On the recordNovember 30, 2011
As the price of crude oil again moves past $100 a barrel, it is another reminder of the high cost of our energy policy that increases our dependence on foreign countries, kills jobs, and raises energy costs. Every time the Federal Government imposes a moratorium or new regulations, as it did on drilling in the gulf and now the Keystone pipeline, it hurts the American people. Despite 60 years of a spotless safety record, excellent State regulation and monitoring, approval for safety by the EPA and creation of inexpensive energy sources, hydrofracking for oil and natural gas is under attack by the Department of the Interior. What is the expected outcome? Look at what the administration has done to coal, offshore drilling and the Keystone pipeline, not to mention the fact that we have not built a nuclear energy plant or a new refinery for decades due to over- regulation. Hydrofracking of oil and natural gas will inevitably be pushed into red tape, higher cost of production and lower yield, again, hurting America through high energy costs and fewer jobs. ____________________
