Scraping the Bottom of the Barrel: McCain v. Obama on Offshore Oil Drilling & ANWR
Again, many TreeHugger readers have probably already formed opinions about which of these candidates they back. (Or a third-party candidate, but since realistically it will be one these two men who is the next US president I’m consciously confining the discussion to Obama and McCain; please don’t take this as advocating that two political parties is the best way to run a country.) For those people who haven’t yet made up their minds, I hope this proves useful.
photo: McCain-Palin 2008
John McCain on Offshore Oil Drilling & ANWR
As the screams of “drill, baby, drill†during John McCain’s nomination acceptance speech were met with grins from the man of the moment there’s little mistaking where he stands on the issue. One look as the McCain-Palin campaign literature confirms that expanding domestic oil and natural gas production will head up his energy policy, at least in the short-term. This is increasingly presented as the best route towards energy independence in the United States.On Domestic Oil Drilling
The current federal moratorium on drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf stands in the way of energy exploration and production. John McCain believes it is time for the federal government to lift these restrictions and to put our own reserves to use. There is no easier or more direct way to prove to the world that we will no longer be subject to the whims of others than to expand our production capabilities. We have trillions of dollars worth of oil and gas reserves in the U.S. at a time we are exporting hundreds of billions of dollars a year overseas to buy energy. (McCain-Palin 2008)
In a Republican primary debate at the end of 2007, McCain even went so far as to say that the United States could be oil independent within the next decade:
We have got to achieve energy independence, oil independence in this nation. I will make it a Manhattan Project, and we will in five years become oil independent.
Viewed in a conciliatory light this would be an overly optimistic position to take. According to the a Pentagon report published in 2004, the earliest the US could realistically be free from imported oil would be 2040. (On the Issues)
Offshore Drilling Viewed More Favorably Than Before
It's useful to note that McCain’s position on offshore oil drilling underwent a sea change between May and June of this year.
On May 29th he said of offshore oil drilling, “... I also have to tell you that with those resources, which would take years to develop, it would only postpone or temporarily relieve our dependency on fossil fuels.â€
However, by June 16th he had moved to this position, “Providing additional incentives for states to permit exploration off their coasts would be very helpful in the short term in resolving our energy crisis.â€
ANWR: McCain & Palin Differ
Though John McCain has expressed opposition to opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling, Sarah Palin has on numerous occasions expressed vociferous support for oil drilling in ANWR:
Pres. Bush is right. Across the nation, communities are feeling the pinch of high energy costs. It is absurd that we are borrowing from one foreign country to buy oil from another. It is a threat to our national security and economic well-being. It is well past time for America to develop our own supplies. (Alaska Governor’s Office press release, April 29, 2008)
It remains to be seen whether Palin will be able to influence McCain’s position or whether her’s will have to be subdued.
