On July 14, President George W. Bush lifted a nearly two decade-long executive ban on drilling for oil and natural gas off the country’s shoreline, thus challenging Congress to allow exploration for domestic energy sources to ease climbing energy prices.
Democrats in Congress and environmentalists, however, have criticized the step as a political stunt, and scrutinized its effectiveness.
Following the lift, state Assemblyman Pedro Nava (D-Santa Barbara) announced the passage of Assembly Joint Resolution 51 by the Assembly Natural Resources Committee. The statement to the president and Congress expresses opposition to lifting the ban on offshore drilling.
In a release to the media, U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) called the lift of the executive ban “another Bush Administration gift to a much-favored special interest—in this case big oil and gas companies that are gouging American consumers already.
“Congress can and should reject this bad idea,” Capps said.
Bush’s decision to lift the ban, however, will likely have no real impact on the country’s coastlines unless Congress also votes to lift a congressional moratorium on drilling that was enacted in 1981.
This article appears in Jul 17-24, 2008.
