Reducing Oil Dependence and Building a Clean-Energy Economy
The facts about President Obama’s energy record

President Obama has taken steps to move us toward energy independence and create an economy that’s built to last. He’s been a strong supporter of domestic energy production, has made historic investments in clean energy technology, and has nearly doubled fuel-efficiency standards for cars and light trucks. Because of the progress we’ve made, our dependence on foreign oil is the lowest it’s been in 16 years. Yet, conservative groups funded by big oil are spending millions trying to distort the President’s record.

Learn more about how the President is creating clean energy jobs.

Attacks from Big Oil

  • Americans for Prosperity, backed by the oil industry billionaire Koch brothers have launched a $6 million ad campaign against President Obama’s clean energy initiatives as they try to fight President Obama’s efforts to end subsidies to the oil and gas industry

  • The Koch brothers are worth $21.5 billion thanks to their stake in Koch Industries, a company that operates oil refineries across the country and controls roughly 400 miles of pipelines and was rated as one of the top ten air polluters in the United States

  • Their previous attack ad was labeled “mostly false” by independent fact-checkers.

  • Their most recent ad has been deemed “not tethered to facts” by ABC News.

  • In fact, President Obama’s investments in clean energy are supporting jobs in a sector that employs more than 2.7 million Americans and is “expanding rapidly”

Boosting Domestic Energy Production

Since President Obama took office, oil imports have dropped by an average of 1.1 million barrels per day.

  • In 2010 domestic crude oil production reached its highest level since 2003.

  • In 2010 natural gas production reached its highest level in more than 30 years.

  • The U.S. has become a net exporter of fuels for the first time since 1949.

  • The Obama administration has proposed a five-year offshore leasing plan that makes more than 75 percent of undiscovered oil and gas resources off our shores available for development, while putting in place common-sense safety requirements to prevent a disaster like the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico from happening again.

Building A Clean Energy Economy

President Obama more than tripled the government’s investment in clean energy sectors such as the smart power grid, energy efficiency, electric cars, and renewable power. These investments are responsible for saving or creating 224,500 jobs as of the end of 2010.

  • Electricity generation from wind and solar increased nearly 71 and 40.3 percent between 2008 and 2010, respectively.

  • The Obama administration issued a conditional loan guarantee for the construction of the first nuclear power plant to be built in the United States in decades. Once constructed, it will provide enough clean energy for 1.4 million people.

  • The administration funded the weatherization of more than 600,000 homes, saving low-income families an average of $400 in heating and cooling costs in the first year alone.

  • President Obama has set a 10-year goal to develop and deploy cost-effective clean coal technology, and to put online several commercial demonstration projects within four years.

Rebuilding the U.S. Auto Industry

After the Obama administration issued emergency loans to rescue the auto industry, further support was given to U.S. auto companies through investments in advanced vehicle technologies that are helping automakers employ tens of thousands of American workers to build fuel-efficient and hybrid electric vehicles.

  • Fuel efficiency standards the administration has proposed will nearly double fuel economy to 54.5 mpg by 2025, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and oil consumption.

  • Through President Obama’s “Cash for Clunkers” program, hundreds of thousands of Americans traded in older, less efficient vehicles, increasing the fuel efficiency of their vehicles by an average of 9.2 miles per gallon, and saving those drivers roughly 33 million gallons of gasoline each year.

  • President Obama is promoting cleaner fuels, reducing the need for an estimated 13.6 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel by 2022.