The Democrats have conceded defeat in the struggle to limit drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts:
House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, D-Wis., told reporters Tuesday that a provision continuing the moratorium will be dropped this year from a stopgap spending bill to keep the government running after Congress recesses for the election.
Republicans have made lifting the ban a key campaign issue after gasoline prices spiked this summer and public opinion turned in favor of more drilling. President Bush lifted an executive ban on offshore drilling in July.
“If true, this capitulation by Democrats following months of Republican pressure is a big victory for Americans struggling with record gasoline prices,” said House GOP leader John Boehner of Ohio.
Let’s get to drilling then, folks. Wait, probably not. The measure is being put off until the next president is elected. If you were an oil company, would you want to start investing billions on an off shore drilling rig, only to have Obama and a Democrat run Congress to pull the rug out from underneath you?
If McCain is elected it is likely that rigs might start showing up, but I wouldn’t imagine that we’ll see any before November.
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