As Gas Prices Soar, Biden’s Climate Ambitions Sputter

After entering the White House with a vow that fighting global warming would be a driving priority, President Biden's climate agenda is mired in delay and facing legal, legislative and political obstacles that could diminish or dismantle it entirely.

Legislation and regulation are two of his main ways to address climate change. The legislative centerpiece of Mr. Biden's climate plan is unlikely to become law in the face of Republican opposition. The strict limits on pollution from cars and power plants that are dangerously heating the planet could be in danger of being blocked by the Supreme Court.

With gasoline prices going up after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and images of last summer's climate disasters fading, Republicans and oil companies are now calling for more drilling and less emphasis.

The US oil companies are like prisoners who are let out of prison and given the freedom to produce as much oil as possible. It is a panicked response to high oil prices.

President Biden said on Thursday that he would release one million barrels of oil a day from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for 180 days to bring down global oil prices. Such a release would be historic. The United States plans to increase exports of natural gas to Europe. Environmentalists are concerned that both of those moves will lead to more domestic drilling at a time when scientists say nations must sharply and quickly cut fossil fuel use.

The president used the announcement about the petroleum reserve to make a plea for his stymied climate legislation, saying that he was boosting gas and oil supplies to deal with an immediate crisis but that the country's long term energy independence should be based on wind, solar and other renewable sources.

Mr. Biden said that we need to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. We need to double down on our commitment to clean energy and tackle the climate crisis with our partners and allies around the world. We can do that by passing my plan in the United States Congress.

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Climate policies have been advanced by the administration more than by Mr. Biden. The Securities and Exchange Commission proposed a landmark rule requiring companies to disclose their financial risk from climate change. The Biden administration approved the nation's first major offshore wind farm and is moving forward with plans to develop wind farms along much of the United States coastline.

Methane is a potent greenhouse gas that leaks from oil and gas wells and the Environmental Protection Agency is working on new rules to limit it. The administration is setting tougher energy efficiency standards. The bipartisan infrastructure law provides $5 billion to help states create networks of electric vehicle charging stations and $3.2 billion to weatherize homes.

The strategy to seed climate policy across the federal government has suffered setbacks. Senator Joe Manchin III, Democrat of West Virginia, objected to the views of Sarah Bloom Raskin, who was nominated to be vice chairman of the Federal Reserve. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission was pressured to back off plans to consider climate effects when approving new gas lines.

Despite the overwhelming consensus of the scientific community that nations must take immediate action to slash emissions from fossil fuels, Republicans have shown little interest in addressing climate change. According to the most recent report for the United Nations written by 270 researchers from 67 countries, the planet is warming so quickly that it is out of step with humanity's ability to adapt.

The majority of Republicans in Congress have been silent when it comes to the science and have sought to portray the Democrats as out of touch with most Americans.

The ranking Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee, John Barrasso of Wyoming, attacked Mr. Biden because he was seeking $45 billion for governmentwide efforts to reduce pollution.

Senator Barrasso said on Monday that President Biden wants to spend more taxpayer dollars on his green energy schemes instead of increasing American energy production. Wyoming is the nation's top coal producing state and ninth in crude oil production.

Republicans have intensified their attacks on Mr. Biden's climate agenda. The Republican National Committee has launched a campaign to register voters at gas stations across the country in order to connect high prices at the pump to Mr. Biden's policies.

It's kind of a perfect storm, according to David Axelrod, a Democratic political strategist and former top counselor to President Barack Obama. In an election year.

Scientists say it is impossible for Mr. Biden to meet his pledge to the world that the United States will cut its emissions in half by 2030.

David G. Victor, an expert in climate policy at the University of California, San Diego, said that it was always a stretch goal. It's not going to happen now.

Mr. Biden's best hope for climate action is the climate and social spending legislation that includes $300 billion in tax incentives for wind and solar energy and electric vehicles. It could cut the nation's emissions by 25% by the year 2030.

The legislation came to a standstill in the Senate in December after Senator Manchin said he wouldn't vote for it. If Senator Manchin does not vote for the bill in the Senate, no Republicans will vote for it.

Some of the clean energy tax credits could be included in a scaled-down version of the bill, according to Senator Manchin. He said in an interview last week that there was no formal negotiation over the text of the bill.

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Climate experts say that the expansion of domestic oil and gas drilling could undermine the emission reductions goals of the bill. The top recipient in the Senate of campaign contributions from the fossil fuel industry is Senator Manchin, who has financial ties to the coal industry.

Even if Senator Manchin returns to the table to negotiate new legislation, some Democrats are skeptical that it will get over the finish line.

John Podesta, a Democratic strategist and former top climate adviser to Mr. Obama, said that it was less than 50%.

Gina McCarthy, Mr. Biden's top climate adviser, agreed with Mr. Podesta. She said that Mr. Biden would try to pass a bill by the fall.

If the legislation does not pass by the end of the year, it will almost certainly die, since Republicans are favored to win control of the House in November.

Schumer said he was still trying to make a deal.

The Senate Finance Committee has jurisdiction over the clean energy tax provisions, so lawmakers would need to quickly work on a new version of the legislation. It is a possibility.

The White House is worried that the Supreme Court will limit the regulations. Two regulations are being drafted by the EPA to reduce emissions from vehicle tailpipes and power plant smokestacks. If those rules are strict and enacted soon, analysts say, they could cut the nation's greenhouse pollution and accelerate its transition to electric vehicles and wind and solar power.

The E.P.A. is waiting for a Supreme Court decision in the West Virginia case. The attorneys general want the justices to limit the agency's authority to regulate greenhouse gas pollution from power plants.

Legal experts said after the oral arguments that the majority of the justices would be sympathetic to the plaintiffs.

The agency could still make an impact with another rule, which is not expected to be completed until 2023, and is designed to force auto companies to quickly increase sales of zero-emission electric vehicles.

Mr. Biden's allies are still hopeful. At a Democratic retreat in Philadelphia a few weeks ago, the president made it clear to Ed that climate was still a priority.

Mr. Podesta said that the president needs to make the case to the American people if that is true.

Lisa Friedman was involved in reporting.