[central_va]

The USA's demand controls the market price. We use 12 million bbl a day in imported oil.

Look, I am all for tariffs to protect industry so if you want to propose a floating tariff to keep oil at $40.00 a bbl ( gas around $2.00/gal) I am all for it. The tariff would go away once oil went above $40.00. But you say the word tariff around here and it is like throwing Holy water on a vampire.

[thackney]

We use 12 million bbl a day in imported oil.

Our total imports are down around 9~9.5 mmbpd, but our net imports is 4.5~5 mmbpd.

http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=MTTIMUS2&f=M

http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=MTTNTUS2&f=M

However, if prices continue to stay low, we will be importing more.

[Alberta's Child]

The scenario you describe is pretty much what is happening in Canada. The government is considering a negative interest rate environment jus got prop up their industries, while the citizens up there find it increasingly difficult to afford their own resources. That’s a Third World country in the making.

[thackney]

But you say the word tariff around here and it is like throwing Holy water on a vampire.

Because you want to penalize the refining and petrochemcial industries to help the oil production industry.

Conservatives don't ask the government to pick winners and losers while promoting higher taxes and higher cost products for domestic production. You create advantages to refining and petrochemical in other countries. We lose jobs and capital investment.