From The Road
August 5, 2008 8:26 PM

Will Offshore Drilling Help at the Pump? Government Studies Say No

By
John Bentley
Topics
John McCain
(CBS)

From CBS News' John Bentley:

(HUNTINGTON, W.V.) – Despite the Department of Energy stating that offshore drilling would not have much impact on oil production for over 20 years, John McCain continued to make the argument tonight that the U.S. could see an impact on gas prices in a matter of months once domestic oil drilling begins.

"It can be done much more quickly than, frankly, the environmentalists are saying," McCain said on a telephone town hall for Pennsylvania voters. "I met with independent petroleum producers in California just the other day and they said within months we can see an increase, and within a very short period of time – a year to two years – we could see a more significant increase in our oil supply."

McCain first made that assertion last week at an oil field in Bakersfield, California, but neither he nor his campaign has been able to point to any literature or any oil executive that says domestic drilling would have any immediate impact. Offshore leasing wouldn't be able to begin until 2012 due to existing moratoria, and "access to the Pacific, Atlantic, and eastern Gulf regions would not have a significant impact on domestic crude oil and natural gas production or prices before 2030," according to the Department of Energy.

McCain has also been critical of Barack Obama's energy plan, which he say amounts to nothing more than inflating your tires, and his campaign even passed out tire gauges on the press plane last week to make the point. Tonight, though, he said that inflating your tires is a good idea. "Sen. Obama said a couple of days ago that we ought to all inflate our tires. I don't disagree with that," McCain said. "But I also don't think that's a way to become energy independent."

Add a Comment
by mattcat25 August 6, 2008 1:05 PM EDT
John the war monger McCain is now attempting to compel Republican Voters into believing that granting offshore oil and mineral rights to private multinational corporations will have an effect on the outrageous price that is currently being forced on the American People at the gas pump.

In reality, the Oil Companies have paid the Republican Party off, used low production of Oil, corrupt speculation on trading, and WAR MONGERING to allow the US Congress into giving away offshore oil leases. The Oil Companies are sitting on over 68 MILLION Acres already approved for Oil Production and the OIL COMPANIES aren%u2019t using these leases.

The Republicans in the US House of Representatives have consistently filibustered (blocked) proposed legislation that would force the Oil Companies to begin domestic Oil Production on already approved land, or risk losing the Oil and Mineral Lease Rights. They%u2019ve also dismissed a bill calling for domestic produced oil to stay in America and not to be sold on the World Market.

The Republicans want to give away American Owned Oil and Mineral Rights to Private Multinational Oil Corporations so that they will be able to sit on those leases (probably for 10 years) to then sell our oil on the World Market probably to the Peoples Republic of China.

Is this change we can believe in my friends???


Reply to this comment
by DCropp August 6, 2008 12:26 PM EDT
How can this be? McCain has worked for the government for 26 years and doesn''t even know what energy experts think.
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by shingles1 August 6, 2008 5:00 AM EDT
Kudos, Bentley!
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by allurfears August 6, 2008 12:46 AM EDT
Does McCain ever tell the truth any more? Has he personally lost his ability to "talk straight"? Or perhaps he has become a tool of his advisers and is too senile to know he is being used? Either way, McCain is acting worse than a typical politician.

McCain is treating the American people like he thinks we are fools. It seems he thinks we will not notice or care that he lies and contradicts himself. How sad.
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