“You said it on tape,” Trump replied.
Facts first: It’s false that Biden never said he was against hydrofracking. In two Democratic primary debates, Biden made confusing remarks about fracking that needed to clear up his campaign. In 2019, Biden said ‘we will make sure it is eliminated’ when asked about the future of coal and hydrofracking; in 2020, he said he was opposed to a new hydrofracking. Biden was written planconversely, never included a complete ban on hydraulic fracturing or even new hydraulic fracturing. On the contrary, it proposes ‘to allow a ban on new oil and gas on public lands and waters’ – to end no new hydrofracking anywhere or to end all existing hydrofracking on public lands and waters.
Biden created confusion about his stance with some of his comments during the Democratic primary. For example, during a July 2019 debate, he spoke to CNN’s Dana Bash:
Bash: “Thank you, Mr. Vice President. If it were just clear, would there be any place for fossil fuels, including coal and fracturing, in a Biden government?”
Biden: “No, we would – we would work it out. We would make sure it was eliminated and no fossil fuel for any of the one or more subsidies.”
Afterwards, Biden’s campaign made it clear that it “supports the elimination of coal and gas subsidies and the use of carbon capture.”
Biden also said he was opposed to a new hydrofrack in a Democratic primary debate in March when his opponent, Senator Bernie Sanders, was disputed over the issue of climate change. His campaign explained to reporters the same evening that Biden was reiterating his plan to ban oil and gas permits on public land, not a complete ban on new hydraulic fracturing, which a president could not do.
Without an act of Congress, the president could not impose a direct ban on fracking in the US. However, there are a number of regulatory and executive steps an administration can take to prevent or reduce the use of hydraulic fracturing technology, particularly on federal grounds. The problem is that most hydrofracking takes place on private land, and that attempts to limit it are likely to face legal challenges.