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Subscribe to RSSOne of the most heated exchanges in Tuesday night’s debate came when President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney clashed over oil and gas leases on federal land.
The men interrupted each other over how many energy leases the Obama administration had issued, with the president saying oil companies “had leases on public lands that they weren't using. So what we said was, you can't just sit on this for 10, 20, 30 years… if you want to drill on public lands, you use it or you lose it… And so what we did was take away those leases, and we are now re-letting them so that we can actually make a profit.”
In what may have been one of the most contentious debates of the modern era, President Barack Obama and GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney squared off on gas production, the security situation in Benghazi and workplace inequalities among other issues. NBC's Chuck Todd reports.
Yet that spark-generating skirmish was only one aspect of a deeper discord between the rival candidates on how America can develop more energy and what effect increased energy supplies will have.
The two candidates didn’t get around to grappling with difficult policy questions that have developed due to the increased production of oil and gas within the United States in the past four years:
- Should the new supplies of domestically produced oil and natural gas be used only in the United States, helping drive down domestic prices?
- Should U.S. natural gas producers be allowed to export more of the gas they’re producing, as they’ve petitioned the Obama administration to be allowed to do? (The administration is awaiting a macroeconomic study on liquefied natural gas exports which has been percolating inside the Energy Department.)
- Should the Environmental Protection Agency crack down on the technique known as “fracking,” which is used to produce natural gas, because it might jeopardize groundwater supplies?
- And, as journalist David Owen explains in his book The Conundrum, making vehicles more fuel efficient – which Obama took credit for in the debate -- in effect makes each mile driven cheaper. Will this tend to lead to Americans driving more miles? "The problem with efficiency gains is that we inevitably reinvest them in additional consumption," Owen writes.
In response to a question from an undecided voter, the president defends his record and tries to make his case for re-election.
The increased supply of natural gas and oil has fundamentally altered the energy picture in the United States – a fact Romney alluded to Tuesday night a few minutes after the men had their first energy clash: “By virtue of new technology (we can) actually get all the energy we need in North America without having to go to the Arabs or the Venezuelans or anyone else."
The Financial Times reported last week that for the first time in decades energy companies are poised to export substantial amounts of crude oil: at the port of Corpus Christi, Texas, crude is being loaded for shipment for the first time since the 1940s, the paper reported.
Related: Battery firm bankruptcy comes after bipartisan funding under both Bush and Obama
Going unmentioned in Tuesday’s debate was the failed 2010 cap and trade greenhouse gas emission bill, which was a centerpiece of Obama’s agenda in his first two years as president. That bill would have, at least in the short run, increased energy prices.
So – with the focus in Tuesday’s debate on lowering energy prices and not on reducing emissions – it might have been politically fortunate for Obama that the Senate didn’t pass the House-passed greenhouse gas bill in 2010.
Tuesday night’s energy clash began when a questioner in the audience told Obama that his energy secretary, Steven Chu, “has now been on record three times stating it's not policy of his department to help lower gas prices. Do you agree with Secretary Chu that this is not the job of the Energy Department?”
Obama didn’t give a direct answer, instead responding that “the most important thing we can do is to make sure we control our own energy.”
He claimed that “we” – and he didn’t specify whether by “we” he meant American energy companies or the federal government – “increased oil production to the highest levels in 16 years.”
He added that “natural gas production is the highest it's been in decades.” That’s true, in part to environmentally contentious “fracking” in Pennsylvania and other states.
According to an analysis by the Van Ness Feldman law firm, which specializes in energy regulatory law, Romney’s position is to ensure EPA regulations do not discourage “fracking,” while Obama administration policy has been to require all companies drilling for gas on public lands to disclose chemicals used during the fracking process.
As for lower gasoline prices, Obama contended that energy efficiency is “how we're going to reduce demand and that's what's going to keep gas prices lower.”
Obama also used the chance to mock Romney for saying that “when I took office, the price of gasoline was $1.80, $1.86. Why is that? Because the economy was on the verge of collapse, because we were about to go through the worst recession since the Great Depression, as a consequence of some of the same policies that Governor Romney's now promoting.”
But apart from the point-scoring and rebuttals, there’s a difference between the two men.
As energy consultant Geoffrey Styles has written, Romney’s energy plan “focuses mainly on oil, gas, coal and nuclear energy, which together meet 91 percent of current U.S. primary energy demand.” Obama’s rhetorical and thematic emphasis has consistently been on alternative-energy sources such as wind and solar, which still -- and for the near future -- will meet only a small fraction of U.S. energy demand. His endorsement Tuesday of “an all-of-the-above strategy… that's what we're going to do in the next four years” is not where he started out rhetorically in 2009.
Surprisingly, Romney passed up the chance to mention that battery manufacturer A123 Systems, which got nearly $250 million in grant money under Obama’s 2009 stimulus program, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Tuesday.
Obama also used the energy clash to score points against Romney for his apparent inconsistency on the question of coal, saying that “When you were governor of Massachusetts, you stood in front of a coal plant and pointed at it and said, this plant kills, and took great pride in shutting it down. And now suddenly you're a big champion of coal.”
Obama and his “opposition research” team were correct: as the Boston Herald reported in 2003, as governor Romney announced a crackdown on PG & E's Salem Harbor Station power plant.
"I will not create jobs or hold jobs that kill people," Romney said in a speech outside the plant. "And that plant - that plant kills people."
The mayor of Salem, Mass., said at the time that the electric utility threatened to close the plant – costing jobs and $6.5 million in property taxes - if Romney didn’t give the plant more time to meet new pollution rules.
"If the choice is between dirty power plants or protecting the health of the people of Massachusetts, there is no choice in my mind. I will always come down on the side of public health," Romney said at the time.
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Simply put, Willard, er, "Mitt", flips and flops more than a Massachusetts flounder. And this is just on energy. Dig deeper for women's rights, right to life, tax reform, gun control, etc., etc., etc.
I like the part in the article where it said "Obama didn't give a direct answer." That seemed to be the case for most of the questions he was asked.
Watterwild, those questions were addressed in the debate, or did you watch it? Romney has a plan, and is not going to put women, Mexicans, and Blacks "back in chains."
Plus there are issues of national importance like, how do we pay off the debt before the interest rates destroy us as a nation? That should be the number one question on everyone's mind. If that interest goes unchecked it can devastate this nation.
right watterwild......heres a Canadian fact.....President Obama didn't just say "no" to oil pipeline from Canada.....1st OUR Prime Minister Harper said "no" to the oil tycoons and the biggest reason came because the Native Americans in Montana whose land the proposed pipeline was going to cut a huge swath through put up a huge protest !!! I'm proud our country and Obama stood together on this critical issue !!!
The best for of flattery is mimicry. Thanks.
Candy Crowley now says: "Romney Was Actually Right on Libya"?????? She should be fired!!
.
watch video:
www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2012/10/16/cnns_candy_crowley_romney_was_actually_right_on_libya.html
If Obama were against fracking, I'd vote for him, even despite his other faults; but alas, he is pro-fracking, and he made that clear tonight. Fracking is the worst thing to ever happen. Check out the movie Gas Land and look up "fracking" on Youtube. There you will see a few horror stories from Bakken, North dakota and Dimock, Pennsylvania. Cattle are dying. Fish are dying. People are getting rashes and other sicknesses from drinking and bathing in contaminated water. Fracking is a drilling method where they dig horizontally and then send frack fluid laced with deadly chemicals into the ground to crack the shale rock to get at the natural gas. This disturbance to the rock has even caused some earthquakes. The deadly chemicals find their way into the ground water and poison it. This makes farmland worthless and ruins food production and other businesses. Here in New York, farmers and producers of wine and beer dread the coming of fracking. It also scars the landscape. It is as if the Orks of Mordor are coming. So far, New York State has not allowed it, but they could any time.
Why do they do it? Money. People are tempted to lease their land for money. It has pitted neighbor against neighbor, because it affects one's neighbor's land as well as their own because they horizontally drill under the neighboring property.
This will be a thing that one day will be regretted; but then it is too late. The damage is done. Our food production will be ruined, our waters poisoned, and famine may be a result. Apocalypse anyone?
Yeh! Leave it to Romney. He OWES a TON of money to the Koch brothers. The only way to pay them back IS BY MAKING SURE THAT HE RIPS THE ENVIRONMENT IN SEARCH OF COAL AND OIL.
THAT IS HIS "GREAT PLAN" HE IS NOT OUT THERE TO SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT.
Mitt Romney is a f*** bully
Mitt Romney is a f*** bully
This statement is sheer stupidity and factually wrong. What Mr. Owen says here in his book is applicable to any scientific advancement which would make our life better (better iron making process, better rocket technology, better airplanes, better smartphone every year, etc.) In case better fuel efficiency, people for the most part have limited travel to do in their daily life (go to work, go to stores, etc.). Just because the gas cost is less, doesn't mean we are going to drive to Orlando, FL from New York more often and visit Disney world every month. One needs to take cost of stay, food, etc. into account.
Secretary Chu is smart and he spoke the truth. US Federal government has no major weapons in its arsenal that would lower the gas prices drastically. In fact, crude oil and refined gasoline prices are set by the financial markets (CME, ICE, London market, etc.) and Obama as President can't do a ding about it. World events and world markets (supply and demand) determine the prices for most part. Economy 101. Obama knew the right answer and skirted around it; rightfully so.
They both are full of $hit....and it all about MONEY....not us.
We could nationalize the energy industry if anyone has the stomach for that........then we could control the price of all energy. Would you quit whining about the price of gasoline .........neither Obama nor Romney can change that.
Not exactly sure where you came up with that information. But lets look at the Calgary Herald published in August 2012. Harper statement "Last September, Harper described the proposed Keystone XL pipeline from Alberta to the U.S. Gulf Coast into as a “complete no-brainer” – a comment that came just two months before the U.S. State Department delayed a decision on the project, throwing the viability of the line into question." Not one mention of Montana in there.
Now, lets look at Montana Papers, which speaks of protest back in July 2011, over a year ago. "Six activists from the environmental groups Earth First! and Northern Rockies Rising Tide, including one activist from Great Falls descended Tuesday on the Montana Capitol to demand Gov. Brian Schweitzer rescind his support for the Keystone XL oil pipeline and ExxonMobil's megaload transportation project." No mention of Native Americans. Not only that Montana has approved on March 30, 2012 a Certificate of Compliance for the Keystone XL Pipeline Project.
Then Obama delayed the project once again, to find a way to reroute part of the pipeline route away from the Sands Hills region in Nebraska. Nothing whatsoever to do with Montana.
Last but not least, Fort Peck Energy, is owned 50% by the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes and 50% by Native American Resource Partners. They are leasing acreage on the Reservation with the goal of having drilling commitments on Allottee lands for the testing of the Bakken and Three Forks formations. Why? Because unlike most of the liberal americans, the tribes realize this creates jobs & revenue for their people. They have no problem with receiving additional jobs & revenues from this pipeline. That, is on Sioux, Assiniboine & NARP's website.
clb - Keystone would have been a pipeline to nowhere. We don't have the refineries. We need to build refineries so that pipelines make sense. I also knew that the native American tribe didn't want the pipeline built through their reservation. This begs the question, "Why aren't we building refineries?"
Cost to comply with environmental regulations. The amount of regulations and the amount of time to do all the environmental impact studies are way too cost prohibitive. Hopefully, the next president would relax some of the regulations.
The President has always been in favor of reducing CO2 emissions by the reduction in the use of fossil fuels. His cap and trade plan attempts to do that by making the use of fossil fuel artificially much more expensive so that currently more expensive alternative energy will seem to be more affordable. His cap and trade plan did not make it through congress so he is trying to use the EPA to help cut the use of fossil fuel. Making fossil fuel more expensive to use definitely discourages its use and with it jobs that depend on it. High unemployment and a lower standard of living tends to reduce our energy usage. Apparently the Obama administration was anticipating that a surge in "green" jobs would more than replace the other jobs lost but that has not happened. Right now the idea of significantly cutting green house gas emissions runs contrary to the idea of growing the economy. To significantly cut green house gas emissions we must significantly reduce both our population and our standard of living. A good example is North Korea. Starvation helps to cull excess population. For the most part they have learned how to get along without much electric lighting at night. So far the President has yet to even try to sell Americans on the idea of reducing both their population and their standard of living. We can level the playing field if everything is owned by the government and everyone is poor and just does what they are told.
FACT: BO insured that the next debate will be dominated by Bengazi and the economy (and axlerod is pulling out his remaining three strands of hair.
FACT: FAt moderator retracted her rose garden remarks after theh debate. In the Rose Garden BO mentioned terrorist attacks in general, broad terms only and went on to blame the Bengazi faisco on an unknown video (thus making it more known-his plan for sure):
to the public once,
once to the blobular cows on the view,
a staggering 6 times to the worthless UN,
once by his lap dog non-entity carney,
and five times by his bumbling afirmative hire joke of an ambassador.
FACT: Women in BO's own administration make an average of $47k per year while men make and average of $53K per year.
FACT: OIL LEASES ARE DOWN more than 50%- there is reason Bo didnt answer on how much the leases were down (hint: caught in a lie - it hapenes from time to time when all BO does is lie).
FACT: BO got his fat moderator to give him 3 more minutes to spew is EMPTY, TIRED, RECYCLED AIR GUITAR RHETORIC (the large moderator called Romney/Ryan ticket a joke a few weeks ago - so much for unbiased).
FACT: BO HAD NO RESPONSE TO ROMNEY'S WITHERING BROADSIDES ON bO'S ECONOMIC FAILURES...Bo has no plan, no record so all he can do is assualt Romneys plan-- BUT HE DIDNT EVEN DO THAT.
FACT: BO had to years of a super majority in the congress to pass imigrtation bill , jobs plan, a budget without Republican interference..not only didnt he pass any...he never even brough them to a vote.
FACT: BO insured that the next debate will be dominated by Bengazi and the economy.
FACT: IF your not a worthles lazy welfare slob, a crackhead or a potbellied union blob (these slobs are the real 47%)BO has to get grades of FFDCFFDFFF. if you on crack den dem goot grades.
FACT: When BO stick outs his chest all you see is a rib cage and a sunken chest...VOTE THIS WEAKLING OUT.
For the ever decreasing number of die-hard Obama supporters who say "Why, on the second day Obama called the attack an organized terrorist attack": Didn't any of you see the President's UN speech? If not, check it out...
The President has been met with GOP obstructionism the whole time he's been in office. It was stated by Mitch McConnell and others, right from the start, that they would do everything they could to make President Obama a one term president. The GOP voted as a block against every piece of legislature, everyone of them to the last man, even on policies they agreed with and even some they had sponsored during the Bush administration. The idea that the President had four years to pull the economy out of the ditch that GOP policies took eight years to put it there, is absurd. He had a super majority for 24 days to work with.
1. BALANCE BEFORE THE ELECTION. In 2007 – 2008 the balance in the Senate was 51-49 in favor of the Democrats. On top of that, there was a Republican president who would likely veto any legislation the Republicans didn’t like. Not exactly a super majority.
2. BIG GAIN IN 2008, BUT STILL NO SUPER MAJORITY. Coming out the 2008 election, the Democrats made big gains, but they didn’t immediately get a Super Majority. The Minnesota Senate race required a recount and was not undecided for more than six months. During that time, Norm Coleman was still sitting in the Senate and the Balance 59-41, still not a Super Majority.
3. KENNEDY GRAVELY ILL. Teddy Kennedy casts his last vote in April and leaves Washington for good around the first of May. Technically he could come back to Washington vote on a pressing issue, but in actual fact, he never returns, even to vote on the Sotomayor confirmation. That leaves the balance in the Senate 58-41, two votes away from a super majority.
4. STILL NO SUPER MAJORITY. In July, Al Frankin was finally declared the winner and was sworn in on July 7th, 2009, so the Democrats finally had a Super Majority of 60-40 six and one-half months into the year. However, by this point, Kennedy was unable to return to Washington even to participate in the Health Care debate, so it was only a technical super majority because Kennedy could no longer vote and the Senate does not allow proxies. Now the actual actual balance of voting members is 59-40 not enough to overcome a Republican filibuster.
5. SENATE IS IN RECESS. Even if Kennedy were able to vote, the Senate went into summer recess three weeks later, from August 7th to September 8th.
6. KENNEDY DIES. Six weeks later, on Aug 26, 2009 Teddy Kennedy died, putting the balance at 59-40. Now the Democrats don’t even have technical super majority.
7. FINALLY, A SUPER MAJORITY! Kennedy’s replacement was sworn in on September 25, 2009, finally making the majority 60-40, just enough for a super majority.
8. SENATE ADJOURNS. However the Senate adjourned for the year on October 9th, only providing 11 working days of super majority, from September 25th to October 9th.
8. SCOTT BROWN ELECTED. Scott Brown was elected in November of 2009. The Senate was not in session during November and December of 2009. The Senate was in session for 10 days in January, but Scott Brown was sworn into office on February 4th, so the Democrats only had 13 days of super majority in 2010.
Summary: The Democrats only had 24 days of Super Majority between 2008 and 2010.
And the president still has made progress with unemployment and the economy. Employment is up, the stock market is up, housing starts are up, corporate profits are up, we have Affordable Healthcare, equal pay for women, oil and gas production are up, he hasn't raised taxes and the deficit hasn't grown as much as when Bush was in office if you factor in the two wars and the big tax cut that wasn't paid for. After the mammoth effort the GOP put into trashing the economy for 8 years and fighting the President at every turn, the President still has done a good job in getting it back together again. It's still a work in progress, but remember it took Roosevelt 12 years to dig out of the last hole the GOP put us in.
Look JJtown, our president didn't say it was terrorist the day after of the week after, hell he refused to say it last night. I watched all that I could of him at the USELESS UN, and again he talked of protest and that damn movie. Don't believe me, find the videos of ambassador Rice on the Sunday talk shows where she was talking about the damn movie; she would not have said those things if her boss had stated that it was a terrorist attack.
Romney is a corporate raider who hides his money off shore to avoid taxes........he is a joke.
Sour grapes abounding on this page.......poor Repubs, all they got is hate.
Kathyrn Sullivan - are you stupid or just "blind". When Congress is in partisian "gridlock" our President presents himself as the "most polarizing" president in present day history. Just listen to his "words" as he discribes others. Obama can not run on his RECORD, so Mr. Sour Grapes most deflect all the ARROWS pointing to his NON-PERFORMANCE. 100% of Obama Ecomnoic Plan are UNACHIEVED. Not because of lack of TRYING, but because HIS HAS NO CLUE how to do it.
Obama has 0% experience in his life or career in making a SINGLE JOB, Balancing a Budget other than his checkbook, or LEADING A GROUP TOWARD ANY GOAL other than raising radical activism in the name of Social Reform. He is also an IMMORAL Individual although hiding behind being a Christian, if you remember his 20yr support and follower of Rev. J. Wright, and basically both Michelle and Barry hate America. Remember Michelle's comment of "... FINALLY being proud to be an American after the election, then what were you before?". And don't forget all the "... Hate America video of Rev. Wright before Obama retracks his previous comments of " Rev. Wright has been the spiritual leader of my family, Michelle, and myself for 20yrs ....". Also don't forget all the little signs of Obama's anti-Americanism like Not Wearing this America Flag LABEL pin or refusing to Place His Hand Over His Heart daring the National Anthem. The history is well published in photos and U Tube ... but liberal voices like MSNBC won't air any of it.
For ONCE, Kathyrn open you eyes and free yourself of you own complaints about politicians .... vote for a professional business person to lead the economic turn-around. Please your liberal social goodi goodi 2 shoe attitude on HOLD for a awhile, so this President and generate enough American Wealth so you can redistribute and waste later.
PS: Obama, flat out LIED to 80million Americans when he said that he claimed Benghazi as a Terriost Attack from the Rose Garden the day after. Everyone should read the transscript, especially our school kids, so we can teach them what the difference is between TRUTH, MISDIRECTION, HALF TRUTH, and a LIE. American demand nothing be the TRUTH from a sitting president and we did not get it last night. Remember Clinton, who still has many followers ... he was a LIAR and was impeached and disbarred. You and those like you do not under stand ethics and honor.
PS; Romney is the biggest liar to run for office that we have ever seen. He is all smoke and mirrors, and his plans are way, way short on detail.
republikon... Well how about the President's plans. He promised that the 2012 federal deficit would not exceed 229.27 billion dollars that that was not even close to happening. He promised that by now unemployment would be less than 6% and that did not happen either. In his nomination speech the President said that his plan was to bring the troops home in 2014 and with the money saved we will begin to pay back the debt but his own White House is predicting huge deficits for at least another decade. I want the President to provide a detailed plan for the federal government to pay back all of the money that it has borrowed. The tax payers have a right to know how much all of this federal borrowing is going to end up costing them. In just 4 years under Obama's administration the National Debt has increased by 50%. That means the portion of our tax dollars that must be used each year to service the debt has also increased by 50%.
re: Romneys charge that Obama stopped oil pipeline from Canada.....not true !!!! 1st our Prime Minister Harper said "no" to the oil tycoons !!! one of the reasons was the proposed plan to put pipeline through Montana Native American pristine land and their concerns.......I'm proud of our Prime Minister and Obama for this tough stance that they took but make no mistake it was Canada that said "no"
Glad you spilled the beans on that one.
John Doe it may be that you were told that but the news that I got here in Michigan was that critical waterways would be in harms way, which a oil spill could contaminate Americans drinking water for miles around. I heard that from the president, senators and other notable democrats. You and your prime minister can be proud together, however I know what was on the news here.
I knew that John Doe, but if you only listen to Limbaugh and FOX you would never hear the truth about it.
To help ease the pain, I suggest all Romeny supporters in denial do this.
1. get a pen and paper
2. grab your favorite beverage
3. Sit in your favorite chair.
4. Write this down very carefully:
O Yes
like the puffy, fluffy french in 1870 you libs were so sure. there wont be rope or rafter space to be found at mess nbc on nov 7
David........big ole ^5
Kathryn,
Zero raised to the 5th power equals 1. Are you saying David has an IQ of 1?
Candy Crowley now says: "Romney Was Actually Right on Libya"?????? She should be fired!!
............
watch video:
www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2012/10/16/cnns_candy_crowley_romney_was_actually_right_on_libya.html
OBAMA LIED!!
Obama did not lie. He just failed to tell the truth. He admits that by the rose garden speech that he knew that it was a terrorest attack. I want to know who gave the orders and why the UN Ambasador who I had never seen before, appeared on TV to formally announce things that were known by the administration not to be ture. Was this a plot of some kind or just a matter of administrative incopetence?
President Obama looked pretty pathetic having to have Ms Crowley bail him out and give him aid on more than one occasion.
But one thing was surprising in the debate: I actually found myself agreeing with one thing President Obama said:
Romney is a good man.
Romney is a corporate raider who shovels his profits into secret off shore bank accounts to avoid disclosure......same as the drug pushers.
Kathryn, when is the last time that Romney raided a corporation and what corporation did he raid? If Romney did anything illegal that you know about then you should give your information to the IRS and or the FBI.
In another planet. He is a BULLY. He can sell is "wonderful"4 millions dollar smile to all of you because you believe what he says.
HE IS USED TO FOOL DUMB PEOPLE THAT WANT TO GIVE AWAY THEIR MONEY. HOPEFULLY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WON'T GIVE HIM THE COUNTRY TO SPEND, JUST LIKE HE DID AT BAIN CAPITAL.
Anyone who votes the GOP back into the White House needs their heads examined........Romney has the same advisors Bush did.......
Kathryn Sullivan,
actually President Obama has some of the same advisors as well.
What exactly is going to be better with 4 more years of President Obama?
Just a side note the reason we are exporting more oil is because we are in fact consuming less oil. Its a combination of increased fuel eficiency and simply that Americans are driving less. The main reason behind this is the Internet.
They are both wrong. We should be building commercial hybrid nuclear / thermonuclear breeder reactor power plants across the nation which use continuous thermonuclear triggers to burn extremely large breeder fuel resources of Thorium and extremely large stockpiles of U-238 (DU). These hybrid nuclear /thermonuclear reactor systems will also enable us to burn up most of our nuclear waste as well. Once we have these hybrid reactors in place, we will be able to burn 100% of our Thorium and 100% of Uranium resources. Right now we can only burn 0.72% of our Uranium resources in the form of U-235, and the cost of this U-235 is skyrocketing. There are safe ways of sequestering the short lived nuclear waste from these hybrid nuclear / thermonuclear power plants, which will also be breeding more nuclear fuel than they use, primarily in the form of plutonium. This will essentially make nuclear energy a renewable energy resource as well, which basically means we will never run out of energy for tens of thousands of years into the future. However, this should always be done in addition to other renewable energy resources like wind, water, solar and geothermal energy. - Rick Carter
Barack Obama's big three promises he's kept, he got bin
Laden, he ended the war in Iraq and he's ending the war
in Afghanistan, but he hasn't Won anything. He didn't win
anything in Iraq, because he didn't want to win anything
in Iraq, so he just turned and ran. He isn't winning
anything in Afghanistan, because he doesn't want to win
anything in Afghanistan, again just turn and run. The
good news is: we got Santa Ana, the bad news is: we lost
Texas and we're losing California.
Hell, no wonder the troops are coming home disheartened,
demoralized and disillusioned, with PTSD to boot, because
their Commander in Chief is demoralizing, disheartening
and disillusioning. You want to contain Iran? Look at a
map. Build two functioning democracies in Afghanistan and
Iraq, and you've got the Ayatollahs surrounded by two
shining examples of what Iran Could be. Fail to build two
functioning democracies in Afghanistan and Iraq,
and you've got Three Irans.
And therein lies Obama's biggest problem, how can you
stand up for your principles when you're running with
your tail tucked between your legs?
Why were we in Iraq to start with? It was Bush's war to get control of Iraq's oil. It accomplished nothing but to destabilize the middle east even more than it is already. Now, instead of Iraq being Iran's enemy they have formed an alliance. The President disengaged our forces from a futile and wasteful war. Iraq will never be a functioning democracy as long as the theocratic Islamist are in control. He is doing in Afghanistan, just what he said he would do. Stabilize the country long enough for it to get it's own army. We've been there long enough when our supposed allies are starting to kill our troops. To think we can make those countries into our idea of western democracy is a foolish wast of time and resources. They have to decide to do this on their own then we can help but we can't do it for them.
Jerry-450822,
You are F.O.S.
philfromearth,
Finally a voice of reason. I just spent 6.5 years in Cairo, Egypt. There through the Revolution, and was excited by the enthusiasm of the youth and Intelligentsia. Then the Muslim Brotherhood hijacked the revolution and it all came crashing down.
I realized that we cannot impose Democracy in the middle east, nor even promote it effectively. There is a different mind set in that culture that does not lend itself to Democracy as we know it.
The vast majority of the populations are illiterate, so how does one promote candidates? In Egypt it was primarily via the Mosques, where most people go to pray and listen to what their Imam has to say. That, effectively, gave the M.B. a free ride to the presidency. The same would be true in Iraq and Afghanistan, maybe even more so.
The best we can hope to do is to leave them with a relatively stable government equipped with security forces capable of maintaining some semblance of order. What they do with it once we leave is way beyond our control, or obligation.
Sorry, but I don't want to pay for "nation building" half way around the world.
Did I hear Obama right? The reason gas prices are so high now is because the economy is marginally better than when he took office? That if we want low gas prices we have to go back to a tanking economy?
I have experienced decades of a booming economy with reasonable gas prices - he is full of sh##.
If he doesn't understand how his policies have negatively affected not only gas prices, but the economy and job growth in general, how will he ever be able to fix it?
Obama talks and talks and talks.... he just never "does".
The president is correct on this one..........when he took office everything (including gas prices) were falling off the cliff........we could nationalize the energy business and control prices that way or maybe we could quit EXPORTing our own oil..........what do you think we shoud do about it MOMINNJ ??????
One thing i do know for sure is that Paul Ryan is the dumbest piece of garbage there is. This guy has no clue what so ever about the state of our nation. He's a walking lie, and a VERY ugly one at that. He's a freak.
Romney is a corporate raider who off shores his money in the same places the drug dealers put theirs.
You guys don't like corporations, so that would be a good thing.
Bottom line is I don't want any more religious fanatics in the Oval Office....Bush was quite enough. The Morman church must be as corrupt as the rest of them to support this guy.
exlax ETCH-A-SKETCH tries to "paint" himself as a pious person, yet he stands in front of the 99% American People and CONSTANTLY LIES to them, TWISTS HIS WORDS to make himself look good!! In REALITY, when he was FINALLY EXPOSED TO WHAT HE REALLY IS WITH HIS HIDDEN "47% VIDEO" ! He tried to change his RHETORIC and said, "I MADE A MISTAKE". He sure as hell DID MAKE A MISTAKE, HE TOLD THE TRUTH ON HIMSELF FOR ONCE!!
99% American People, you can see why it is so important to VOTE & vote 100% STRAIGHT DEMOCRATIC and let's rid our selves of this corrupt Republican corporate MONARCHY that has MADE SLAVES OF US! All because of their UNCONTROLLED CAPITALISTIC GREED, THAT exlax ETCH-A-SKETCH calls "FREE ENTERPRISE"! Free enterprise for his ONE-PERCENTERS & their FOREVER VACATIONING CEO'S living the LIFE OF LUXURY on 77% of our country's wealth while the 99% American People have been DRIVEN INTO POVERTY with ONLY 23% of "OUR" country's wealth!! That's NOT DEMOCRACY by any stretch of the imagination! It is NOTHING LESS THAN BLATANT CRIMINAL HYPOCRISY!!
Gas prices undergo wild fluctuations in price constantly, leading to economic hardships for individuals and disruptions to our economy. Yet Romney wants to increase our dependence on oil and reduce the amount of market options available. Romney's energy stance benefits only those who profit from oil dependency and a lack of market options. Romney's plan to use government to increase dependence on oil is foolish.
The CORRUPT Republican corporate MONARCHY better not be sending "OUR" OIL & NATURAL GAS overseas in an effort to keep their corrupt 3x's too high gasoline prices on the 99% American People!
They are in effect stymiing our economic rebound by TAKING MONEY from the 99% American People which could be used to buy other NECESSARY PRODUCTS that they CANNOT AFFORD RIGHT NOW because of the corrupt Republican OIL & FINANCIAL corporate MONARCHY'S 3x's too high gasoline prices!
99% American People, can you see why it is so important to VOTE & vote 100% STRAIGHT DEMOCRATIC and let's rid our selves of their BLATANT CRIMINAL CORRUPTION once & FOREVER!! The lives you save WILL be YOURS & your CHILDREN!! BELIEVE IT, NOTHING MORE COULD BE TRUER!
The strangest moment of the night had to be while Romney was asking Obama about the terrorist attack cover-up and Michelle started clapping! For some odd reason, she just couldn't control herself and honor the rules of silence during the debate.
Oh, that's right, rules don't apply to the Obama's.
Both of them stood there and dodged questions and pandered to whom ever they felt would listen to their rhetoric.. this debate was a joke. One guy never got his question addressed which was why did blamo not have security increased ahead of the azzazsination in Libya?? He did not attend the briefings empty chair and empty suit is right.
It seems to me that neither candidate put oil and gas production in its proper light. We do have more oil here than we have drilled. However, the drilling for these wells is quite expensive. One of two things will happen. If we drill as Romney said and he is right (and there is no proof of that) then we can go a long way towards energy independence. However, one of the reasons the feds have not issued as many permits offshore and on federal lands is because the price of natural gas is very low and no one is interested in making an additional investment in it. The same thing would happen with oil. If oil falls below $85 a barrel on the world market then oil drilling in this country would stop. I don't think we can find enough but one of the ways OPEC has shut down our drilling in the past (1986) is by flooding the market and bringing down prices. It took the industry about ten years to recover. From what I have read above if you were for Romney anyway you take his side. If you were for Obama anyway you take his side. People act like they have an open mind and I don't know why they go to the trouble because it fools no one. I don't personally care for Obama and cannot stand Romney or Ryan. They would not invite me to their homes and they are not welcome in mine. What this debate is about is the form of government we are going to have. If you believe in no unions, deregulation and a strong military presence in the mid east you are going to vote for Romney/Ryan. If you believe in some regulation, a tempered presence in the mid east and unions you are going to vote for Obama. Liberalism and conservatism have both failed many times because of their obvious flaws. Our country right now is like a business that has gone broke. All the partners are blaming each other. Doesn't change anything.
When it comes to the price of gas the Oil Barons are the 500lb Gorilla with all the Bananas, the rest of us are a 90lb chimp locked in the cage with it. Romney and Congress know who to please, or else. Suck it up consumers and take it like a wimp.
Exactly...there is absolutely nothing we consumers can do about it...So I have found out that when backing into the pumps, if you wiggle around a little bit you might enjoy it.
Now naysyaers will spew garbage about prius and volt to force market change...yeah right wait for electric to skyrocket when gas demand drops...nothing we can do.
Shut up and take it is right
We could nationlize the energy sector and control prices that way.......or we can move to energy that can be installed on the roof of your house.....why do you think the GOP wants to "shrink the size of government"? Maybe so all R&D goes through them because there is no federal money for anyone else to develope new methods?
True, Gas prices were lower just before 2009 but were highest just before they went low. The Dow Jones plummeted at the same time for an all time low. The Dow Jones was at it lowest since 1995. Then the Dow recovered and the gas price followed it's natural course. Just Months before the crash, gas prices were at $4.40 or more went to $1.86 and not $3.65.
Want proof that Romney is a corporate raider? Google Michael Milken......yes that Michael Milken. The one who went to prison for being a corporate raider and a junk bond dealer. He and Romney worked together on a 300 million deal in the 80's........ROMNEY is a corporate raider who shovels his money into secret accounts off shore..just like Milken did before he went to prison. Is this who we want in the oval office?
So why is not Romney in prison? This must be the fault of Obama's justice department.
I live in a gas and oil area. There are three times as many oil wells in the same area as there were 15 years ago when I first moved here. Unfortunately, they cap the wells rather than put the oil into production awaiting higher prices and profits. As for the Keystone Pipeline - you can build all the pipelines you want but they are pipes to nowhere because we lack the refineries. What needs to be done is build refineries so that pipelines make sense. That's why Keystone was shelved.
Keystone was shelved because Obama needed the environmentalist vote. Yes, I know, most enviro would vote Dem anyway, but Obobo hadn't done enough for them, and some were going towards third and fourth party lines, Obobo couldn't let that happen, so he killed the pipeline. Yes, we need more refineries. Try getting permits from Obobo's EPA for that. No chance.
Romney goes on about producing more oil and gas in US. Thought that was sort of a moot idea since the refineries in existence now cannot produce more gas and too costly to build more. Did US build more refineries?
Hmmm, good idea. More refineries means more good paying jobs.