Attorney general denounces ‘outrageous federal overreach’ after government restarted pipeline closed over 2015 spill
By Catholics for Catholics
California’s attorney general sued the US energy department to prevent it from using a cold-war-era law to resume the long-quarreled Sable Offshore pipeline system, linking the Santa Ynez offshore platform to California refineries.
Earlier this month US energy secretary, Chris Wright reopened the pipelines using the authority granted to him by President Donald Trump through an executive order that invoked the Defense Production Act to supersede state laws, according to a story by Newsmax.
“We won’t let this outrageous federal overreach go without a fight,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta in a Monday press conference. Bonta contended that Wright’s restart order violated state law, state court orders and a settlement approved by a federal court.
The Trump administration has championed the move as part of efforts to tackle rising energy costs amid global tensions, including the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.
Recently, gas prices reached $4 per gallon nationwide, while crude oil benchmarks have fluctuated but remain elevated.
Still, Bonta contended there is no genuine national emergency to rationalize the move and called the administration’s claims of energy scarcity “fabricated.”
“No matter how much President [Donald] Trump may claim there’s a so-called national energy emergency, it’s just not true,” Bonta told reporters.
Bonta added, “The U.S. already produces significantly more oil and gas than we use, it’s a completely fabricated claim intended to curry favor with the oil industry.”
Save and Share This Catholic Patriotic Minute!
