From Charles Lane’s op-ed in the Washington Post: “The Gulf crisis would be scarier yet if anti-fracking Democrats had their way“:
The destructive strike on Saudi Arabian oil production facilities on Saturday, almost certainly carried out by or on behalf of Iran, brings the Middle East a step closer to general war. The long-anticipated test of President Trump’s crisis-management skills might be at hand. It’s a scary thought. Here’s an even scarier one: Suppose the United States reached this moment without ever having taken advantage of the innovative oil and gas production technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” which enabled drillers to free up previously inaccessible hydrocarbons from shale formations in North Dakota and Texas, among other places.
Fracking is a strategic U.S. asset that tips the balance against a wider Middle East war, though obviously such a catastrophe might come anyway. Which brings us to the Democratic candidates who have been calling for a ban on fracking, due to environmental concerns. A fracking ban surely ranks as one of the most irresponsible promises of the campaign so far, and it would be a terrible idea even if the situation in the Middle East had not just reminded us of fracking’s strategic benefits.