The collateral damage from the war on oil

March 24, 2026

Andy Caldwell

OPINION by ANDY CALDWELL

I am hoping that none of you are fooled into believing that the recent gasoline price spikes at the pump are due to the war with Iran, because nothing could be further from the truth as it effects California.

Our problem is not the war with Iran, but the war on oil.

I, and many others, such as Katy Grimes from the California Globe, have been reporting for the past year that USC has predicted our gas prices are going to hit $8 per gallon. Why?

Because our state government, beginning 20 years ago, declared a war against fossil fuels.

We told you all along that this war would end up becoming a war on consumers, maybe now you will believe us?

The war on oil was three-fold.

First, they started to ban drilling for oil in California. That meant there was less oil going to refineries so that they could produce gasoline and diesel.

Second, they started charging the gasoline refineries billions of dollars in extra charges to keep operating through California’s Cap and Trade program.

Third, they sought to ban the sale of gas-powered vehicles in the state, along with natural gas hookups in homes for water heaters, stoves, and cooktops.

So, you had a war on production, refining, and consumption.

So, what happened?

The producers shut down their operations! They flat out quit and left the state.

Several refineries are now shut down and three more have warned Gov. Gavin Newsom that they are going to shut down too because they don’t have enough fuel to keep their operations going and they can’t afford the ever-increasing fees.

Not only that, but there was also one pipeline that was used to move oil from one end of the state to the other. It too has shut down.

Why isn’t Newsom panicking?

Because this was their plan all along.

Years ago, these activists admitted they wanted gasoline to become unaffordable to force you to drive an electric vehicle.

Well, guess what, we don’t have enough electricity or charging stations for everyone to go all electric. In fact, we not only lack sufficient electricity generation, we also don’t have the ability to transmit and distribute the additional electricity to our homes and businesses.

In other words, the entire grid is grossly inadequate to handle the demand of our going all-electric. If the enviro-whackos and their friends in the legislature had been serious about transitioning to all-electric, they should have been working (and spending billions) on the grid rather than high speed rail!

Meanwhile, Trump has ordered Sable to resume production of their offshore rigs and their onshore processing facility. Despite the rising price of gas, you can expect everybody and their mother to follow with lawsuits.

There is also the distinct possibility that some agencies will levy incredible fines for every day of production without the requisite permits from local and state agencies that constitute a poke in the eye to Trump’s application of the Defense Production Act.

Regardless, nothing is going to change, even if gasoline hits $8 to $10 per gallon, as predicted. California is determined to transition away from gasoline and other fossil fuels faster than our economy and consumers can withstand to live without it.

In all wars, there is the phenomenon of collateral damage, and you are it!

Andy Caldwell is the executive director of COLAB in Santa Barbara County and host of The Andy Caldwell Radio Show, weekdays from 3-5 p.m. on  FM 98.5, FM 99.5, AM 1240, AM 1290 and FM 96.9.