Washington:
Sen Kamala Harris is clarifying Joe Biden‘s comments during the last presidential debate about transitioning away from the oil industry, saying he won’t ban the oil extraction technique called fracking. Speaking to reporters in Atlanta on Friday, Biden’s running mate said he will “deal with the oil subsidies.” Republicans have launched a barrage of attacks on the issue.
Biden was asked during Thursday’s debate with President Donald Trump in Tennessee if there would be “any place for fossil fuels, including coal and fracking, in a Biden administration.” The Democrat offered a muddled response, initially saying he would transition away from oil, before clarifying he’d eliminate federal subsidies for the industry. Biden’s climate plan calls for achieving net-zero carbon emissions in part through nixing subsidies, which would have implications for fracking. Biden also has proposed a ban on new gas and oil permits on federal lands but not a full fracking ban.
Republicans seized on Biden’s answer to again claim that his policies would have damaging implications for the oil and gas industry. Harris dismisses those attacks, saying Trump “likes to take everything out of context.”
