Tim Ryan’s War on American Energy Independence

Ohio Democratic Senate candidate Tim Ryan took to Twitter last month to blame Vladimir Putin for the pain Americans are experiencing at the gas pump and called for “fully restoring America’s energy independence.”

But one look at Ryan’s record shows that he is part of the problem when it comes to America’s dependence on foreign energy and record-breaking gas prices.

• In April 2003 and 2005, Ryan voted to prevent drilling in ANWR.
• In November 2014, Ryan voted against the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline – a project that Joe Biden has since canceled only to greenlight a pipeline for Russia a few months later.
• In July 2017, Ryan voted against a bill to ease permitting for oil and gas pipelines that cross state and international lines.
• In September 2017, Ryan voted in favor of banning drilling and fracking in the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf.
• In December 2017, Ryan voted against the Republican-backed 2017 tax relief plan that included provisions to open ANWR for drilling.
• In March 2018, Ryan voted against a bill to roll back Obama-era regulations on coal-fired power plants.
• In August 2019, Ryan said he would “absolutely” consider banning fracking on federal lands. Meanwhile, a study by the American Petroleum Institute found that a federal ban on fracking could “hamstring” Ohio’s energy sector and result in the loss of more than 500,000 jobs.
• In February 2021, Ryan voted in favor of blocking millions of acres of federal lands from energy development and mining.
• In December 2021, Ryan received thousands of dollars from Nord Stream 2 lobbyist Vincent Roberti.

Bottom line: No amount of tweets can make up for the fact that Tim Ryan has used his Congressional career to weaken American energy independence and make us more reliant on foreign sources for oil.

Side note: Tim Ryan may claim he wants to reduce the use of fossil fuels, but he sure doesn’t have an issue with taking money from them.