Bringing LIBERTY to Capitol Hill -- 2008
OZARKS VIRTUAL TOWN HALL
Saturday Morning, August 2, 2008, 10:30am
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A Discussion of The President's Saturday Morning Radio Address
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Click here to listen to a replay of the August 2, 2008 Ozarks Virtual Town Hall |
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This weekend marks the beginning of August, the month when many Americans take their summer vacation. This year, however, the high price of gas is taking a toll on summer travelers. Congress is now taking a month-long recess of its own. Unfortunately, Democratic leaders are leaving town without taking any action to ease the burden of high gas prices on families across America. (continued below)
How the President Differs from the American vision of "Liberty Under God":
- America was founded on the philosophy of "Liberty Under God."
"Liberty" means freedom from government control and confiscation of wealth
"Under God" means personal responsibility to love God and neighbor.
- "Liberty" means the freedom to produce oil and sell it
"Under God" means producing oil in a moral and responsible way.
- The ideal of "Liberty Under God" produced a Constitution that was a document of "enumerated powers." This means that the federal government (created by the Constitution) only has those powers that are enumerated in the Constitution itself.
- Nothing anywhere in the Constitution gives the federal government power to prohibit a California Oil Corporation (e.g., Atlantic Richfield) from drilling oil in Alaska and selling it to Americans.
- Even if the Constitution gave such a power to Washington D.C., why would they choose to use that power? Do you benefit from a shortage of gasoline? Who does?
President Bush's
Saturday Morning Radio Address
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Another Perspective:
"Liberty Under God"
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| THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This weekend marks the beginning of August, the month when many Americans take their summer vacation. This year, however, the high price of gas is taking a toll on summer travelers. Congress is now taking a month-long recess of its own. Unfortunately, Democratic leaders are leaving town without taking any action to ease the burden of high gas prices on families across America. |
A Republican President blames Democrats for our current problems.
Removing government obstacles to oil production is a good thing. These government obstacles are unconstitutional and hurt Americans.
But the President's address is filled with hypocrisy and deceit.
The Republicans controlled Congress for six years. Why didn't the Republicans in Congress do four years ago what the President is urging Congress to do today? |
| The fundamental source of high gas prices is the fact that supply is not keeping pace with demand. To reduce pressure on prices, we need to increase the supply of oil, especially oil produced here at home. So in June, I called on Congress to lift the legislative ban that prevents offshore exploration of parts of the Outer Continental Shelf, or OCS. But the leaders of the Democratic Congress have refused to allow a vote.
Pelosi's Energy Stonewall - Wall St.Journal |
The "law of supply and demand" is certainly basic, and nothing new.
Notice that it has been "a legislative ban" on increasing the supply that has caused the price of oil to rise. Didn't Washington D.C. know about the law of supply and demand when it passed this legislative ban on increasing the supply?
The President says he called on Congress to allow some more domestic oil production "in June" of 2008. Why didn't he do this in June of 2007, or 2002? |
| Lifting the ban on this offshore exploration would benefit our economy in two important ways. |
Did the Republicans not know this for the last 6 years? |
| First, lifting the ban would allow our Nation to take advantage of a large and reliable source of domestic oil. Experts believe that these restricted areas could eventually produce about 18 billion barrels of oil. That's almost 10 years worth of America's current oil production. |
The President does not mention Alaska. There is enough oil and natural gas in Alaska for all America's needs for the next 200 years. An Atlantic Richfield oil executive admitted back in the 1970's, that "there is as much oil under the North Slope of Alaska as there is in all of Saudi Arabia." |
| Second, lifting the ban would create new opportunities for American workers and businesses. On Tuesday, I visited the Lincoln Electric Company in Cleveland, Ohio, a business that produces welding products used for offshore exploration. If Congress were to permit this exploration, it would mean new jobs at businesses like Lincoln Electric. American drivers are counting on Congress to lift the ban on offshore exploration, and so are American workers. |
This is just the tip of the iceberg. Not just jobs created in order produce the oil, but many jobs would be created as a result of the ability to consume the oil. Energy is what drives the economy and raises our standard of living. Cheaper energy means more jobs. |
| Bringing these resources online will take time, and that means that the need for congressional action is urgent. I've lifted the executive restrictions on offshore exploration. This means that the only thing now standing between the American people and these vast oil resources is the United States Congress. The sooner Congress lifts the ban, the sooner we can get this oil from beneath the ocean floor to your gas tank. |
Why were these "executive restrictions" imposed in the first place? |
| We also need to take other essential steps to strengthen domestic oil production. Congress needs to pass legislation that allows us to tap the extraordinary potential of oil shale, permits exploration in currently restricted areas of northern Alaska, and enables the expansion of America's domestic refining capacity. |
America's energy producers have not been permitted to lower energy prices. Why is this? Why has Washington D.C. not allowed increased energy production and lower prices? |
| It appears that the leaders of the Democratically-controlled Congress will let the entire summer pass without voting on any of these vital steps to help reduce pressure on gas prices. This failure to act is unacceptable to me and unacceptable to the American people. So when they return from their summer break, Democratic leaders should show that they've heard the frustration of the American people by allowing a vote on offshore exploration. If Congress does not act, they will owe families across America an explanation for why they're ignoring their concerns. |
At a news conference, some Republicans also urged President Bush to call a special session of Congress — a power last exercised by President Harry S. Truman in 1948. (New York Times)
Bush has chosen not to exercise that power, so that he can blame Democrats.
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| I know that high energy prices are making this a difficult time for many of our citizens, but it is important to remember that these high prices were not inevitable.
They are partially the result of policy choices that have been made over the years by the United States Congress.
Now Congress has an opportunity to begin reversing that damage. By opening up new resources at home we can help bring energy costs down. And that will help ensure that our economy remains the strongest, most vibrant, and most hopeful in the world. |
Not just the Democrats. The Republicans controlled Congress and the White House. They could have eliminated the restrictions years ago. |
| Thank you for listening. |
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Kevin Craig's Platform:
Additional Libertarian Resources
Revolution Won't Come in a Day
John Adams once wrote that the American Revolution began in 1761, when Massachusetts attorney James Otis began legal challenges to the Writs of Assistance. He lost the case, but "American independence," Adams wrote, "was then and there born." Now do the math. That means it took 15 years to convince the rest of America to declare Independence (1776). Then another seven years of war was required before a Peace Treaty was signed (1783), and then six
years before the Constitution was finally ratified (1789). That's almost 30 years. (And Jefferson said we shouldn't go 20 years without another rebellion!) How can we hope to convince Americans to fight for principles they were never taught in government schools? We need to be in this battle for the long term. "Eternal Vigilance is the Price of Liberty."
The Internet Can Speed up the Revolution
Here are ways you can help.
Communicating with Government and Media
- Contact Congress -- this is from the JBS website, powered by "CapWiz," from Capitol Advantage. Lots of organizations use capwiz. If you don't want to go through the JBS, search for capwiz on Google and find another organization that uses it.
Notice that you can also contact media through this webpage.
- Action E-List
Sign up for the JBS Action E-List and be notified when you can make a critical difference on important issues.
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Support an Iraq Referendum
Americans keep debating when, how, or if to leave Iraq. Maybe we should ask the Iraqi people what they want. After all, it's their country. Tell Congress to request that the Iraqi government hold a public referendum on the U.S. occupation. Learn more »
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"Cap and Trade" is not the way
The politicians seem to be unifying around "cap and trade" as a way to cut CO2 emissions. If they take this step it may be the largest increase in the size, scope, and intrusiveness of government since the creation of Medicare. Worse still, it may not even achieve its purpose. Please tell Congress to oppose "cap and trade." Learn more »
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Iraq Waste
Big government prospers through failure. Each new failure is used to justify more spending and new powers. Wasteful spending in Iraq is the latest example. One way to change this is to hold government accountable. A new bill in Congress seeks to provide some of the needed accountability. Please support it. Learn more »
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Stop the War for Terror
U.S. policy has inflamed the Middle East. It has made terrorism more likely rather than less. We seem to be fighting a war for terror, rather than on terror. This policy must stop. The place to start stopping is with Iran. We must not attack Iran. War with Iran would devastate our economy, disrupt world oil supplies, and recruit more terrorists. Click here to stop this war before it starts.
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The Democrat Party Radio Address:
The The Democratic Radio Address was delivered by Southern California Congressman Henry Waxman, who boasted about the Democrats' recent achievements: managing the toy industry and the tobacco industry, and banning that dangerous hybrid of the two industries: candy cigarettes.
Rep. Waxman said the FDA needs to be strengthened, as well as numerous other government agencies.
The basic philosophy here is that the American people are too stupid to take care of themselves. They are incapable of forming magazines and voluntary associations such as Consumer Reports which inform Americans about dangerous products and empower Americans to avoid them. No, Americans are stupid, and government needs to be their nanny. Government needs to ban candy cigarettes, for example, so that stupid children who grow up to be stupid adults at least won't be smoking.
Rep. Waxman said nothing about energy.
Click here for a replay of this edition of the Ozarks Virtual Town Hall
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