The Trump administration is backing off plans to allow offshore oil and gas exploration in the waters surrounding Florida, according to a statement released by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke Tuesday evening.
The original draft plan, released by the Department of the Interior earlier this month, considered allowing new leases for offshore oil and gas drilling in several areas, including the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic waters that surround the Florida coasts.
The plan met swift opposition from not just liberals — like the ridiculous stunt Michael Moore pulled with a fracking truck that I wrote about at RedState two days ago — but also from Florida Republican leaders like Gov. Rick Scott and Sen. Marco Rubio.
I had predicted that the pushback from Scott, Rubio, and other GOP members of Florida’s Congressional delegation — several of whom have been staunch supporters of the President — made it a lot less likely that any offshore drilling in Florida waters would be approved, and Zinke specifically cited Scott’s opposition to the plan as influencing his department’s decision:
Read my full statement on taking #Florida off the table for offshore oil and gas. Local voice matters. pic.twitter.com/fJhv0p0CDC
— Secretary Ryan Zinke (@SecretaryZinke) January 9, 2018
“I support [Gov. Scott’s] position that Florida is unique and its coasts are heavily reliant on tourism as an economic driver. As a result…I am removing Florida from consideration for any new oil and gas platforms,” wrote Zinke, adding “Local voice matters” to his tweet.
Scott retweeted another post by Zinke, clearly pleased.
After talking with @FLGovScott, I am removing #Florida from the draft offshore plan. pic.twitter.com/lZIfdCDNOR
— Secretary Ryan Zinke (@SecretaryZinke) January 9, 2018
Looks like Michael Moore’s fracking truck proved to be even more useless than it already was.
Follow Sarah Rumpf on Twitter: @rumpfshaker.
[Cross-posted at RedState.]