ICYMI: Trump Courts Big Oil CEOs at Mar-a-Lago While Biden Holds Big Oil Accountable
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Trump hosted a private dinner last week with America’s biggest oil tycoons in the hopes of getting more Big Oil money
Washington, D.C. — Last week, The Washington Post reported that Donald Trump hosted a private dinner at Mar-a-Lago with America’s biggest oil and gas executives, including Chevron, ExxonMobil, Chesapeake Energy, and Occidental Petroleum, in the hopes of courting more oil and gas donations. Oil tycoon Harold Hamm, who considered helping pay Trump’s legal fees, was in attendance, tasked with organizing and recruiting more oil and gas donors for Trump.
While Donald Trump was busy cozying up to Big Oil CEOs for money, President Biden’s administration announced new guidance that would require oil and gas companies to pay more for polluting our public lands.
The Washington Post: Biden hikes cost of drilling on federal lands as Trump courts oil donors
President Biden and Donald Trump this week outlined clashing visions for the future of fossil fuel production across the country, underscoring how the nation’s energy policies hinge on the outcome of the 2024 election.
The Biden administration on Friday finalized a landmark rule that will require oil companies to pay at least 10 times more to drill on federal lands. The rule from the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management represents the first comprehensive update to the federal oil and gas leasing program in more than 30 years, and is intended to generate more money for taxpayers.
On Thursday, Trump held a private dinner at his Mar-a-Lago Club and resort with about 20 oil executives from some of the country’s biggest firms, including Chevron, ExxonMobil, Continental Resources, Chesapeake Energy and Occidental Petroleum, according to a guest list reviewed by The Washington Post. The effort was largely organized by Harold Hamm, an oil billionaire and Trump donor who runs Continental Resources and has helped recruit other donors to the Trump campaign.
In recent months, Trump has also talked with energy executives about the need for fewer regulations on drilling and has asked the executives what they need to drill more oil, according to people who have heard his comments, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations…