. To a large degree, this is driven by subsidies for solar and wind directly impacting the consumer bills but also less directly observable costs solar and wind create on an electric grid.
The Foster Marketing tagline is Full of Energy. That fits us because we’re committed to serving the energy industries; in fact, as they say, all of the above: oil and gas, coal, renewables and nuclear. It also fits us because we think of ourselves as probably one of the more energetic agencies around.
If you’re worried about your pocketbook … get up, get off the couch and show some energy and vote!
BONUS TIP
When Coca-Cola launched their “Share a Coke with …” campaign, it saw its largest ever year-over-year growth (19%). According to a survey by ThePackHub, 63.7% of respondents said personalized packaging increased sales, and the market is projected to grow 5.1% by 2025. Add your customers names to labels to give a tailored experience!
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