[ad_1]
It rings in pipes and hums in generators. We are located high in the hills of Lycoming County, showing us one of the many gas plants found in this part of Pennsylvania.
TV 2 in the United States: Tom Rune Orset and Hilde Gran follow the electoral campaign in the United States. Photo: TV 2
– These hills are full of gasoline. It’s taken from this plant and more is pumped into pipes and shipped to market, says Matt Henderson.
He has worked in the oil and gas industry here in Pennsylvania for 13 years.
“Pennsylvania is the second largest producer of oil and gas in the United States after Texas,” Henderson told TV 2.
– Just this little plant here produces enough gas to heat 1000 homes for a year.
– Important for the economy
The area that TV 2 is located in is on the edge of the Marcellus shale field and therefore pipelines, drilling rigs and gas installations are not uncommon in these areas.
The reason is fracking, the controversial method of extracting oil and gas from shale formations in the ground.
LARGE MANUFACTURER: Pipelines are not uncommon in rural Pennsylvania. Photo: Tom Rune Orset / TV 2
The industry has been important in terms of income and jobs in parts of Pennsylvania that have not otherwise attracted as much investment. It is true that the industry has been characterized for several years by poor financial management, overproduction and falling gas prices, in addition to the corona pandemic that has led to lower demand. Henderson believes that the industry has nonetheless had a stabilizing effect in this region.
– The gas industry has helped stabilize this region during the pandemic. For example, it leads outside visitors who have stayed in hotels here and have helped them stay afloat these days, he says.
– The gas industry has boosted the economy here in times of recession and it meant a lot in terms of jobs. It has created opportunities for people in this area.
I think Biden will ban fracking
The issue of fracking has become a hot topic in the US election campaign. In particular, President Trump has been eager to speak on the issue in a bid to win the votes of the white working class in rural Pennsylvania. In 2016, she secured important tip status and her 20 voters with just 44,000 more votes than opposition candidate Hillary Clinton.
President Donald Trump accuses Joe Biden of wanting to ban fracking, which the Democrat stubbornly denies. But Bidens’ sometimes vague wording on the issue has given Trump an opportunity that he uses for all his worth when he runs an election campaign in Pennsylvania.
“I think Biden wants to phase out the oil and gas industry, and under Obama we had a lot more bureaucracy and regulations than we have had under President Trump,” Henderson said.
But has Biden said he doesn’t want to ban fracking?
– He says it now, but I think he really wants it. I think you have come to realize that the gas industry is important to Pennsylvania. That’s why he has changed his message to attract voters, Henderson believes.
Matt Henderson has worked in the Pennsylvania oil and gas industry for 13 years. Photo: Tom Rune Orset / TV 2
Your vote will also go to Trump this time.
– My vote will go to the incumbent president. He is a businessman and understands that regulations and bureaucracy can kill investments.
Conservative values
Henderson is not alone in supporting Trump in this part of Pennsylvania. From Lycoming County, TV 2 crosses into neighboring Tioga County. In both places, Trump received more than 70 percent of the vote in 2016.
Along the road are spacious single-family houses with green lawns in front. Signs with “Biden Harris” are everywhere, but “Trump Pence” signs are an overwhelming majority.
Conservative values and strong faith in God make this one of the central areas for Republicans in Pennsylvania.
IMPORTANT INDUSTRY: Erick Coolidge is the county commissioner for Republicans in Tioga County. Photo: Tom Rune Orset / TV 2
In the city of Wellsboro, we meet Erick Coolidge, the county commissioner for Republicans in Tioga. He would like to show us what fracking has meant to the county.
The first place it takes us is to the new alarm center in the area.
– We were able to build this thanks to income from the oil and gas industry, he says and proudly shows us around.
– This center also serves several of the neighboring counties.
Believe Trump supports them
Then the journey continues to the large reservoirs of water and sand used in the fracking process. There we meet truck driver Jeff, who is in the process of filling sand that will then be transported to a drilling rig.
SAND DEPOSIT: Large silos are used to store the sand used in the fracking process. Photo: Tom Rune Orset / TV 2
– What are the important issues for you in this election?
– I work in the fracking industry, transporting the sand used for fracking. Since Trump is in favor of fracking, I will vote for him, Jeff says firmly.
– There are thousands of jobs in the fracking and drilling industry, so it is important that Trump is re-elected so that we can stay afloat.
Worried about the economy
According to opinion polls, the economy is the most important issue for Americans in this election. After a period of very low unemployment, the arrows went up as the corona pandemic hit the country and several states had to shut down. At worst, in April unemployment reached 14.7 percent. In September, the unemployment rate was 7.9 percent. 10.7 million more Americans are unemployed now than before the pandemic.
GAS: Beneath the Lycoming Hills are large deposits of shale gas. Photo: Tom Rune Orset / TV 2
Trump has promised favorable conditions for the oil and gas industry, new tax cuts and 10 million jobs in 10 months if he is reelected.
What he doesn’t talk about as much, however, are the promises he made in 2016 that he hasn’t been able to keep. For example, he promised a large and comprehensive infrastructure package, more industrial jobs, and saving the coal industry. They are promises that were not kept.
Yet Trump has always done well in opinion polls on who voters trust economically.
Several of those TV 2 gatherings along Main Street in Wellsboro mention the economy as the most important issue for them in this election campaign.
– Who do you think is better to rebuild the economy after the pandemic?
– Trump. The economy and handling of the corona pandemic are big issues to me, and I think the current president handles both well, Jeff says.
– None of them are particularly good, but they are the only ones we have at the moment, says Micaela, who has doubted that her voice goes to Joe Biden.
– You probably don’t know many of Biden’s voters here in Wellsboro, he says cheerfully.
In the United States: Matt Henderson shows TV 2 around a gas plant in Pennsylvania. Photo: Tom Rune Orset / TV 2
Believe Trump is the best at business
Four years with Trump have been good for business, Matt thinks. Therefore, he believes that the president is the right person to rebuild the economy again after the pandemic.
– He believes that he has been much friendlier to our industry when it comes to understanding how important we are financially.
– I will vote for the current President Trump because I think he is in favor of business and because of his experience as a businessman.
