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Letter: Support for drilling a sham

September 23, 2008

Dear Editor,

The Democrats' tepid support for oil drilling offshore is nothing more than a political sham. The House will vote on a bill soon that, thanks to House Democrats, looks good on the surface but in actuality does very little good.

The Democrats' bill would allow drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, but not within 50 miles of the coast, and only with permission of the states - which is far from certain.

The United States Department of the Interior estimates that 88 percent of known oil is within that 50-mile limit. The Atlantic and Pacific coast oil combined is about a quarter of what is thought to exist in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, which is off limits completely in this bill.

So, if you do the math, this bill, which Speaker Nancy Pelosi says "represents a new direction in energy policy," makes about 3 percent more offshore oil available - and then, maybe not - if states veto.

This bill does call for billions of dollars of new taxes on oil companies, as if that won't be passed on in the form of higher prices. I think most Americans realize that we must develop and move toward alternate energy sources and eventually wean ourselves from excessive reliance on oil. But this is a cynical, political do-little bill.

I have not heard Barack Obama distance himself from Speaker Pelosi's politics.

Eben D. HensonDanville

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