67% Support Offshore Drilling, 64% Expect it Will Lower Prices

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Its only fair to post obama's response.

Obama ridicules McCain's plan to tap offshore oil

5 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Democrat Barack Obama Tuesday accused White House rival John McCain of "posturing" as the Republican, tapping voters' anxiety about sky-high fuel prices, called for offshore oil drilling.

In a speech later in the Texas oil capital of Houston, the Arizona senator was to call for a 27-year-old moratorium on offshore exploration to be lifted -- reversing his own support for the ban when he ran for president in 2000.

McCain was again to push for a summer suspension of federal taxes on gasoline, to ease a little of the pain at the pump for voters already reeling from an epidemic of home foreclosures and job losses.

Obama, who has been hammering McCain and the Republicans on the economy, said his White House opponent's support of the moratorium in 2000 was "certainly laudable."

"But his decision to completely change his position and tell a group of Houston oil executives exactly what they wanted to hear today was the same Washington politics that has prevented us from achieving energy independence for decades," the Illinois senator said in a statement.

"Much like his gas tax gimmick that would leave consumers with pennies in savings, opening our coastlines to offshore drilling would take at least a decade to produce any oil at all, and the effect on gasoline prices would be negligible at best since America only has three percent of the world's oil.

"It's another example of short-term political posturing from Washington, not the long-term leadership we need to solve our dependence on oil."

Obama is pushing for a "windfall tax" on oil companies' record profits and for federal investment of 150 billion dollars over 10 years in renewable and green energies.

McCain backs market solutions but scents opportunity in portraying Obama as being out of touch with voters' pocketbook concerns.

"We have proven oil reserves of at least 21 billion barrels in the United States," he said in excerpts from his Houston speech.

"But a broad federal moratorium stands in the way of energy exploration and production. And I believe it is time for the federal government to lift these restrictions and to put our own reserves to use," McCain said.

"People are hurting -- small farmers, truckers and taxi drivers unable to cover their costs, small-business owners struggling to meet payroll, the cost of living rising and the value of paychecks falling."

The 1981 moratorium prevents states from allowing oil companies to conduct offshore drilling and exploration. Virtually the entire Atlantic and Pacific coastlines are protected, along with sections of the Gulf of Mexico.

McCain said environmental controls were strong enough to permit safe offshore exploration, although the Republican governors of Florida and California -- both McCain supporters -- dispute this.

But at the same time, McCain opposes drilling in "pristine" areas such as Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, putting him at odds with many in his party.

With global crude prices in sight of 140 dollars a barrel, US gasoline prices now average more than four dollars a gallon. While still low by European standards, that is a rise of one dollar in just 12 months.

In a new Washington Post-ABC News poll Tuesday, nearly 80 percent said soaring pump prices were causing them financial hardship, which the Post said was the highest figure in surveys this decade.

The poll gave Obama a narrow lead of 48 percent to 42 percent over McCain among all voters. The two fared evenly among independent voters but Obama had a 16-point lead as the best candidate for the faltering economy.

The candidates were virtually tied on which was more trusted to handle Iraq, which Obama intends to visit before the November election. McCain, however, had the edge in international affairs and terrorism.

McCain lobbied anew to suspend the 18.4 cent federal tax on gasoline and 24.4 cent diesel tax until Labor Day on September 1.

"Even in tough times for our economy, when folks are struggling to pay for gas and groceries, tax relief just isn't change he can believe in," McCain said, turning Obama's mantra of change against the Democrat.