Did Biden Break Campaign Promise On Fracking? No“”And Here’s Why

Did Biden Break Campaign Promise On Fracking? No“”And Here’s Why

Topline

 Hardcore supporters of President Trump, including his son, Donald Trump Jr., are suggesting Biden has already flip-flopped on a major campaign promise that he would not impose a nationwide ban on fracking—and here's why that's false.

U.S. President Joe Biden walks the abbreviated parade route after Biden's inauguration on January ... [+] 20, 2021 in Washington, DC.



Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images

Key Facts





A story claiming Biden will ban fracking was published by conservative news site Townhall, which simply explained that Biden would—as he said he would during his campaign—deny permits for new fracking on federal land.





It's an important difference because the majority of fracking takes place on private land, with only 12% of U.S. natural gas production and nearly a quarter of U.S. oil production coming from federal lands, according to a 2020 study from the American Petroleum Institute, an energy industry group. 







And the president does not even have the power to ban fracking nationally.





Biden had promised during the campaign