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Politics : The Obama - Clinton Disaster -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: DuckTapeSunroof who wrote (34041)	7/20/2010 11:07:39 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 103300

Gulf States Rally Behind Drilling; idiotObama Ban May Be Dems' Bane By SEAN HIGGINS, Posted 07:11 PM ET Louisiana's Cajundome will not be hosting a basketball game, a wrestling match or a music concert on Wednesday. Instead, thousands are expected to clap and cheer for ... oil. The event in Lafayette is called the Rally for Economic Survival, and the thousands, including Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal, will urge President Obama to lift his ban on new deep-water oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Imposed in May in response to the BP (BP) oil spill, the six-month moratorium is highly unpopular in the region. The White House's strident advocacy — it enacted a second ban after a judge overturned the first — has soured many on the administration. The political impact could linger for years. Drilling is huge business in the region. A Louisiana State University study found that the energy industry was the coastal area's largest employer, accounting for 22% of jobs. While many people are angry at BP, few see that as a reason to shut down the Gulf's other drilling platforms when they haven't been shown to be unsafe. "Everyone agreed there needed to be a rally. Whether we'll move the needle (in our direction) we don't know, but we need to send a message," said Don Briggs, president of the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association, which is hosting the event. A Wide Gulf With idiotObama An ABC-Washington Post poll of Gulf Coast residents released last week found that they opposed the ban, 60%-38%. They also disapproved, by 73%-24%, of Obama's overall response to the oil spill, with 59% "strongly" disapproving. Other polls find that voters nationally oppose the ban as well. Nevertheless, the government went ahead and stopped issuing permits for drilling, earning kudos from green groups. There are just 16 drilling rigs operating in the Gulf vs. 55 in May, according to Briggs. Two have recently moved out of the region altogether and will relocate overseas. Others are expected to leave soon. That's an ominous sign, given that the process to set up elsewhere can take months. In other words: Those platforms aren't coming back. The LSU study predicted that the ban would cost the state 17,464 jobs and more than $400 million in lost state and local tax revenue. "People are scared," said LOGA's Briggs, adding that it's not just the oil and gas industry but the entire business community from restaurant managers to real estate agents. "Everyone here still remembers the (oil industry) crash of 1985 and what that did to the economy," Briggs said. Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said the rally marks "an important moment for Louisianans to come together" and speak out. "The president's moratorium is putting tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars at risk, and it needs to end before the damage gets any worse," Vitter told IBD. Numerous local businesses and trade groups will take part in the rally. Gov. Jindal is a featured speaker. But it's bipartisan: Democratic Lt. Gov. Scott Angelle will serve as master of ceremonies. The six-month moratorium was first announced on May 27 but was later overturned by a federal judge. The Interior Department then issued a second moratorium, crafted to skirt legal challenges. In a statement earlier this month, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar called the ban — the administration terms it a "pause" — "essential" to protecting wildlife and communities "from the risks that deep-water drilling currently poses." Salazar said the risk of another "catastrophic blowout" was just too great to allow further drilling. It's not clear how much the moratorium is affecting political races in the region. For one thing, few support it in either party. But Gulf Democrats worry that the action is badly harming the party's brand. "Whether it is Louisiana or Texas, oil production is what we do. We have 8.2% unemployment in Texas ... we're used to having 4% unemployment," said Rep. Gene Green, whose district includes Houston. "It is hurting Democrats, particularly in energy-producing states." Democrats in the Gulf region have sought to distance themselves from Obama. The Web site of Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., highlights a news story about her slamming the ban before the Chamber of Commerce. Landrieu's office declined to comment on the event.