search
Sections List
American Journal News

Biden hosts climate meeting amid high gas price pressure

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Friday that ‘fossil fuel producers and financiers have humanity by the throat.’

By Associated Press - June 17, 2022
Share
Joe Biden
President Joe Biden speaks during the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Friday, June 17, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Equating the oil and gas industry to Big Tobacco, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Friday that “fossil fuel producers and financiers have humanity by the throat.” But President Joe Biden wasn’t quite itching for a fight.

With both soaring energy prices and a warming planet weighing on the world at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate, Biden talked about trying to ease the pain of high gas prices while pushing more long-term green policies.

Dismissing the idea of boosting gasoline production, the United Nations’ top diplomat threw out traditional diplomatic niceties and bluntly vilified the fossil fuel industry at a virtual session that included oil rich Saudi Arabia, China, Europe and Egypt, which is hosting the next United Nations summit on climate change. It was the first time Guterres compared the energy industry to tobacco interests, saying they use “the same scandalous tactics” to delay action that is good for people and the planet.

Biden reiterated his goal to lower gasoline prices that are averaging a record $5 a gallon in the U.S. while also shifting away from fossil fuels in order to limit climate change and the risks it presents.

“I’m using every lever available to me to bring down prices for the American people,” Biden said. “But the critical point is that these actions are part of our transition to a clean and secure and long-term energy future.”

Biden is also expected to visit Saudi Arabia next month. The White House recently praised the kingdom after OPEC+ announced that it would pump more oil to boost the global supply.

Guterres dismissed more drilling, saying “nothing could be more clear or present than the danger of fossil fuel expansion.”

“Even in the short-term, fossil fuels don’t make political or economic sense,” Guterres said.

“Had we invested earlier and massively in renewable energy, we would not find ourselves once again at the mercy of unstable fossil fuel markets,” Guterres said. “Let’s make sure the war in Ukraine is not used to increase that dependency.”

The secretary-general decided to amp up the rhetoric because of successful efforts by the industry to use the war in Ukraine as an excuse to start drilling projects, said a senior U.N. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to lack of authority to speak for the agency.

“It is very interesting to see the change in tone from the secretary-general. His language is blunter than any secretary general before him,” said Niklas Hohne of the New Climate Institute in Germany. “This comes at a time when we indeed observe a goldrush to new fossil fuel infrastructure… Such expansion is counterproductive to climate policy as it would lock the world into a high greenhouse gas future.”

In a statement, the American Petroleum Institute said governments and the industry need to work together: “Rising energy costs worldwide and current geopolitical tensions prove it is more important than ever to ensure continued access to affordable, reliable energy while reducing emissions. As populations grow and economies expand, the world will demand more energy, not less.”

Biden’s priorities are slashing methane leaks and getting more zero-emission vehicles on the roads.

Biden administration officials, insisting on anonymity to discuss the event, said they expect some of the countries to announce more ambitious climate targets as part of the landmark agreement reached in Paris in 2015.

Biden sounded the alarm on extreme weather events in an Oval Office interview on Thursday with The Associated Press.

“We have more hurricanes and tornadoes and flooding,” he said. “People saw what — I took my kids years ago to Yellowstone Park. They call me, ‘Daddy did you see what happened at Yellowstone, right?’ Well, it’s unthinkable. These are 1,000-year kinds of events.”

But the Russian invasion of Ukraine has scrambled Biden’s climate goals by driving up the cost of gas. Facing political pressure to get prices under control in a midterm election year, the Democratic president has urged U.S. oil refiners to produce more fuel even as companies say they lack the long-term incentives to do so because the administration is accelerating the move to clean energy.

“Well, I say in the short term, do the right thing,” Biden said Thursday, stressing his view that energy companies should increase production instead of trying to maximize their profits.

Biden comes to the summit with foreign leaders with far less of the climate ambition and hope he declared at the outset of his presidency, when he vowed to make the United States a leader again on slashing fossil fuel emissions to stave off the worst scenarios of global warming. Republicans and some Democrats since then have stalled and all but killed Biden’s most ambitious climate legislation.

While Biden has succeeded in securing funding to boost electric vehicles and some other climate measures, the setbacks have left Biden focused on voluntary pledges and initiatives like those Friday, which can easily be abandoned or reversed by future leaders.

That leaves Guterres, who doesn’t have the power or political limitations of Biden, to aim directly at the fossil fuel industry, saying they’ve “invested heavily in pseudo-science and public relations – with a false narrative to minimize their responsibility for climate change and undermine ambitious climate policies.”

Andrew Weaver, a University of Victoria climate scientist and former Canadian legislator, said Guterres’ equating the fossil fuel and tobacco industry “is a straight out comparison… “People haven’t been accountable for what I would are in some sense some very serious crimes against society.”

But Stanford University climate scientist and environment program director Chris Field said Guterres’ call to action “as exactly right” but said “we need to make sure that we don’t let the focus on fossil fuel companies as bad guys slow progress on solutions.”


AJ News
Subscribe to our newsletter.
Read More
Republicans spread misinformation and lies as California burns

Republicans spread misinformation and lies as California burns

By Jesse Valentine - January 09, 2025
Feds to issue grants to support NC residents experiencing homelessness due to Hurricane Helene

Feds to issue grants to support NC residents experiencing homelessness due to Hurricane Helene

By Greg Childress, NC Newsline - October 11, 2024
Biden pledges federal help for states in the Southeast stricken by catastrophic storm

Biden pledges federal help for states in the Southeast stricken by catastrophic storm

By Jennifer Shutt, States Newsroom - September 30, 2024
Ohio GOP Senate candidate Bernie Moreno takes anti-immigrant, pro-fossil fuel message on tour

Ohio GOP Senate candidate Bernie Moreno takes anti-immigrant, pro-fossil fuel message on tour

By Nick Evans, Ohio Capital Journal - August 08, 2024
Horsford credits Biden for $800 million to help tribal communities in NV deal with climate impacts

Horsford credits Biden for $800 million to help tribal communities in NV deal with climate impacts

By Michael Lyle, Nevada Current - July 23, 2024
Gov. Greg Abbott defends trip to East Asia during Hurricane Beryl

Gov. Greg Abbott defends trip to East Asia during Hurricane Beryl

By Jasper Scherer, Texas Tribune - July 16, 2024
AJ News
Latest
Texas women face prosecution for abortions if new bill becomes law

Texas women face prosecution for abortions if new bill becomes law

By Bonnie Fuller - May 16, 2025
It’s not just Medicaid—House Republicans want to cut food stamps too

It’s not just Medicaid—House Republicans want to cut food stamps too

By Jesse Valentine - May 15, 2025
Disability advocates arrested protesting GOP Medicaid cuts

Disability advocates arrested protesting GOP Medicaid cuts

By Jesse Valentine - May 14, 2025
Republican Bill Huizenga cheers power plant funds he tried to block

Republican Bill Huizenga cheers power plant funds he tried to block

By Jesse Valentine - May 12, 2025
Jack Ciattarelli called harmful tariffs a “grand experiment”

Jack Ciattarelli called harmful tariffs a “grand experiment”

By Jesse Valentine - May 09, 2025
Paul LePage, a Medicaid critic, launches congressional bid in Maine

Paul LePage, a Medicaid critic, launches congressional bid in Maine

By Jesse Valentine - May 06, 2025
Earle-Sears ignored trans issues in office—now she uses them as a wedge

Earle-Sears ignored trans issues in office—now she uses them as a wedge

By Jesse Valentine - May 05, 2025
Trump effectively shuts down campaign finance watchdog

Trump effectively shuts down campaign finance watchdog

By Jesse Valentine - April 30, 2025
Ciattarelli wants a DOGE-style commission to crack down on New Jersey Medicaid recipients

Ciattarelli wants a DOGE-style commission to crack down on New Jersey Medicaid recipients

By Jesse Valentine - April 30, 2025
House Republicans roll out new plan to decimate Medicaid

House Republicans roll out new plan to decimate Medicaid

By Jesse Valentine - April 24, 2025
Trump White House plans to garnish wages of student loan borrowers

Trump White House plans to garnish wages of student loan borrowers

By Jesse Valentine - April 22, 2025
Megadonor embroiled in ethics scandal gave thousands to Winsome Earle-Sears

Megadonor embroiled in ethics scandal gave thousands to Winsome Earle-Sears

By Jesse Valentine - April 21, 2025
“I Was Terrified To Get Pregnant Again After Having to Flee Tennessee for a Life-Saving Abortion”

“I Was Terrified To Get Pregnant Again After Having to Flee Tennessee for a Life-Saving Abortion”

By Bonnie Fuller - April 21, 2025
Goldman Sachs: Trump’s tariffs will lead to job losses

Goldman Sachs: Trump’s tariffs will lead to job losses

By Jesse Valentine - April 17, 2025
Democrats take stand for wrongly deported Maryland man

Democrats take stand for wrongly deported Maryland man

By Jesse Valentine - April 16, 2025
North Carolina law would make it illegal for Democratic AG to sue Trump

North Carolina law would make it illegal for Democratic AG to sue Trump

By Jesse Valentine - April 11, 2025
Older Americans suffer under Republican slash and burn policies

Older Americans suffer under Republican slash and burn policies

By Jesse Valentine - April 09, 2025
Scott Brown got Trump’s tariff plans for New Zealand very wrong

Scott Brown got Trump’s tariff plans for New Zealand very wrong

By Jesse Valentine - April 08, 2025
Trump admin canceled Social Security contracts to punish Maine governor

Trump admin canceled Social Security contracts to punish Maine governor

By Jesse Valentine - April 03, 2025
Senate Republicans vote to eliminate cap on overdraft fees

Senate Republicans vote to eliminate cap on overdraft fees

By Jesse Valentine - April 03, 2025
Forced to carry a dying baby, this Texas mother of four says she didn’t think it could happen to her

Forced to carry a dying baby, this Texas mother of four says she didn’t think it could happen to her

By Bonnie Fuller - March 28, 2025
Despite pleas from women and doctors, Texas may implement even more abortion restrictions

Despite pleas from women and doctors, Texas may implement even more abortion restrictions

By Bonnie Fuller - March 28, 2025
Trump’s antiwar claims don’t hold up in leaked group chat

Trump’s antiwar claims don’t hold up in leaked group chat

By Jesse Valentine - March 28, 2025
Frontline Republican governors cheer on Department of Ed closure

Frontline Republican governors cheer on Department of Ed closure

By Jesse Valentine - March 26, 2025