Obama's Drilling Deception- Dems Continue to Restrict New Energy Development (Updated)

In 2009 Democrats scrapped oil and gas leases in Utah, permanently banned drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), and nixed offshore drilling.

For decades Democrats have blocked efforts to responsibly develop this nation’s energy resources, transforming vast areas of opportunity into “The No Zone.”

A recent study examined the cost of these democratic policies of not drilling and developing domestic oil reserves. The SAIC Corporation discovered that democrats will cost the US $2.36 Trillion through 2029.

Earlier this month Obama’s Secretary of Energy announced a three-year offshore drilling ban so yesterday’s announcement that Obama would allow drilling in coastal waters came as a shock. But, despite the head fake, the Obama Administration is still hostile to oil development and nuclear power.

GOP.gov released this statement following Obama’s announcement that he is resetting the clock for energy exploration in US coastal waters.

Despite today’s announcement that the Obama Administration may allow some new OCS leases in 2012, it is clear that the Administration and Democrat Congress have and continue to promote public policies that restrict American energy exploration and raise gas prices.

  • Obama Moratorium: The Obama Administration plan would discard the 2010-2015 Outer Continental Shelf lease plan that had been set in motion by the previous Administration and delay the implementation of their new plan until 2012. This new two-year “Obama Moratorium” (2010-2012) would almost certainly delay any new exploration in areas previously under moratoria until after the president’s entire term. The president’s plan would then keep several areas off limits, including the Pacific coast from Mexico to Canada, the Atlantic coast north of Delaware, parts of Alaska, and the most promising areas of the Gulf of Mexico.Against the will of the American people and Congress, the Administration is essentially unilaterally reinstating the drilling ban for an additional two years, signaling to markets that supply will not expand, thus raising prices. Earlier this month, Natural Resources Ranking Member Doc Hastings (R-WA) and 87 other House Republicans sent a letter to Interior Secretary Salazar urging the Administration to implement the 2010-2015 leasing plan. The letter also outlined the cost of inaction-these years of delay will leave Americans unemployed, lose billions of dollars in revenues and create a greater dependence on unstable foreign sources of oil and gas that puts U.S. national security at risk.

    Stalling and blockading of new energy production endangers tens of thousands of existing jobs and prevents the creation of new jobs that would help lower the unemployment rate. Opening new areas to drilling would be a no-cost stimulus for the U.S. economy.

  • New Gas Tax: Making matters worse, the Democrat Congress is unfathomably considering a new gas tax. Press reports suggest that the Kerry-Lieberman-Graham climate bill under construction in the Senate may impose a “carbon tax” on motor fuels such as gasoline. This gas tax would target all consumers (especially rural Americans who travel further for work) and result in an increase in air travel, cargo costs, and significantly impact fuel-dependent industries such as trucking.

Michelle Malkin has more on Obama’s drilling deception.

UPDATE: Mark Levin weighs in on Obama’s sudden flip adding, “Today’s announcement won’t produce a drop of oil.”

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Jim Hoft is the founder and editor of The Gateway Pundit, one of the top conservative news outlets in America. Jim was awarded the Reed Irvine Accuracy in Media Award in 2013 and is the proud recipient of the Breitbart Award for Excellence in Online Journalism from the Americans for Prosperity Foundation in May 2016. In 2023, The Gateway Pundit received the Most Trusted Print Media Award at the American Liberty Awards.

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