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Trump knocks New York's lack of fracking

04/14/16









Donald Trump speaks at a rally in Rochester during his campaign for the Republican nomination for president.
(Photo: MAX SCHULTE/@maxrocphoto/, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)


ALBANY — What could have been.

That was the message Thursday from Donald Trump, who lamented New York's decision to ban hydraulic fracturing in late 2014. He said while Pennsylvania had an economic boom from gas drilling, New York was left out.

New York agreed to a fracking ban in late 2014 after six years of deliberations, with Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his administration deciding that the risks outweighed any economic benefits.

The Republican presidential front runner knocked New York's stance.

"It’s a terrible situation, and New York is in deep trouble," Trump said on 1300-AM (WGDJ) in Albany. "As you know, we didn’t take advantage of our energy situation, and now it’s very late because the prices are so much lower.

"And you look at Pennsylvania, right along the (state) line, they have machines all over the place and people driving around. You know the expression, they are driving in their Cadillacs. And on the other side of the line, which is just an artificial line and people are literally in poverty. It’s just so incredible and we never took advantage."

All three Republican candidates have supported fracking, but John Kasich banned it in Ohio parks.

Trump's position is in stark contract to the fight on the Democratic side in advance of the parties' primaries Tuesday in New York. Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton have backed New York's ban, but their positions are different.

Sanders wants a nationwide ban on fracking. Clinton supports the states’ right to choose whether to allow it, saying that any approvals should come with strict regulations and disclosures.

In Binghamton earlier this week, Sanders contended voters beat back fracking in New York, and he warned against the environmental dangers from the drilling.

"I want to applaud you for standing up to Governor Cuomo and demanding that New York state ban fracking," Sanders said in a speech in Binghamton.

"What you have done is proof to the world that when people stand up and form a grassroots movement of environmentalists, public-health advocates, farmers, working families and religious leaders, there is nothing that we cannot accomplish."