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Americans across the country are being hit hard at the pump by high gas prices. But why? Oil and gas companies claim that the Biden administration's climate agenda is to blame for high prices—a claim that is demonstrably false. Indeed, new data show that the Biden administration has actually approved more onshore oil and gas permits than Trump did in any of the first three years of his presidency. Instead, the high prices are driven by supply and demand issues resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic. At the beginning of the pandemic, gas prices—and soon production—plummeted with lack of demand. Now, demand is back, and, thanks to stagnant production, gas prices have risen.
At the same time as Americans are struggling with high prices, oil companies and CEOs are making a killing. New research finds that a group of the largest oil and gas companies (such as Exxon, Chevron, Shell, and BP) made a combined $174 billion in profits in the first nine months of the year as gas prices climbed. That same group of companies has resisted calls to increase production, and instead doled out shareholder payouts worth more than $36.5 billion and bought back $8 billion of stock, helping rich investors but nobody else. “Americans looking for someone to blame for the pain they experience at the pump need look no further than the wealthy oil and gas company executives,” said Kyle Herrig, president of Accountable.US, the organization that performed the analysis.
The other people that get rich off your pain at the pump are oil and gas CEOs. A look at the most recent CEO pay per year reveals that Michael Wirth of Chevron received over $29 million in 2020, while Ryan Lance of ConocoPhillips and Darren Woods of Exxon received over $28 million and $15 million respectively. At the same time, oil and gas workers aren't seeing any of that windfall, and are wising up to the money-hoarding ways of their CEOs. A new survey of workers finds that the fossil fuel industry risks a huge workforce shortage as employees gravitate towards the renewable sector and the higher salaries offered.
In short, oil and gas companies and their CEOs are trying to pull the wool over the eyes of their workers and the public, blaming the Biden administration and his climate agenda for high gas prices even as data debunks their myth. While you pay the price and industry workers wonder where to find higher salaries, investors and CEOs are keeping the profits for themselves.
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The president has basically only tried to tackle one side of the climate problem. He's talked a lot about building clean energy, but he hasn't done anything to stop fossil fuels. And you need to tackle both sides if we're going to address this crisis."
