WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Lois Capps released the following statement regarding Senator McCain’s visit to Santa Barbara to talk about his supposedly ‘new’ plan to promote energy independence by pushing for more drilling off our coasts:

“I think Yogi Berra said it best.  Its déjà vu all over again – at least when it comes to John McCain’s so called ‘new’ plan for American energy independence.  McCain’s ‘new’ plan sure looks a heck of lot like the old Bush-Cheney plan – more drilling in more places with more profits for big oil and more pain at the pump for American consumers.  At the end of the day, the Bush-McCain plan for more offshore drilling is just more of the same failed approach that brought us $4 a gallon gas and actually increased our dependence on foreign sources of energy.  This fatally flawed approach won’t end our addiction to oil – it just enables it.  It’s a sweet deal for the Bush-McCain buddies in the big oil industry but it won’t lower gas prices or make us more energy independent.  McCain’s ‘new’ plan will have a devastating effect on California’s economy, environment and its health.

“Its incredible that John McCain would have the audacity to come to Santa Barbara - the site of one of the worst drilling disasters in our nation’s history – to lecture us on the merits of his ‘new’ pro-drilling energy policy.  My district has extensive offshore and onshore drilling and we have seen repeatedly just how dirty and dangerous drilling is.  After 8 years of the Bush-Cheney-McCain drill-happy approach we’ve increased the amount of domestic drilling but we can’t drill our way out of this problem!  Big Oil is choosing to not drill on nearly 70 million acres of public land and on 6,000 available offshore leases in the Gulf of Mexico alone. 

“For the life of me I can’t understand why President Bush and Senator McCain would want to reward Big Oil with even more access to our most pristine areas when they aren’t even drilling in many of the areas that are already available. They need to ‘use it or loose it’ and that’s what Democrats in Congress intend to force them to do.  This week, the House will consider legislation to force Big Oil to get moving and start drilling on the nearly 70 million acres of public land already available to them.

“The longer we put off serious measures to reduce demand, promote renewables and find alternatives to fossil fuels, the worse our energy future will be.  Pursuing efficiency measures and increasing the use of renewables is the way of the future and the true path to energy independence.  And it would bring down prices much faster than more drilling.  Democrats in Congress have been pushing this approach for years, despite the resistance of President Bush and objections from Senator McCain.  That’s why Big Oil is so desperate to get more rights to drill now.  They know that once the Democratic Congress has a true partner in energy independence in the White House in President Obama we will finally be able to realize a New Direction in our energy policy.

“We need real leadership to address our energy needs, not political gimmicks and recycling bad ideas that have repeatedly failed in the past.  Senator McCain wants to keep America on a Fred Flintstone energy plan when we need to move forward with an energy policy for the future.  Congress and Senator Obama will provide real leadership on this issue by upholding the ban on new drilling off our coasts and pursuing true energy independence through enhanced efficiency and alternative energy solutions.”

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Pictured above: (center) Congresswoman Capps meets with Central Coast firefighters to discuss emergency preparedness.