Exactly one year ago today, a massive explosion rocked the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 workers and initiating a crude oil spill that lasted 87 days. The devastating spill wreaked havoc upon both the ecosystem and the economy of the Gulf region, but the real long-run damage stems from the Obama administration’s energy agenda rather than from the spill itself.
Last May, President Obama seized upon the crisis as an opportune moment to implement a six month moratorium on all deep-water drilling. The administration did lift the ban early (a few weeks before the November mid-term elections), but it was a political tactic and not a serious attempt to increase domestic oil production. A virtual ‘permatorium’ remains in place, as Interior Secretary Ken Salazar continually rejects most new deep-water drilling permits off of American shores. Issuing new permits would increase federal revenue, create thousands of jobs, and lower gas prices, all of which would help to boost the economy – but hey, let’s all just go buy hybrid vans instead!
While we hold off on drilling so we can build more windmills, Obama’s green goals are choking off jobs in the Gulf region. The Wall Street Journal reported this morning: “Offshore oil production, most of which comes from the Gulf, is expected to average 1.55 million barrels a day this year, down 13% from 2010,according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.”
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal appeared on NBC’s The Today Show this morning, apprising his state’s resilient progress and encouraging tourism. He also took the opportunity to lambaste President Obama’s crippling policies:
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“I think he’s the most liberal president we’ve had in modern times. At exactly the worst moment, we’ve seen expanded spending, higher taxes, more borrowing, more government involvement in healthcare.”
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