WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) issued the following statement applauding President Trump’s executive order to lift the Biden administration’s harmful pause on liquefied natural gas (LNG) export permitting.
“The war on American energy, American workers, our national security, and our allies is over! Louisiana is ready and equipped to lead the way in supplying the world with American natural gas,” said Dr. Cassidy.
Background
Immediately following the Biden-Harris administration’s announcement that they would freeze pending applications for LNG export permits, Cassidy led 25 of his Republican colleagues in condemning the decision. Our European allies, who have become increasingly reliant on the U.S. for LNG following Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, will now be forced to decide between depriving their citizens of energy or actively funding Putin.
He also introduced with U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) the LNG Security Act to reverse President Biden’s American LNG export ban and require the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to approve LNG exports to all countries that have imported, currently import, or are capable of importing Russian or Iranian natural gas. Additionally, he introduced the Unlocking Domestic LNG Potential Act, which depoliticizes the export of American liquefied natural gas. It eliminates the requirement for the DOE to authorize exports and instead gives the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) sole authority over the approval process.
In February 2024, Cassidy penned an op-ed with U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) in the Houston Chronicle underscoring the devastating economic, environmental, and national security impacts of the Biden-Harris decision to freeze new LNG export projects. In January, Cassidy questioned DOE Deputy Secretary David Turk on the rumors surrounding this decision and emphasized the energy, economic, environmental, and national security importance of U.S. LNG exports.
Cassidy delivered a speech on the U.S. Senator floor on the Biden-Harris administration’s hypocritical and backward LNG export permitting freeze in August. Watch it here.
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