\n President Donald Trump has complained extensively about environmental harms to whales posed by offshore wind farms<\/a>, saying wind turbines are \u201cdriving them crazy\u201d and leading to whale deaths up and down the Atlantic coast. Federal scientists have found no link<\/a> between wind farms and whale deaths.\n <\/p>\n \n The Rice\u2019s whale is the species closest to the brink of extinction in the Gulf, but other endangered and threatened species live there too, including sea turtles, manatees and whooping cranes.\n <\/p>\n \n The rationale provided by Hegseth and other Trump officials for the exemption was that these lawsuits and environmental regulations to protect endangered species make it less certain for oil and gas companies to plan and execute their drilling operations \u2014 therefore hurting US national security.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cThese legal battles waste critical government resources and make it impossible for energy companies to plan and invest in new projects,\u201d Hegseth said. \u201cWhen development in the Gulf is chilled, we are prevented from producing the energy we need as a country.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Hegseth tied that to US military preparedness, citing the ongoing war with Iran that was started by the Trump administration. That conflict has caused cascading global energy shocks as Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz and effectively cut off a fifth of the world\u2019s oil supply, and Middle Eastern countries have bombed each other\u2019s oil and gas infrastructure. Trump administration officials have argued the US needs to produce more oil to stabilize the global situation, even as energy analysts have pointed out that drilling for more oil here can\u2019t alone solve that problem<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cDisruptions to Gulf oil production doesn\u2019t just hurt us; it benefits our adversaries,\u201d Hegseth said. \u201cWe cannot allow our own rules to weaken our standing and strengthen those who wish to harm us. For these reasons, exemption from the Endangered Species Act in the Gulf is not just a good idea, it is a critical matter of national security.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n The American Petroleum Institute did not lobby the administration for the exemption and is deferring to the Trump administration on national security matters, an industry source said.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cOur industry has a long track record of protecting wildlife while developing offshore energy responsibly,\u201d API spokesperson Andrea Woods said in a statement.\n <\/p>\n \n Environmental groups said they would sue to challenge the administration\u2019s action, calling it illegal.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cThere\u2019s no rational way to claim that national security interests require vaporizing the Endangered Species Act in the Gulf of Mexico,\u201d said Drew Caputo, vice president of litigation at environmental group Earthjustice. Caputo argued that current oil and gas development isn\u2019t impacted by Endangered Species Act regulations; the law hasn\u2019t been used as a reason to deny oil and gas permits in the Gulf.\n <\/p>\n![\"Interior](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/ap26085580056417.jpg\")
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