John McCain, Drill now.
Steve Maloney is one of the hardest campaigners for John McCain, he is always there, he is always making sense, he is always relevant, and he is always coming up with good ideas. He has just published a post by Jack Kelly, who has excellent ideas on how to win in November, some of which I quote here. I recommend the article: -
Barack Obama has the lead for the time being. But three signposts point the way to a McCain landslide in November -- in the unlikely event the Arizona senator has the wit to heed them.At present the statement made by McCain is close to a flip flop, he really needs to go further, by admitting his previous position was wrong, completely so, and he now realizes that the only salvation for American consumers is to aggressively drill for oil in every place it is likely to be found.
What figures to be by far the most important issue this fall is the skyrocketing price of energy and its deleterious effect on the broader economy and national security. Now that Sen. McCain has flip-flopped on drilling off of our coasts, there is a substantial difference between him and Sen. Obama on the issue. Sen. McCain also supports building more nuclear power plants, which Sen. Obama opposes.
Opinion polls indicate a large majority now supports drilling for oil off our coasts and in Alaska. That majority is likely to expand and harden as gas prices rise this summer. But Sen. McCain can't fully capitalize politically on this change in public attitude unless he completes his flip-flop, and consents to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
If oil drilling is not pursued and soon the current $4.00 at the pumps will look good to consumers in the future, some of the more remote areas will be virtually uninhabitable, as people will not be able to afford the cost of travelling to and from them.
Drilling now will not immediately solve this crisis, but it will at least give hope for the future. When oil comes online, it will immediately ease the pressure, a little at a time.
The US cannot afford to ignore it’s own substantial reserves of oil and gas while continuing to pay huge prices for foreign supplies, some from regimes that are openly hostile and who can hold the US to ransom.
The upside is massive increases in employment, reduction of deficits, greater self sufficiency, a significant global easing of the pressure on supplies, and an ability to have a more independent foreign policy.
He needs to move aggressively on this and take the high moral ground, not only on drilling, but increasing refining capacity, and getting more nuclear power. The greens wont like it but if the US greens are anything like our Australian ones they are mostly liberals anyway.
Jack Kelly finishes his essay with some great advice: -
The signposts also indicate who Sen. McCain should choose for his running mate. No Republican can better make the case for drilling than Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, and no governor has fought harder against corruption, especially in her own party.
So go to ANWR, Sen. McCain. Embrace Sarah Palin there. You'll have to eat some crow. But crow doesn't taste so bad when it's served on the White House china.
A commenter on another post says it much better than I can:
ReplyDelete"They say McCain reads the blogs, so here goes --
Senator McCain- Don't let the campaign kibbitzers muddle things up.
First and foremost, Sarah Palin shares your values. She killed the bridge to nowhere. Need we say more?
As for the politics, Sarah Palin transcends geography. Her constituency, like yours, goes beyond state lines.
She will get your ticket access to voters all over the country based on who she is and what she stands for. Because she's young, a woman, a mother with young kids, she will grab media attention more than any other potential candidate.
Gov. Palin also has a son in the active duty military. You have very wisely taken your son's service in Iraq off the table as a campaign talking point. That is and should be respected. But others can talk about it and reflect on what it means.
A McCain-Palin administration would be the first in memory which has family members in uniform during wartime from both the President and Vice President. That would be a powerful statement as to the importance of national service, especially in uniform.
Most importantly, any Vice President should be ready to step up and serve in the event she is needed. Frankly, who is really ever ready? Gov. Palin is as ready as anybody, she is a quick learner, and in her public career has exhibited the courage and decisiveness needed for a great leader.
Godspeed to you in your campaign and in making this important decision."
I posted on this a couple up from here. Thanks.
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