Ted Cruz calls for American energy independence in proposed legislation

 Republican Senator from Texas Ted Cruz has introduced a bill to restore American energy independence as the global energy sector experiences ongoing difficulties in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Fox Business reported that Cruz announced the “Energy Freedom Act” in a Friday press release that he also used to criticize President Joe Biden for allowing America to fall behind on its ability to export fuel.

Cruz said that the Biden administration has caused America to lose its “status as a net petroleum exporter.”

In the press release, Cruz said, “These policies have poured billions of dollars into countries such as Russia and Iran, which use those funds to attack our allies and undermine the national security of America.”

“President Biden has imposed more restrictions on U.S. oil companies than he has on Russian oil,” Cruz said, “With Iran, he has looked the other way as the regime busted through sanctions and raised their exports to more than one million barrels per day for the first time in almost three years.” 

Cruz said that should his legislation pass, it would provide an economic boon for the country while enabling the United States to reduce trade with countries it hopes to punish on the international stage.

Cruz said that his bill is focused on “[reversing] Biden’s actions so we can restore American energy independence” and that it “won’t cost taxpayers a dime” While creating “Billions in revenue in the coming years’ For the United States “by expediting permitting, leasing, safe new pipelines, and exports, and providing much needed regulatory certainty.”

He said, “It would create new jobs, lower energy costs, and because modern energy production in the United States is far cleaner than in any other country by every measure, it would help the environment. The Energy Freedom Act would put a stop to the Biden administration’s sabotage of the American energy industry, and Congress should take it up without delay.”

Cruz also recently amplified statements made by tech CEO Elon Musk calling for American energy independence.

Musk took to Twitter and said, “Hate to say it, but we need to increase oil [and] gas output immediately. Extraordinary times demand extraordinary measures.”

Responding emphatically, Cruz said that he “couldn’t agree more.”

Some of the Biden administration’s first actions in office were to restrict American oil drilling. Upon entering the White House, Biden revoked the Keystone XL pipeline’s permit to transport fossil fuels and moved to prevent the issuing of new leases to drill for oil and gas on federal lands.

These steps considerably reduced the amount of energy being domestically produced and has led to American leadership considering the purchase of oil from hostile nations like Iran.