THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Americans are concerned about the high price of gasoline. Everyone who commutes to work, purchases food, ships a product, or takes a family vacation feels the burden of higher prices at the pump. And families across our country are looking to Washington for a response. (continued below)
How the President Differs from the American vision of "Liberty Under God":
Families should not look to Washington for salvation
Washington D.C. owes Americans an apology for high gas prices.
The lowest possible prices for the things Americans need is provided by a Free Market.
President Bush's
Saturday Morning Radio Address
Another Perspective:
"Liberty Under God"
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Americans are concerned about the high price of gasoline. Everyone who commutes to work, purchases food, ships a product, or takes a family vacation feels the burden of higher prices at the pump. And families across our country are looking to Washington for a response.
The fundamental problem behind high gas prices is that the supply of oil has not kept up with the rising demand across the world. One obvious solution is for America to increase our domestic oil production. So my Administration has repeatedly called on Congress to open access to new oil exploration here in the
United States. Unfortunately, Democrats on Capitol Hill have rejected virtually every proposal. Now Americans are paying the price at the pump for this obstruction. So this week, I asked Democratic congressional leaders to take the side of working families and small businesses and farmers and ranchers and move forward with four steps to expand American oil and gasoline
production.
This is true. Some have blamed "speculators" for higher prices. This is false.
The Bush Administration has "repeatedly" called on Congress to act? But Congress hasn't acted? What does this say about the leadership abilities of the Bush Administration during six years of a Republican-controlled Congress?
If Congress was not taking the side of working families and business (and why only "small" businesses -- don't large businesses use gas?) whose side was Congress on? A: Environmentalists.
First, we should expand American oil production by increasing access to the Outer Continental Shelf, or OCS. Experts believe that the OCS could produce enough oil to match America's current production for almost ten years. The problem is that Congress has restricted access to key parts of the OCS since the early 1980s. So I've called on the House and Senate
to lift this legislative ban and give states the option of opening up OCS resources off their shores while protecting the environment.
Environmentalists believe that the very act of offshore drilling is destructive of the environment. You can't destroy the environment and protect it at the same time.
There's also an executive prohibition on exploration in the OCS, which I will lift when Congress lifts the legislative ban.
What kind of leadership is this? Why wait?
Second, we should expand American oil production by tapping into the extraordinary potential of oil shale. Oil shale is a type of rock that can produce oil when exposed to heat and other processes. One major deposit in the Rocky Mountain West alone would equal current annual oil imports for more than a hundred years. Unfortunately, Democrats in Congress are standing in the way of further development. In
last year's omnibus spending bill, Democratic leaders inserted a provision blocking oil shale leasing on Federal lands. That provision can be taken out as easily as it was slipped in -- and Congress should do so immediately.
The federal government owns nearly 40% of America, including lots of land with valuable resources. Why does the government own what should be private property? The government should not lease this land, it should sell it. Private ownership makes for better stewardship.
Property -- private property -- is a fundamental American right.
Third, we should expand American oil production by permitting exploration in northern Alaska. Scientists have developed innovative techniques to reach this oil with virtually no impact on the land or local wildlife. With a drilling footprint that covers just a tiny fraction of this vast terrain, America could produce an estimated 10 billion barrels of oil. That is roughly the equivalent of two decades of
imported oil from Saudi Arabia. I urge members of Congress to allow this remote region to bring enormous benefits to the American people.
America could be completely energy independent by relying on Alaskan oil. Many believe there is as much oil in Alaska as in Saudi Arabia. Not just "two decades" as Bush says, but two centuries worth of oil.
Finally, we need to expand and enhance our refining capacity. It has been 30 years since a new refinery was built in our Nation, and lawsuits and red tape have made it extremely costly to expand or modify existing refineries. The result is that America now imports millions of barrels of fully refined gasoline from abroad. This imposes needless costs on American families and drivers. It deprives American
workers of good jobs. And it needs to change.
Why didn't Bush and the Republicans change it when they controlled Washington and had the chance?
I know Democratic leaders have opposed some of these policies in the past. Now that their opposition has helped drive gas prices to record levels, I ask them to reconsider their positions. If congressional leaders leave for the Fourth of July recess without taking action, they will need to explain why $4-a-gallon gasoline is not enough incentive for them to act.
A true leader could have overcome this opposition. Bush is not a leader; he follows the polls. As long as gas prices were low, there was no sign in the polls that people wanted more oil. The squeaky wheel of environmentalism got all the grease.
This is a difficult time for many American families. Rising gasoline prices and economic uncertainty can affect everything from what food parents put on the table to where they can go on vacation. With the four steps I've laid out, Congress now has a clear path to begin easing the strain high gas prices put on your family's pocketbook. These proposals will take years to have their full impact, so I urge
Congress to take action as soon as possible. Together, we can meet the energy challenges we face -- and keep our economy the strongest, most vibrant, and most hopeful in the world.
Suppose NASA discovered oil on the moon -- vast amounts of oil which would lower the price at the pump back to 39¢/gal. However, getting to the moon and getting the oil back to earth could be expensive. Should the federal government pay the oil companies' way to the moon? No. The oil companies should absorb those costs, pass them on to consumers, and if consumers don't like the price, then they will turn to alternative energy sources, which might be better for the
environment.
So far, the cost of getting Iraq's oil is approaching $1 Trillion, and Nobel Prize-winning economists have estimated the total cost of securing Iraqi oil will be around $10,000 for every man, woman and child in America. If you use 100 gallons of gas per week (5200 gal/yr.) for your family of four, your actual price of gas is over $7/gal. If you only use about 10 gallons per week, your price per gallon is about $70 per gallon, because everyone pays the same amount
for the War in Iraq, regardless of how much gas they consume. An average family of four in Missouri uses 2,200 gal/yr., for a surcharge of $18/gal. (that is, this amount should be added to the price charged by the oil companies). Even if this surcharge is spread out over a decade, it's still $1.80/gal, which would bring the price to almost $6/gal at the pump, and many feel
$5/gal is an important psychological barrier that Americans wouldn't easily cross.
Government subsidies of business are unconstitutional. Killing innocent Iraqis for the benefit of oil companies is hideously immoral.
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.
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 »
Make Congress read every word of every bill they create before they vote on it.
Urge your Representative and your Senators to sponsor DownsizeDC.org's “Read the Bills Act” (RTBA).
Unelected bureaucrats create tens-of-thousands of new dictates each year. Making rules is the job of Congress, not bureaucrats.
DownsizeDC.org has drafted the “Write the Laws Act” to end bureaucratic “legislation without representation.” Click here . . .
"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 »
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 »
The Accountability Project: 9-11 Accountability
The federal government had all the power, information, and resources it needed to prevent the 9/11 attacks—it simply failed to do so. Government repeatedly fails because it never pays a price for poor performance. Instead, government rewards itself for its own incompetence—with new powers and greater resources. We want to hold the federal government accountable for its failure on 9/11. Please help us do so by sending a message to Congress demanding
accountability. Learn More »
Repeal the Patriot Act
We said the government would abuse the Patriot Act, and it has. Now it's time to tell Congress to repeal it.
Stop experimenting with American lives
Congress and the President have spent four years experimenting with American lives, trying to find a way to bring peace to Iraq. It is time for the experiments to end. It is time for the Iraqi's to resolve their own problems. HR 413 would de-authorize the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Tell Congress to stop the experiments. Tell Congress to pass HR 413.
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.
Bush proposals "will not bring the type of relief Americans deserve."
We should "punish price gougers."
Basically, oil companies should be forced by the government to act in a way the government (Democrats) want them to act. So much for liberty.
Congressman Dennis Kucinich Appears on Bill O'Reilly
O'Reilly says Congress should not waste time on impeachment
when its time should be used to solve rising gas prices.
But Congress has no Constitutional authority to do anything about
gas prices, whereas it has no greater authority than to
impeach a President who is guilty of war crimes.
Mainstream Media pundits insist -- forcefully -- that "it's not going to happen"
with respect to impeachment or the election of Ron Paul.
They don't want it to happen.
Click herefor a replay of this edition of the Ozarks Virtual Town Hall
