This could have been done, what, seven years ago???
When did Bush find his b*lls?
As someone in the energy industry I would say seven years ago the indusrty was depressd with super low crude oil prices. It would have hurt more than help all the people in the industry and their families. Massive lay offs back then already.
Now the time is right.
It is a good move, but all part of the political theater both parties put on for elections. Screw these bastards on both sides of the aisle. We need to replace them all with leaders and not reactionaries only interested in their own political butts.
When oil was trading for $26 a barrel?
Do you think public would have supported it back then and helped push congress to lift their own ban to start the drilling off Florida and California?
Poor leadership on this issue, no excuses.
Yeah, it could have been done seven years ago, and it would have accomplished exactly what it accomplishes now, nothing. The only thing he’s done is deprive the Democrats of an excuse for not passing legislation to permit offshore drilling. For the last few months they’ve said, “why should we do something when Bush hasn’t?” Now they’ll have to find something else to hide behind.
And, it probably won’t be the “drilling won’t get us one more barrel in the next ten years” mantra. That one’s getting pretty shop-worn too. Look for some new and innovative excuse for their inaction.
Seven years ago the massive increase in the price of oil had not begun. Oil was still cheap.
It is a political ploy to put more pressure on Congress. They Democratic leadership in Congress keeps trying to point the finger at Bush for the high oil prices.
This is Bush's way of pointing back and making it clear that it is not his administration getting in the way of increased domestic oil exploration and production, and trying to force Congress to act.
Bush and the minority Republicans in Congress are trying to force a vote on the issue. They want the Democrats to go on record opposing increasing domestic oil production in an election year with soaring oil prices.
The Democrats, with the help of some Republicans that pander to the "environmental" lobby have created these high oil prices for us with their policies. They don't have a solution to the high prices, because the high prices are desirable to a large percentage of the liberal lobbying groups.
Therefore the Democrats don't really want to solve the problem, they just want to redirect the blame on someone else.