THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Volume X, Issue # 223, September 8, 2008
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Government Committed to & Acting in Accord with Conservative Principles
Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity
DEMOCRATIC PARTY POLITICIANS & THEIR DECEPTIONS ABOUT OIL
By Alan Caruba
THE 2008 ELECTION & U.S. ENERGY POLICY: THE HIGHLY PROBABLE CONSEQUENCES OF ELECTING A DEMOCRATIC
PRESIDENT & DEMOCRATIC MAJORITIES IN THE TWO HOUSES OF CONGRESS -- HOW DEMOCRATS IN CONTROL OF THE
PRESIDENCY & THE CONGRESS WOULD VERY LIKELY ADDRESS AMERICA'S ENERGY NEEDS: IMPEDE U.S. DOMESTIC
OIL & NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION; CAUSE GASOLINE, DIESEL FUEL, & NATURAL GAS PRICES TO SKYROCKET; PUSH
PRODUCTION OF ETHANOL & OTHER BIOFUELS & THEREBY CAUSE FOOD PRICES TO ESCALATE; & WASTE THE TAXPAYERS'
MONEY SUBSIDIZING LOW ENERGY PRODUCERS SUCH AS WIND & SOLAR POWER -- THE STRONG INCLINATION OF
DEMOCRATS TO MAINTAIN THEIR POLITICAL ALLIANCE WITH THE ENVIRONMENTALISTS, ADOPT & IMPLEMENT ENERGY
POLICIES FAVORED BY THE ENVIRONMENTALISTS, & THEREBY BRING ECONOMIC RUIN TO THE AMERICAN NATION
FULL STORY:
Lost amidst the many speeches delivered at the Democratic National Convention was one by U.S. Senator Harry Reid of
Nevada. He is the U.S. Senate Majority Leader and Democratic Party Floor Leader and, as such, controls the legislative
agenda in that upper house of Congress. Harry Reid hates oil, but then, so does the Democratic Party.
The reason this nation is held hostage to other oil producing nations is that the Democrats, going back to U.S. President
James Earl ("Jimmy") Carter, have waged war on the American oil industry. This is especially important, insofar as nations
ruled by monarchies, corrupt oligarchies, and dictatorial Communist governments control 75% of the world’s oil.
Seldon B. Graham, Jr., the author of Why Your Gasoline Prices Are High, a petroleum engineer and attorney,
recently noted:
“It is no secret that Democrats are for renewable energy
and are against U.S. oil and drilling for U.S. oil. But,
Democrats conceal the fact that they have held this
position for three decades. Democrats are not about to
change their thirty year-old energy agenda.”
“Thirty years ago, Democrats selected ethanol as their
renewable energy of choice. Their ethanol agenda has
proven to be a total disaster. But, it is a well hidden
disaster. Democrats continue to push ethanol as the
renewable biofuel which will eliminate our dependence
on foreign oil and our necessity to drill for US oil. It is
surprising that Democrats have been able to fool so
many Americans about ethanol for so long.”
Not only has the Democratic Party left us vulnerable to other oil producing nations, but its ethanol agenda has created vast
imbalances in the world’s food supplies, as corn is diverted from domestic use and as a factor in our agricultural exports.
If you had heard Senator Reid, a man who has said, “Oil makes us sick. Coal makes us sick. Global warming makes us sick,”
you would have heard him attack oil as the reason for all the woes of the world. “President Carter warned us about it in the
1970s when he proposed real solutions — conservation, fuel efficiency, and alternative fuels — to what he correctly named
the ‘moral equivalent of war.’” President Carter -- whose weak response to the taking of U.S. diplomats as hostages by the
Iranian Revolution of 1979 led to the election of Ronald Wilson Reagan as President in 1980 -- was wrong then, and Carter
is wrong now.
Socalled “clean energy,” wind and solar, provides barely one percent of the nation’s need for electrical power. It does so
only because of the massive subsidies, like those for ethanol, the U.S. national government provides, but Harry Reid could
not resist characterizing the Bush administration as rife with “oil industry cronies.”
He made no reference, however, to the Democrats' agriculture cronies. As Seldon Graham points out, “Democrats gave
ethanol a 40¢ per gallon government subsidy in 1978. In 1980, Democrats gave insured loans to build ethanol plants.”
“Currently, the government subsidy is 51¢ per gallon through
2010. Last year, the government subsidy payout for ethanol
was $3.3 Billion. The government subsidy will increase to
$18.4 Billion in 2022. Ethanol is causing severe economic harm
to the American economy, not even considering the increase
in the cost of all food products made from corn.”
This is occurring as Americans struggle to find the money to fill their gas tanks, and many worry about the price of oil to
heat their homes this Winter.
Senator Reid praised the Democratic Party candidate for President, Barack Hussein Obama, Jr., saying, “He articulates a
vision of energy independence that is comprehensive and based on sound science and sound policies….” This is a lie.
No nation on Earth can be or is energy independent. Even Iran has to import gasoline because it lacks the refining
capacity to provide it, despite its own vast oil reserves.
America, too, needs more refineries, but the threat of “windfall profits” taxes has kept our oil industry from making the vast,
billion-dollar investments necessary to build them, and a matrix of environmental regulations has made it even more costly
and difficult.
The Democrats and their choice for the next President of the U.S.A. have resisted permitting our own oil companies to drill
for millions of barrels of known oil reserves in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and have resisted lifting
restrictions on exploration and extraction of oil on 85% of our nation’s continental shelf.
Instead, Senator Reid called for more wind, geothermal, and solar power generation. He called for “smarter vehicles, more
efficient and accessible mass transit, energy-efficient building codes….” These are the illusions the Democrats offer,
illusions in contrast to realistic, pragmatic, and vitally needed responses to our need for increased oil and natural gas
production.
The Democrats offer the lie that such production would not impact the current price of oil or our needs for “ten years.” The
mere mention of off-shore production caused the price of oil to drop, when offered by Senator John Sidney McCain. The
end of the ethanol debacle would lower the price of gas at the pump. Drill now. Drill here. That’s the answer.
LINKS TO RELATED TOPICS:
American Politics & Political Competition:
Elections, PACs, & Political Parties
American Government & the U.S. Presidency:
Presidential Politics & National Leadership
The American Political System:
Politics & Government in the U.S.A.
Political Environmentalism Versus Human Progress & Prosperity:
Policy Issues Relating to Energy, Environment,
& Natural Resources
Political Economy -- Philosophies, Systems, & Public Policies:
Government, the Economy, & Economic Prosperity
Alan Caruba is a veteran business and science writer, a Public Relations Counselor, and Founder of the National Anxiety Center, a
clearinghouse for information about media-driven scare campaigns. Caruba writes a weekly commentary, "Warning Signs," posted
on the Internet website of the National Anxiety Center, which is located at
www.anxietycenter.com.
Caruba has a daily blog at http://factsnotfantasy.blogspot.com.
Caruba’s most recent book, Right Answers: Separating Fact from Fantasy, has been published by Merril Press. Books
previously authored by Caruba include A Pocket Guide to Militant Islam, The United Nations Versus the United States: The
UN's Plan to Control Planet Earth, and America: A Nation Without Borders -- A Pocket Guide to Immigration Issues.
© Alan Caruba 2008
Published with Permission of Alan Caruba
ACaruba@AOL.Com
Return to Top of Page
Go to the WEBSITE INDEX
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Public Issues & Political Controversies
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
Most Recent Articles
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Volume X, 2008
Return to Beginning of
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA,
Subject Matter Highlights
Return to POLITICAL EDUCATION Homepage
CONTACT & ACCESS INFORMATION
This is not a commercial website. The sole purpose of the website is to share with interested persons information regarding civics,
civic and social education, political science, government, politics, law, constitutional law and history, public policy, and political
philosophy and history, as well as current and recent political developments, public issues, and political controversies.
POLITICAL EDUCATION, CONSERVATIVE ANALYSIS
POLITICS, SOCIETY, & THE SOVEREIGN STATE
Website of Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr.
Government, Politics, Public Policy, Legal Issues, Constitutional Law, Government & the Economy, Cultural Values, Foreign Affairs,
International Relations, Military Defense & National Security, Geopolitics, Terrorism & Homeland Security, American National Interests,
Political Systems & Processes, Political Institutions, Political Ideologies, & Political Philosophy
INDEX FOR THE ENTIRE WEBSITE
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
THE PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE, USA
An Online Journal of Political Commentary & Analysis
Dr. Almon Leroy Way, Jr., Editor
Conservative & Free-Market Analysis of Government, Politics & Public Policy, Covering Political, Legal, Constitutional, Economic,
Cultural, Military, International, Strategic, & Geopolitical Issues
Conservative Government Ensures a Nation's Strength, Progress, & Prosperity