CNN’s John Berman Challenges Energy Secretary on Gas Production ‘Problem,’ Points Out How Clean Energy Talk is Hurting Prices

CNN’s John Berman confronted Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on Wednesday over booming gas prices, with the New Day co-host arguing the White House’s consistent clean energy talk is creating the very production problems they are accusing of being behind massive price increases.

President Joe Biden sent a letter this week to oil companies, which can be read in full here, in which he accused of companies of taking in too much profit while drivers overpay at the pump.

“Your companies need to work with my Administration to bring forward concrete, near-term solutions,” Biden said, promising to use every “tool” at his disposal to get costs under control.

In Wednesday’s interview, Granholm did not specify what these “tools” are exactly. Berman asked whether a “surtax” of profits from oil companies is being considered.

“It is a tool. I’m not saying [Biden] would support it. He wants to hear from the companies first,” Granholm said.

Granholm described gas prices as a “global” issue and called for production increases from refineries, though Berman pointed out the issue may be self-created by the White House, arguing the talk of moving to clean energy in response to gas price increases could be scaring companies out of increasing production in light of uncertain demand.

“Five years from now, 10 years from now, are you telling me you want them drilling for more oil? You want refineries putting out more gasoline in five years or 10 years?” Berman asked.

“What we’re saying is today we need that supply increased,” Granholm said. “Of course, in five or 10 years, actually in the immediate, we are also pressing on the accelerator, if you will, to move toward clean energy so we don’t have to be under the thumb of petro dictators like [Vladimir] Putin.”

Berman then laid out the problem of Granholm demanding increased production, while also simultaneously blasting the entire industry and speaking to the need to move on from it immediately.

“But that’s the problem for these companies,” Berman said. “These companies are saying, you know, ‘you’re asking me to do more now, invest more now, when in fact five or 1p years from now we don’t think that demand will there be, and the administration doesn’t even necessarily want it to be there.'”

Granholm said oil companies should work on becoming “diversified” energy companies, increasing oil production, while simultaneously exploring new means of clean energy.

Watch above via CNN.