Former President Donald Trump accepted the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday with what CNN described as the most 'dishonest' speech of the four-day Republican National Convention, making over 20 false claims.
Many of these assertions are ones Trump has repeatedly made over the years, covering a range of topics such as the economy, immigration, crime, foreign policy, and elections.
CNN categorized the inaccuracies, noting that some were outright falsehoods while others were minor exaggerations. Certain claims were part of his prepared remarks—like stating he left the Biden administration a world at peace—while others were impromptu, including allegations of Democratic cheating in the 2020 election and claims that the U.S. is experiencing its worst-ever inflation.
Trump suggests U.S. not drilling enough; data shows record production
Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that the U.S. is not drilling enough for oil under the Biden administration, suggesting that this lack of drilling is leading to higher gas prices. During a recent campaign event, Trump stated that a future Trump administration would prioritize increasing domestic oil production to lower prices, coining the phrase, "drill, baby, drill."
Contrary to Trump's assertions, U.S. crude oil production has reached unprecedented levels under President Joe Biden. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the country is producing more oil than ever before. In 2023, U.S. crude oil production averaged 12.9 million barrels per day (b/d), surpassing the previous record of 12.3 million b/d set in 2019 during Trump's administration.
The EIA has also forecasted that crude oil production will continue to break records this year and the next, largely driven by the oil boom in the Permian Basin. As reported by CNN, the U.S. is currently the world's top oil producer, outpacing other countries by approximately half a million barrels per day compared to the previous annual record.
Experts emphasize that gas prices in the U.S. are influenced by the global oil market rather than domestic production alone. Bob McNally, president of Rapidan Energy Group and a former White House official under George W. Bush, highlighted that global factors such as the price of crude oil, economic health, geopolitical events like Russia's war on Ukraine, and decisions by OPEC to cut oil production play significant roles in determining gas prices.
Moreover, McNally pointed out that the U.S. produces a different type of oil than it consumes. The light crude produced domestically is likened to champagne, while the heavy crude imported is compared to coffee. U.S. refineries are designed to process the "heavy and gunky" crude that is imported, which adds another layer of complexity to the narrative of energy independence.
