Strategic Oil Reserves Under Attack and California’s Pay-to-Play Politics

On September 27, 2022, Kim Monson examines the Biden administration’s politically motivated depletion of America’s strategic petroleum reserves with energy executive Bob Boswell, then exposes California Governor Gavin Newsom’s troubling campaign finance practices with Open the Books CEO Adam Andrzejewski.

The Danger of Draining America’s Strategic Oil Reserves

Start listening at 32:00 – Hour 1

Bob Boswell, CEO of Laramie Energy, warns that Biden’s draining of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve constitutes fraud on the American public. The reserve was established after the Arab oil embargo specifically for emergency disruptions, not as a political tool to suppress gas prices before an election. Boswell points out this has been used legitimately only twice in history, after the embargo and during a Gulf hurricane.

The Biden administration’s broader energy policies compound the problem. Federal land leasing has plummeted to just 130,000-140,000 acres compared to the typical 4 million acres, forcing industry lawsuits over suppressed leasing. The Keystone Pipeline cancellation eliminated a critical crude supply artery. Colorado specifically suffers from permit delays that only recently began improving as high prices caught regulators’ attention.

On Colorado politics, Boswell criticizes Governor Polis’s attempts to appear libertarian while Senate Bill 181 imposes crushing regulatory burdens. The bill passed just months after voters soundly rejected similar restrictions at the ballot box. The recent financial assurance bill drains millions more from an industry already paying $10 million annually for orphan wells.

“To use it as a political tool is simply wrong, and to use it going into an election as he’s doing is a fraud on the American public.”

Bob Boswell, CEO, Laramie Energy

Exposing California’s Pay-to-Play Campaign Financing

Start listening at 71:00 – Hour 2

Adam Andrzejewski, CEO of Open the Books, reveals that Governor Gavin Newsom solicited up to a thousand state vendors who then contributed $10.6 million to his campaign fund, representing 40% of his cash on hand. These corporations received $6.2 billion in California state contracts. The health care industry alone, including the Blues, United Healthcare, and Kaiser Permanente, gave nearly $700,000 while receiving $1.9 billion in state payments.

Open the Books fought for a decade to access California’s line-by-line spending records. When the state comptroller and courts refused, Andrzejewski’s team filed 50,000 Freedom of Information Act requests to post 6.2 million records from 201,000 state vendors receiving $87 billion. His organization takes no government money, even declining $300,000 in PPP loans during the pandemic to preserve their independence.

Andrzejewski traces his transparency crusade to watching his father run against George Ryan in 1970s Illinois. Ryan later served prison time for corruption. That experience instilled his conviction that posting every public dollar online fulfills the Constitution’s appropriations clause requiring regular accounts of all public money.

“Governor Newsom has pioneered the public financing of his campaign in California. The largest corporations in the state, they have massive state contracts. They recycle it back into Governor Newsom’s campaign fund to preserve the status quo.”

Adam Andrzejewski, CEO, Open the Books

Homeschooling as an Alternative to Government Schools

Start listening at 94:00 – Hour 2

Kim Ware, Outreach Director for Christian Home Educators of Colorado (CHEC), addresses parents awakening to ideological agendas in government-run schools. While many dedicated teachers exist, curriculum decisions pushed down from above tie their hands. CHEC has spent over 30 years fighting for family freedom and provides everything from introductory seminars to daily support.

Ware disputes the myth that homeschooling means isolation. Families can build thriving communities if they seek them out, and CHEC exists to facilitate those connections. Their October 15th introductory seminar in Castle Rock draws families from across Colorado seeking several hours of practical homeschooling guidance.

“We have been in the trenches for a really long time, fighting for family freedom and no government control, so that you can homeschool with confidence.”

Kim Ware, Outreach Director, CHEC