Source: United States Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND)
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) questioned U.S. Army General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing today about how President Biden allowing the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to be completed undermines his rhetoric on restoring relationships with our European allies.
“Three weeks ago, President Biden lifted the sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. That flies in the face of ‘America’s back,’ that flies in the face of rebuilding NATO alliances,” said Senator Cramer. “I have some great concerns, and I think we ought to get them straightened out.”
Senator Cramer highlighted a recent vote by the parliament of the European Union calling for a stronger stance against the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a vote seemingly at odds with the President’s rationale that allowing the pipeline’s completion would improve America’s standing with its European allies.
The senator also noted the increase in carbon emissions the pipeline would cause. As he’s noted in previous hearings, American energy is produced and delivered with significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions. Today’s exchange follows a recent claim by President Biden that leaders in the Pentagon told him “the greatest physical threat facing America was global warming.”
In the Senate, Senator Cramer is leading the Protecting Our Well-being by Expanding Russian Sanctions (POWERS) Act, legislation to build on recently-passed bipartisan sanctions against Russia and reinstate sanctions the Biden Administration is waiving on Russian people and entities involved in the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Learn more here.