You're in for a shock. Rep. Marsha Blackburn and her conservative House colleagues have come back from ANWR and, get this, have concluded that they are in favor of drilling!!! Boy, I never would've expected that. I mean, come on....Republicans?....Big Oil?....Anti-environment? Seems like a long shot to me.
Trip Convinces Tennessee Rep. That Drilling In ANWR Is Critical
Nashville, Aug 21 - Rep. Marsha Blackburn (TN-7) concluded her three day trip to the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve (ANWR) and returned to Nashville this morning. Her visit to the extreme northern section of Alaska convinced the Tennessee Representative that drilling there is practical, environmentally responsible, and essential to American energy independence. Blackburn was particularly struck by the potential growth for American jobs that energy exploration in ANWR would represent. “ANWR represents a vast resource that was taken from the people of the area by the Federal Government by eminent domain. Their only compensation was 2,000 acres they could exploit for oil. Then the Government cruelly came back and restricted that exploitation; seriously damaging the welfare of the people who live in the area. Denying them the right to drill, and denying America the oil we need for energy independence is unfair to Alaskans and all Americans.”
Nashville, Aug 21 - Rep. Marsha Blackburn (TN-7) concluded her three day trip to the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve (ANWR) and returned to Nashville this morning. Her visit to the extreme northern section of Alaska convinced the Tennessee Representative that drilling there is practical, environmentally responsible, and essential to American energy independence. Blackburn was particularly struck by the potential growth for American jobs that energy exploration in ANWR would represent. “ANWR represents a vast resource that was taken from the people of the area by the Federal Government by eminent domain. Their only compensation was 2,000 acres they could exploit for oil. Then the Government cruelly came back and restricted that exploitation; seriously damaging the welfare of the people who live in the area. Denying them the right to drill, and denying America the oil we need for energy independence is unfair to Alaskans and all Americans.”
I tell ya, that gal knows damn well how to appeal to her ill-educated base! Check out her diary entry!....
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I really thought I would come back from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge with some pretty good pictures of, well, wildlife. To hear the environmentalists talk about it, ANWR is a pristine landscape filled with mountains, trees, and creatures huddled together for safety on their tiny tiny refuge. Imagine how stunned I was to discover, upon landing, that I was in a very different place. “Surface of the moon” comes to mind.
What I found was a vast coastal flat almost the size of my home state of Tennessee. This refuge was taken from the local population by the Federal Government in the 60s. At the time, residents were promised a 2,000 acre plot they could develop for energy purposes. Those 2,000 acres- 10% of the size of a suburb of Nashville – are the issue at hand.
We are talking about an area with so much potential energy that residents actually cut out slabs of oil rich sand for use in heating their homes. I suppose they could cut down trees if they wanted to, but the nearest forest is 100 miles away.
Bottom line: the environmentalists concocted a misinformation campaign about this landscape and perpetuated a fundamentally unfair policy.
What the government has done is seize a vast tract of land in exchange for a small plot for energy development. Then, with the help of environmentalists, they bound that small plot up in so many regulations and litigation threats that exploitation there is nearly impossible.
Drilling in ANWR would mean as many as 750,000 new jobs for the region. Jobs that could, and will, go to other oil producing countries like Russia, Venezuela, and Saudi Arabia if American policy does not change. In light of their rhetoric about exporting good jobs, I find Democrat intractability on ANWR to be the height of hypocrisy. They will criticize American corporations for exporting jobs to other free markets while they blithely perpetuate a policy that drives hundreds of thousands of jobs to hostile countries.
It is a policy that is hurting Americans when they can afford it least. The Democrat imposed restrictions on energy have already had an effect on the price at the pump. It is an effect each of us knows all too well.
This week, the Tennessee Valley Authority, an agency designed to provide affordable power, announced that natural gas and coal prices are forcing it to raise rates by 20%. This is a country rich in both resources. That TVA is finding energy resources hard to come by is further indication that Democrat energy policy is misguided.
My colleagues and I have put forward reasonable legislation that will achieve all of these goals. We are ready to vote today, all we need is for Speaker Pelosi to bring her colleagues back to town.
