Obama agrees with the GOP. So what’s the holdup?
One interesting point made in President Obama’s State of the Union speech last week was the idea of opening up more offshore drilling – something Republicans have advocated doing for years but a task where Democrats and environmentalists (sorry, I repeat myself) continually throw up roadblocks to progress.
Recently inaugurated Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell noted in his SotU response that:
Here in Virginia, we have the opportunity to be the first state on the East Coast to explore for and produce oil and natural gas offshore.
But this Administration’s policies are delaying offshore production, hindering nuclear energy expansion, and seeking to impose job-killing cap and trade energy taxes.
Apparently there’s a disconnect between what Obama is now saying and what the Department of the Interior (led by its secretary Ken Salazar) is actually doing – apparently Interior wants to delay a planned lease sale. Writing on the Energy Tomorrow blog, my friend Jane Van Ryan notes:
There’s a lot to like about the planned Virginia offshore lease sale. It’s believed the leasing area could contain 130 million barrels of oil and 1.14 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
If energy companies are allowed to develop this offshore energy, they could create about 2,600 jobs, make about $8 billion in capital investments and generate $271 million in Virginia state and local taxes, providing a huge boost to the Commonwealth’s economy. (Emphasis in original.)
Needless to say, given its location, the Eastern Shore of Virginia could gain much-needed economic development if energy companies are allowed to set up shop and explore off the coast. They may not get all of the jobs and investment (some would likely settle in the Tidewater area) but any boost would be a help for Accomack and Northampton counties.
Yet it seems like DOI wants to work at cross purposes with President Obama’s request – assuming, of course, his words are truly sincere and not just a sop to conservatives after a series of electoral spankings culminating with the win by Scott Brown in Massachusetts.
It’s just something to think about as the snow falls along the Eastern Shore and people use the natural gas, heating oil, and electricity (created in part by natural gas) to keep themselves warm as the snow falls and the mercury continues to dip.
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