The United States Congress is a political reservoir overflowing with officials who love to hear themselves talk and pump out noise on social media. To combat this hot air excess, the Senate would benefit from a humble leader who built an empire pumping the United States to power and prosperity via an American energy renaissance.
Good news: Harold Hamm, the patriotic natural resources pioneer is reportedly willing to serve as a U.S. Senator from Oklahoma when Markwayne Mullin is confirmed to serve as the next Homeland Security chief. Gov. Kevin Stitt (R., Okla.) will select a temporary replacement, and that appointee can only occupy the seat until this November’s election winner is certified.
When you look up “self-made” in the thesaurus, Harold Hamm should be listed as a synonym. His biography defines humble roots: he was born to sharecroppers in Oklahoma, one of thirteen children, and he lived on a farm with no running water. He admits he had “no opportunity to go to college” and “no ties whatsoever to the oil industry.” But he recognized an opportunity to provide for his family: “the oilfield service business was my entry, my chance to learn.” Hamm started “at the bottom cleaning tanks” and eventually rose to become founder and executive chairman of industry behemoth Continental Resources.
Whereas President Donald Trump is the chief executive and architect of American Energy Dominance, Hamm, a top supporter of our 45th and 47th commander-in-chief, is the godfather of modern American energy independence. In 2011, Hamm predicted to the Wall Street Journal that “with the right set of policies, the United States could be completely energy independent…we can be the Saudi Arabia of oil and natural gas of the 21st century.” Bingo!
Hamm is one of the famed “wildcatters who sparked the shale revolution.” He proclaims horizontal drilling to be a “miracle” and a “top ten technological achievement of the twentieth century” that “transformed everything connected to energy.” This innovative resource-recovery technique dramatically increased domestic production and led Hamm to champion ending the oil-export ban during the Obama administration. Over the course of just fifteen months, Hamm reportedly made nearly three dozen trips to Washington to win that fight and “return America to the status of an energy superpower.”
That victory, coupled with President Trump’s election wins and commitment to producing an abundance of clean, affordable, reliable, made-in-the-USA energy, has spawned historic benefits for America’s national interest. As Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, my former boss, likes to say: President Trump’s Energy Dominance agenda is the foundation of American prosperity, affordability for American families, and unrivaled national security.
We all felt the economic pain of the Biden years’ cultish commitment to policies that would have permanently crippled America had they been allowed to continue. The worship of eco-radical-preferred “intermittent” sources like wind were blowing us towards disaster. If you look up “intermittent” in the dictionary, you’ll see it’s a tuxedoed term for “not continuous or steady.” Meaning President Kamala Harris would literally have made America reliant — on unreliable energy sources!
President Trump and his all-star team — such as Secretary Doug Burgum, Secretary Chris Wright, Administrator Lee Zeldin, Stephen Miller, and the National Energy Dominance Council’s Jarrod Agen — have been busy securing big-time Energy Dominance victories by further legalizing and encouraging domestic production of baseload power. But America faces challenges in the year ahead that require the greatest possible expertise in policymaking.
Very few people in the world instinctively know energy like Harold Hamm. Which is why he would be a valuable addition to the Senate, even for a short period of service. He could work with colleagues to help communicate the direct relationship between American energy production and relief from the affordability crisis ushered in by Joe Biden’s failed agenda. And he could tutor any open-minded Democrats on the continued need to expand baseload power.
Perhaps most importantly, Hamm can remind lawmakers of lessons he describes in his memoir about dreaming big and questioning bureaucratic conventional wisdom. As Hamm writes: “back in 2005, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said there were 151 million barrels of recoverable oil in the Bakken.” Washington took that estimate as gospel, but Hamm didn’t buy the outdated data. In 2008, North Dakota reevaluated and discovered there were at least 3–4 billion barrels!
That lesson remains hyper-relevant today. We must further the Trump administration’s agenda of “Map, Baby, Mapping!” so we can grow our economy by “Drill, Baby, Drilling!” and “Mine, Baby, Mining!” for the critical minerals needed to fuel American prosperity and security.
Thanks to Hamm and his contemporaries’ leadership, exploration, and advocacy, America has benefited from millions of good-paying jobs and trillions of dollars in economic growth. Hamm is also a renowned philanthropist in education, medical research such as the diabetes center at the University of Oklahoma, and community development.
According to Reese Gorman, the former Oklahoma-based journalist, there are other names under consideration: businessman Dustin Hillary, Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor, and former Trump national security official Alex Gray. I have friends who rave about Gray. I don’t personally know Hamm nor the others but imagine they are good folks and capable leaders. Ultimately, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt will select a temporary caretaker.
Not choosing Hamm would be like the head coach of the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder deciding to sit superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for the playoffs. Sure, you could try to justify it by saying the other players are professionals too. But why would you keep a generational talent on the bench in political crunch time?
Rob Lockwood is an executive communications coach, media strategist, and former adviser to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
