WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is persisting with the myth that Democratic rival Joe Biden proposes to ban fracking. Biden doesn’t.
TRUMP: “One of the most important issues for Pennsylvania is the survival of your fracking industry. Joe Biden has repeatedly pledged to abolish fracking. He’s a liar. He’s a liar.” — remarks Tuesday night at a rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
THE FACTS: That’s false. Biden has repeatedly pledged not to abolish fracking.
His running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris, underscored that point multiple times in the vice presidential debate. None of that has dissuaded the president from repeatedly and wholly distorting Biden’s position.
At one of the Democratic primary debates, Biden misspoke when he addressed the subject, saying that if he became president, there would be “no more — no new — fracking.” Biden’s campaign quickly corrected his mistake.
Biden’s actual position, which he frequently states, is that he would ban new gas and oil permits — including fracking — on federal lands only. The vast majority of oil and gas does not come from federal lands.