Obama has politically castrated McCain for good -- Offfshore Drilling

[rhombus]

Obama has essentially taken the one major card McCain had in this election to hammer Obama and the Dems on --- Offshore drilling. McCain's momentum on this energy issue has been dealt a fatal blow. And yes, offshore drilling is very popular in the heartland and even among many Democrats.

Have you noticed that since yesterday it's as if the air has been let out of the McCain campaign?

[ellacott]

1. They tried to run with the tire gauge

but Obama(along with the media) shot that down today.

[polichick]

2. I REALLY hope you're right about this...

And I also hope he has no real intention of supporting offshore drilling.

[Life Long Dem]

3. Obama can take oil drilling and Iraq and walk away with this.

Oil and Iraq. "Drill here and drill now". McSame wants some more black gold!

[GoForTheJugular]

4. Good move...

Him opposing it was a mistake from the beginning... He should have supported it and the windfall profits tax and the Repubs wouldnt have had any traction...

[EC]

7. Don't you get it?

He's saying "it's a consideration" just like parents say "We'll see" - it means it ain't going to happen...

[ncteechur]

5. Well if O is gonna adopt every one of McCain's boneheaded proposals just to diffuse

him, how is that change? What prevents folks from just voting for McCain?

[rucky]

6. Of course it's popular in the heartland. It won't be in their backyard.

It's a shortsighted and lame "solution", but what the hell, let's support it and let the NIMBYs fight it out.

[quaker bill]

8. The notion

that Obama was ever opposed to all off shore drilling is simply false. He never stated opposition, he only stated that drilling is not the solution to the problem. This will remain true even if some leases are allowed.

We are importing 70 percent of our oil. To become energy independent by drilling would require finding enough reserves to more than triple our production. Not even the most optimistic estimate of potential untapped reserves comes close to this figure, and it will take 10+ years to bring production up to significant levels.

The entire notion that a move toward more drilling will affect market psycology is also delusional. You can't scare people with a gun that everyone knows has no bullets.

There is a reason that the oil companies are not drilling now. Up until very recently, oil prices simply were not high enough to justify the extremely high cost of OCS platforms to produce the modest amount of oil available there. It only becomes economically viable to produce this oil at something near current prices. If prices fall, the leases will go unused simply because the economics does not work.

This is why drilling in these areas will not lower prices, because the oil companies will not drill for it unless prices stay high.

[Alexander]

10. Wish I could recommend this post.

:thumbsup:

[applegrove]

9. The thing with tire gauges is that nobody in the oil industry makes

money each time one of those is sold. Obama should point that out. That McCains ideas are only to give profit to a favoured GOP industry.