The most unequal county in the United States isn’t in
New York
or
California
. It’s actually in the heart of flyover country — Teton County in
Wyoming
, to be exact. Drawn by Grand Teton National Park and the Jackson Hole ski area, wealthy people have flocked there, buying land and building huge luxury houses.
But they have not been content simply to enjoy their own property. The allure of Teton County is its pristine natural environment, and the new residents have done everything in their power to limit residential development near them, driving up housing costs and forcing middle-class residents to move away. The only people left are the wealthy in their big homes and a poor class of renters, many of them servants and foreign. Hence the highest levels of income inequality in the nation.
CONGRESS CAN DO MORE TO PREVENT MEGAFIRES
What the ultrarich have done to Teton County, President Joe Biden and the Democrats want to do to the rest of the country. Earlier this month, Interior Secretary Deb Haaland placed a 20-year moratorium on all oil, gas, and mining leasing within a 10-mile radius of New Mexico’s Chaco Culture National Historical Park, rejecting calls from the Navajo Nation to approve a smaller buffer of 5 miles.
“Recent congressional testimony by Sec. Haaland displayed her lack of understanding of the massive cost to a disadvantaged Native American community,” Western Energy Alliance President Kathleen Sgamma said in a
statement
.“She was unable to answer questions about the costs of foregone oil and natural gas royalties to tribal members. Despite her claims that the energy rights of Navajos would be protected, she was unable to guarantee access to those minerals. What good are rights if Interior isolates your lands and you can’t access your resources?”
Haaland’s decision to deny Navajos economic development in their community is the latest piece of the Biden administration’s plan to put 30% of all land in the U.S. off limits by 2030.
Announced
during his first week in office, Biden’s
“30×30” policy
seeks to “address the interconnected climate and biodiversity crises, and advance environmental justice.” Apparently, Biden’s idea of “justice” means denying poor rural communities the ability to develop.
In addition to banning economic oil, gas, and mineral extraction in New Mexico, Biden has
shut down nickel and cobalt mining in Minnesota
and
banned all new oil and natural gas leases on federally owned lands
.
With 30% of all land locked up, where is the U.S. supposed to get the critical minerals and energy needed to fuel the economy and defend the nation? The Biden administration has no answers.
Asked by Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT), “Are you aware that China controls, by proxy production, the supply chain of critical minerals that are critical to both the [electric vehicle] world and defense?” Haaland could only lamely respond, “Thank you for that information.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
When Zinke followed up, asking, “Are you aware, by multiple studies, that in order to satisfy the present requirements of [electric vehicles] and critical minerals to defense, it would take an increase of 2,000% of mining for 20 years?” Again, Haaland could only offer, “Thank you for the information.”
Nature can be beautiful, and some of it should be left untouched. Our nation’s national parks are invaluable. But there is also a cost to setting aside land for preservation. People need places to live. We need minerals to build electronics. Our economy can’t function without oil and natural gas. These things require developing land. When you restrict land use, you make all of these things more expensive. Setting aside an arbitrary percentage such as “30%” is not justice for working-class families who need inexpensive energy and places to live.
