OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Vice President Kamala Harris was blasted on social media over a photo she posted of herself and second gentleman Doug Emhoff on Thanksgiving.
The couple were photographed alongside a gas stove after the Biden administration proposed banning the appliance earlier this year.
“From our family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving,” Harris posted on X.
From our family to yours, happy Thanksgiving. pic.twitter.com/Nhifx0sHi5
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) November 23, 2023
Several administration critics pointed out the discrepancy.
“Is that a gas stove?” Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., asked.
“Kamala Harris uses a gas stove. Kamala also says you shouldn’t use a gas stove. What would you call Kamala?” conservative Paul Szypula wrote.
“Is that a gas stove? Sure is. @FBI you may want to arrest her. She’s damaging the climate,” another wrote.
“Nice gas stove!” America First activist Laura Loomer posted.
“Nice gas stove, coming from the people who want to ban gas stoves,” another account noted.
“Is that a gas stove?” former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker asked.
“The DOE proposed a rule in February to create new energy efficiency standards for gas stoves in the U.S. A Biden administration official previously told Bloomberg the Biden administration was considering a nationwide ban on gas stoves, citing a December 2022 study that has been disputed alleging stoves were responsible for nearly 12.7% of childhood asthma cases,” The Daily Caller reported earlier this year.
And the administration’s war on appliances has only escalated since. The Department of Energy has since issued a rule mandating new standards for home gas furnaces to cut back on “greenhouse gas emissions.”
The DOE indicated that it has either proposed or completed regulations for enhancing the efficiency standards of 24 appliances as part of its efforts to curtail greenhouse gas emissions. The newly established regulation met with opposition from the American Gas Association (AGA), which expressed concerns that it could render 40-60 percent of gas furnaces in households non-compliant.
The rule is scheduled to become effective in 2028. It mandates that residential furnaces must achieve an annual fuel efficiency rating of 95 percent.
“At the direction of Congress, DOE is continuing to review and finalize energy standards for household appliances, such as residential furnaces, to lower costs for working families by reducing energy use and slashing harmful pollutants in homes across the nation,” Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm said, according to the press release.
“Today’s measure, along with this Administration’s past and planned energy efficiency actions, underscores President Biden’s commitment to save Americans money and deliver healthier communities,” Granholm continued.
In a June letter to DOE, the AGA said that gas furnaces are generally much cheaper to operate than electric models and are more efficient.
The department has allocated $225 million to support state and local governments in implementing building codes that promote electrification while moving away from gas-powered appliances. Additionally, in June, the Biden administration put forth a proposal that would mandate gas generators be shut down once they reach a specific emission threshold.
“They’re going to have to, in many cases, install new equipment to exhaust gas out of their home. These higher efficiency units, or so-called condensing units — a lot of consumers have them in their home, but a lot of consumers don’t. So, this rule would require additional retrofits for a lot of consumers. And those retrofits can be extremely cost prohibitive,” Richard Meyer, the vice president of energy markets, analysis and standards of AGA said.
The DC added:
The Biden administration also announced a new proposed rule going after water heaters in July to curb greenhouse gas emissions, as well as proposing new rules in March for refrigerators and laundry machines that could impose billions of dollars of costs on consumers.
The push to crack down on appliance efficiency standards is a part of a broader push by the Biden administration to electrify all appliances in pursuit of its climate agenda.
