Does Big Oil Need Donnie?

It pains me to admit, but I once liked something that Donald Trump said. Among his comments after descending The Golden Escalator to announce his candidacy in 2015 was “I’m very, very rich. I will finance my campaign myself. I will not be influenced by donors seeking favors.” Right on, Donnie. “Campaign donations” are actually bribes.

Of course, the “No Campaign Donations” bit proved as false as “Mexico Will Pay For The Wall”, but both sounded good at the time.

Donnie is running for president again in 2024 and he is singing a different tune. Speaking to Big Oil executives at Mar-a-Lago last week, Donnie said, “You all are wealthy enough that you should raise $1 billion to return me to the White House!” He vowed to immediately reverse dozens of President Biden’s environmental rules and policies and stop new ones from being enacted.

Big Oil can certainly rummage around its sofa cushions and come up with $1 billion to cover Donnie’s legal bills, Melania’s wardrobe, and run fear-mongering TV campaign ads every ten minutes until Election Day. “Joe Biden is personally allowing illegals to roam the streets, racing, pillaging, and murdering!”

But does Big Oil really need to put Donnie in the White House? Even with all those “onerous” Biden restrictions, domestic oil production was a record 411 million barrels per month last year. Exxon Mobil’s gross profit in 2023 was a cool $86 billion. That gross profit was an all-time record $114 billion in 2022 and a hefty $64 billion in 2021. Who was president during those years? That tree-hugger Joe Biden.

Big Oil is doing OK no matter who is in the White House. When Obama took office, the country was producing about 159 million barrels of oil a month. When he left office, the figure was 275 million. Domestic oil production increased less dramatically during Donnie’s term, but the Pandemic skewed the figures. Now we are up to 411 million barrels per month and Exxon Mobil’s gross profit is nearly $200 for every American man, woman, and child.

Big Oil doesn’t need to cough up $1 billion to put Donnie in the White House, Nor do all those poor schmoes who paid him for Official Donnie Sneakers or Bibles. He scammed us in 2015 and he’s doing it again.

By Ed Dufton