Former President Donald Trump was widely criticized after he took credit for the popularity of the phrase, "Drill, baby, drill," prompting people to remind him of where the phrase really came from.
During a visit to the border city of Eagle Pass, Texas, Trump, who spoke to reporters alongside the state's GOP Governor Greg Abbott, said it's important to tap into energy sources like oil before making the following false claim:
"I used this expression and now everyone else is using it so I hate to use it but, "Drill, baby, drill."
You can hear what Trump said in the video below.
But Trump didn't invent the phrase.
"Drill, baby, drill!" emerged as a rallying cry during the 2008 Republican campaign and was initially introduced at the Republican National Convention by Michael Steele, the former leader of the Republican National Committee (RNC).
The slogan conveyed a strong endorsement for expanding petroleum and gas drilling as a means to augment the nation's energy resources. Its prominence grew further when Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin invoked it during that year's vice-presidential debate.
At the debate between Palin and eventual Vice President Joe Biden, Palin responded to Biden's criticisms of then-candidate John McCain's energy proposals, particularly his emphasis on petroleum drilling. At the time, she said the widespread support for "Drill, baby, drill," asserting that it echoed the sentiments expressed at rallies across the country, reflecting a strong desire for tapping into domestic sources of energy.
Additionally, under President Biden's leadership, domestic oil production and natural gas production reached historic peaks in December, as reported by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The agency noted that despite a decline in January due to production issues, it anticipates that production levels achieved in December will be maintained throughout the remainder of 2024.
Trump was swiftly criticized.
Trump has invoked the phrase multiple times.
In January, he said at a Las Vegas campaign rally that the solution to addressing inflation is to expand domestic oil production, asserting that "drill, baby, drill" will help bring inflation "way down." He also repeated the phrase in remarks before the National Rifle Association (NRA), saying that energy prices will go down "by 50 percent."
During a Fox News interview with Sean Hannity in December, Trump claimed that he will be a "dictator on day one" if he returns to the White House. One of the things he intends to do as dictator on day one is expand drilling, despite the fact that no other country has produced more oil and gas than the U.S. under Biden's leadership.
@WhiteHouse/X
