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U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) today joined Your World with Neil Cavuto on Fox News to discuss the ongoing war in Ukraine and President Biden’s lack of a plan to bolster American energy production, which would help counter Russia’s aggression and restore our energy independence.

 

On the need to increase American energy production:

 

“This is a long-term structural supply and demand issue that only gets fixed by America becoming once again energy independent.”

 

…

 

“There is no question that we have the resources in this country if we’re willing to develop them to fill the gap, and, you know, if Russian energy is taken offline, to help support our European allies and to provide America with what we need to function, but they’ve got to be willing to make a decision to do that.”

 

On President Biden trying to revive parts of his reckless tax-and-spending spree:

 

“[President Biden’s] prescription for inflation is spend more money. And you know, everybody knows, the textbook definition of inflation is too many dollars chasing too few of goods. 

 

“And that was the problem with the ‘rescue plan’ they passed last year, $2 trillion passed on a party-line basis. It fueled these inflationary pressures, and so now we've got this thing that's kind of out of control. 

 

“Year over year, if you look at inflation in January of this year, 7.5 percent. Last year, 1.4 percent.

 

“This is becoming a chronic problem, and what he wants to do is spend more money. I mean, that is the absolute opposite of what you would do in this situation.”

 

On President Biden hampering American energy production:

 

“And again, [President Biden] didn't address the energy issue, which is a big part of inflation. If you look at the price of oil now, well over $100 a barrel, gasoline is up 40 percent over last year, those all factor into inflation.

 

“That's going to continue to be a problem and [it] only gets addressed if you are willing to deal with the supply side of the equation, and they're not doing that.

 

“I mean, they've taken off limits ANWR, they've taken off limits the Gulf, they've taken off limits federal lands, they've shut down pipelines. This is an administration that has a hostility toward liquid fuels. 

 

“And I would add biofuels to that list of things too that if they're really serious they could do something about, but it's going to require them to chart a different path than what they’ve charted so far. And the path they're on right now has been dictated by, you know, the climate czars in their party, sort of the extreme left, who seem to misunderstand that electric vehicles is not a solution to the challenges that we face here and now, particularly with Ukraine and Russia.”

 

On Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine:

 

“If this doesn’t fit the definition of war crimes, I don’t know what does. I mean, invading a sovereign country, killing innocent women and children, and the henchmen around [Vladimir Putin], the cronies around him, I think all ought to be labeled as such, and that would deprive them of access to almost anywhere in the civilized world.

 

“I think these are heinous crimes that are being committed, and this is a thug who has no consideration for the harm or the damage he’s doing not only to people in Ukraine but people in his own country who are suffering the consequences of some of these decisions.”