OCTOBER 1: AMERICAN ENERGY FREEDOM DAY

With all that is going on in Washington this week it can be hard to decipher the good from the bad. However, as Congress wraps up work it appears there is indeed a reason to celebrate: American Energy Freedom Day has finally arrived. Thanks to pressure from the American people who are suffering at the pump, Democrats have reluctantly stepped aside and allowed the bans on oil shale and offshore drilling for oil and natural gas to expire. And the credit goes to you, the American people. Without the letters and phone calls to Capitol Hill and the urgent cries for energy freedom in townhall meetings throughout the country, this never would have happened. However, allowing the ban to expire is only the first step in enabling increased American energy production. To expedite the process, which can take years, I have introduced the Drill Now Act, which will ensure that drilling begins as soon as possible to bring relief at the pump quickly and reduce our dependence on other countries. Democrats have talked about reinstating these bans after the elections, and we can’t let that happen. Instead of taking our country backward, we need to move forward to expedite drilling, make sure states share in revenues, and stop frivolous environmental lawsuits that threaten to endlessly delay energy production. Taking advantage of American resources will increase the worldwide supply of petroleum and bring down prices at the pump. The very access to these resources will send powerful price-reduction signals to the futures markets, providing immediate price relief, even if the actual leasing does not commence for months. Everyone is familiar with the crisis on Wall Street. The coverage dominates nearly every media outlet. But we also have a crisis on Main Street where people are paying outrageously high prices for gasoline and having to wait in long lines to fill up their cars. The Drill Now Act will address these burdens by granting Americans access to affordable energy produced here at home.

###