Thread: Then Again, I Never Said Bush Wasn't an Ass, Too

Bush urges Congress to lift offshore drilling ban
WASHINGTON - With gasoline topping $4 a gallon, President Bush urged Congress on Wednesday to lift its long-standing ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, saying the United States needs to increase its energy production. Democrats quickly rejected the idea.

"There is no excuse for delay," the president said in a statement in the Rose Garden. With the presidential election just months away, Bush made a pointed attack on Democrats, accusing them of obstructing his energy proposals and blaming them for high gasoline costs. His proposal echoed a call by Republican presidential candidate John McCain to open the Continental Shelf for exploration

"Families across the country are looking to Washington for a response," Bush said.

Congressional Democrats were quick to reject the push for lifting the drilling moratorium, saying oil companies already have 68 million acres offshore waters under lease that are not being developed.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Bush's proposals "another page from (an)... energy policy that was literally written by the oil industry — give away more public resources."

Sen. Barack Obama, the Democrats' presumptive presidential nominee, rejected lifting the drilling moratorium that has been supported by a succession of presidents for nearly two decades.

"This is not something that's going to give consumers short-term relief and it is not a long-term solution to our problems with fossil fuels generally and oil in particular," said Obama. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, lumping Bush with McCain, accused them of staging a "cynical campaign ploy" that won't help lower energy prices.

"Despite what President Bush, John McCain and their friends in the oil industry claim, we cannot drill our way out of this problem," Reid said. "The math is simple: America has just three percent of the world's oil reserves, but Americans use a quarter of its oil."

White House spokesman Tony Fratto retorted: "Anyone out there saying that something can be done overnight, or in a matter of months, to deal with high gasoline prices is trying to fool people. There is no tool in the toolbox out there that will lower gas prices overnight, or in weeks, or probably not even in months."

Bush said offshore drilling could yield up to 18 billion barrels of oil over time, although it would take years for production to start. Bush also said offshore drilling would take pressure off prices over time.

There are two prohibitions on offshore drilling, one imposed by Congress and another by executive order signed by Bush's father in 1990. Bush's brother, Jeb, fiercely opposed offshore drilling when he was governor of Florida. What the president now proposes would rescind his father's decision — but the president took the position that Congress has to act first and then he would follow behind.

Asked why Bush doesn't act first and lift the ban, Keith Hennessey, the director of the president's economic council, said: "He thinks that probably the most productive way to work with this Congress is to try to do it in tandem."

Before Bush spoke, the House Appropriations Committee postponed a vote it had scheduled for Wednesday on legislation doing the opposite of what the president asked — extending Congress' ban on offshore drilling. Lawmakers said they wanted to focus on a disaster relief bill for the battered Midwest.

Bush also proposed opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling, lifting restrictions on oil shale leasing in the Green River Basin of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming and easing the regulatory process to expand oil refining capacity.

With Americans deeply pessimistic about the economy, Bush tried to put on the onus on Congress. He acknowledged that his new proposals would take years to have a full effect, hardly the type of news that will help drivers at the gas stations now. The White House says no quick fix exists.
Still, Bush said Congress was obstructing progress — and directly contributing to consumers' pain at the pump.

"I know the Democratic leaders have opposed some of these policies in the past," Bush said. "Now that their opposition has helped drive gas prices to record levels, I ask them to reconsider their positions."


Bush said that if congressional leaders head home for their July 4 recess without taking action, they will need to explain why "$4 a gallon gasoline is not enough incentive for them to act. And Americans will rightly ask how high gas prices have to rise before the Democratic-controlled Congress will do something about it."

Bush said restrictions on offshore drilling have become "outdated and counterproductive."

In a nod to the environmental arguments against drilling, Bush said technology has come a long way. These days, he said, oil exploration off the coastline can be done in a way that "is out of sight, protects coral reefs and habitats, and protects against oil spills."

Congressional Democrats, joined by some GOP lawmakers from coastal states, have opposed lifting the prohibition that has barred energy companies from waters along both the East and West coasts and in the eastern Gulf of Mexico for 27 years.

On Monday, McCain made lifting the federal ban on offshore oil and gas development a key part of his energy plan. McCain said states should be allowed to pursue energy exploration in waters near their coasts and get some of the royalty revenue.
Obama retorted that the Arizona senator had flip-flopped on that issue.

So many things to point out here.

Bush is supposed to be the leader of the free world. Who gives a shit about that, I don't. But he was elected to be the President of the United States, to set forth his agenda and push to make it happen. Since he has it within his power to eliminated the Executive Orders banning offshore drilling, why is he waiting for Congress to pass a law? All he has to do on his end is write the EO, bask in the sudden upswing of public approval, and then tell both sides in Congress to get off their dead asses, the American people are tired of waiting for this.

But Bush is a liberal, and limp dicks don't a leader make. Leaders need some way to point the path to follow.

There's the morons that said "it won't help with the current problem, it will take years to see oil from those wells, etc etc etc". No fucking shit. So we should do nothing for eight MORE years and see the oil magically spring out of the ground then? No, dumb asses, we have to work today to enjoy the hamburger on Tuesday. Work first, then hamburger. No work, no burger. You're wimpy, you can't understand. So get out of political office, you're in the god damned way.

Obama's now claiming McCain's flip-flopped on this issue. So the fuck what? Does that mean Obama is categorically opposed to issuing new drilling permits in the United States coastal waters? Or is it that McCain's now on his side and Obama doesn't want to be tainted? Or what? If we have the oil here, let's use it.

Let's see, there's the dipstick, Hairy Reid, that said the US had only 3% of world oil. Well, we've got somewhere in the neighborhood of 1.5 trillion barrels available, that means according to Senator Dipstick that there's 50 trillion barrels of oil available out there. So why's it cost so much? Must be because a bunch of dictators and camel jockeys are jerking us around. Why does Senator Dipstick want his constituency to get jerked around by tinpots and barbarians? More importantly, why are so many Democrat voters supportive of Senator Dipstick's position? Are they stupid?

Here's a stupid comment, by a stupid woman,

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Bush's proposals "another page from (an)... energy policy that was literally written by the oil industry — give away more public resources."

Can that dumb broad explain how the public is served by leaving valuable goo in the ground so no one can use it? How much revenue does the government recieve for resources not extracted?

These people got any idea that a positive proactive approach to aggressively establishing American energy independence would positively affect consumer and investor confidence and cause a resurgence in the economy as people begin to believe that we're not doomed to $10 gas by Christmas after all? Not to mention the upswing caused by increased employment in the energy sectors as the increased exploration demands more - skilled and well paid - engineers and technicians.

When did America give up? Why do we keep sending these losers back to Congress and the White House, when they're nothing but quitters and lobbyists' tools?

Stop electing liberals, people. This is what you deserve when you do that.

So many democrats are against this it makes me wonder who's actually in bed with " big oil ". Leave it in the ground, price goes up and stays up. I thought they were for the little guy.

Originally Posted by Six

So many democrats are against this it makes me wonder who's actually in bed with " big oil ". Leave it in the ground, price goes up and stays up. I thought they were for the little guy.

The thing is, democrats ARE NOT AGAINST THIS. Look at the latest Rasmussen poll, more democrats than not want us to start drilling.

Rasmussen Reports�: The most comprehensive public opinion coverage ever provided for a presidential election.

This is truly a non-partisan issue and for some reason populist Obama is on the unpopular side of the issue. Even worse for Obama, he has dug himself a hole by immediately calling McCain a flip flopper. Now there is no way Obama can change course without looking like a bigger ass than he already is?

Originally Posted by Libre

The thing is, democrats ARE NOT AGAINST THIS. Look at the latest Rasmussen poll, more democrats than not want us to start drilling.

"Democrats" with a capital D, meaning the clods elected to dish themselves slop from the trough....er elected to represent the wishes of their constituency, are opposed to actually using the oil we have in the ground.

IMO I believe the oil companies don't want to drill in the United States because we don't have the sense to puree our lawyers and use them for fuel first.

Any accident that happens, no matter how small, is going to cost them billions if the lawyers get their way.

Never forget that too many lawyers is a problem unique to the United States, and its one the lawyers won't allow us to resolve.

Another great post (OP) FFA.

Originally Posted by Freedom for All

"Democrats" with a capital D, meaning the clods elected to dish themselves slop from the trough....er elected to represent the wishes of their constituency, are opposed to actually using the oil we have in the ground.

It will be interesting to see if the constituency votes party line, or their own beliefs. The thing is McCain is not that much different so he does become a viable choice for democrats.

IMO I believe the oil companies don't want to drill in the United States because we don't have the sense to puree our lawyers and use them for fuel first.

Not to mention the threat of nationalization.