A historic presidential visit to the City of Odessa in the heart of the Permian Basin oil fields on Wednesday saw an outpouring of support for President Donald Trump, with the president signaling his administration’s support for the oil and gas industry.
The trip started with a campaign fundraiser at the Odessa Downtown Convention Center, where the president delivered a powerful speech before a sold-out luncheon attended by more than 400 supporters.
Accompanying the president was Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, and former governor and Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, who all spoke before the president was introduced by Odessa energy industry leader Bubba Saulsbury.
Also traveling with the president were several cabinet officials and members of Congress, including Col. August Pfluger and other Texas congressional candidate nominees.
Pfluger, who was recently elected to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Midland) for the 11th Congressional District, emphasized the importance of American energy independence to national security during his campaign.
“I personally thanked President Donald J. Trump for his efforts and pledged to stand with him in the fight for energy security and independence,” Pfluger wrote in a statement on his campaign Facebook page.
The campaign fundraiser was ultimately a huge success for the campaign, reportedly raising over $7 million for the president’s re-election efforts, and served as a clear sign that the industry that powers American stands with the president.
After the fundraiser, the president traveled via motorcade to an oil rig owned by Double Eagle Energy Company, where he was given a tour of the operation and gave a nationally televised speech.
The president emphasized the importance of protecting the energy industry and the vital role it plays in establishing America’s status as a world leader and ensuring our national security status.
“Thanks to the hard-working citizens like you, the United States of America is now the No. 1 energy superpower anywhere in the world,” Trump told the audience.
“We are here to send a clear message to the radicals and extremists trying to shut down your industry and make American subservient to foreign producers: that will not happen to this nation again,” Trump said, pointing to the efforts of Democrat leaders to undermine the energy industry.
The president went on to draw a clear distinction between his administration’s record supporting American energy production and the Democrat Party’s policies, such as the infamous “Green New Deal,” which would cripple American energy production.
Trump also touched on the ongoing battle against the Chinese coronavirus and highlighted the efforts the administration took to ensure vitally needed medical supplies were made available to Texas hospitals.
Trump then held a signing ceremony where he signed a number of federal permits for various oil and gas producing companies.
Thousands of West Texans lined the streets as the presidential motorcade made its way back to Air Force One at the Midland International Airport, where the president boarded and returned to Washington.
According to several lifelong Odessa residents, this visit may have been the first time a sitting president visited the City of Odessa, though former U.S. Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush lived in both Odessa and Midland years before gaining elected office.
