Obama's New Drilling Regulations Will Make Us MORE DEPENDENT ON FOREIGN OIL

The Obama administration cynically tells us we need to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, while they have done everything they can to delay or stop us from tapping our own energy resources still in the ground. One of Ken Salazar's first acts as Secretary of Interior was canceling 77 Utah oil and gas leases that had gone through seven years of studies, negotiations and land-use planning. In an instant, he eliminated hundreds of jobs, terminated access to vital oil and gas deposits, and deprived taxpayers of millions in lease bonus, rent, royalty and tax revenues. In short he was making us more defendant on foreign oil instead of exploiting our reserves which are larger than any other country on this planet.

...Congressional Research Service (CRS) sheds light on the true picture of America's energy resources. The comprehensive assessment looks beyond the Energy Information Administration's estimates of proven reserves to include government estimates from the U.S. Geological Survey and the Minerals Management Service to include America's recoverable oil resources from areas both accessible and inaccessible to drilling. The results show the U.S. endowment of recoverable oil to be 167 billion barrels of oil, not 21 billion - nearly eight times higher than the number pedaled by Democrats. Remarkably, 167 billion is the equivalent of replacing America's current imports from OPEC countries for more than 75 years.

The President's refusal to tap our own energy reserves hurts us on a an economic and nation security basis, it takes the "weapon" of an oil cutoff and oil revenues out of the hands of those who would blow us up. If President Obama truly gave a rats arse about becoming energy independent, he would allow off-shore and oil shale drilling.

POTUS Obama does not really care about becoming energy independent, as Secretary of Interior Salazar announced new regulations today that will slow down the tapping of America's vast Reserves.

The Obama administration will expand environmental reviews before leasing federal lands to the oil and gas industry, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced Wednesday.

The environmental studies are one of several new policies announced by Salazar that drew immediate rebukes from the industry and highlighted the shift at Interior from the Bush administration, which was close to oil and gas companies.

Salazar highlighted the contrast with the last administration, and hailed the expanded environmental studies as evidence that oil companies have seen their influence on federal leasing decisions wane.

“The difference is that under the prior administration, the oil and gas industry were essentially the kings of the world. Whatever they wanted to happen essentially happened. This department was essentially a handmaiden of the oil and gas industry,” he said on a conference call with reporters.

“We have brought that to an end."

Under the new procedures announced by Salazar, Interior staff will conduct more detailed reviews of whether development would be harmful to lands and wildlife, including more on-the-ground visits.

The policies also pare back waivers from environmental analysis for some oil and gas activities that were authorized under a major 2005 energy law, and emphasize leasing in already-developed regions rather than new areas. The new policies will affect leasing and development decisions in energy-rich states where the federal government is a major landowner, including Colorado, Utah and Wyoming.

In other words, last year's slogan has been changed to Drill Where, Drill Later.

Industry groups said the shift would hurt the economy and make it more difficult to lessen U.S. dependence on foreign energy sources.

“In what has become increasingly familiar double-talk from this administration, Interior Secretary Salazar today again spoke of the importance of domestic oil and natural gas, while making it more difficult to produce American oil and gas, put more Americans back to work and help restore our nation’s economy,” said Jack Gerard, president of the American Petroleum Institute, the industry’s biggest trade group.

“Under the guise of offering certainty for investors, Interior Secretary Salazar has taken steps to further delay and limit American energy resources for all Americans,” he added.

An alphabet soup of other industry groups — the Independent Petroleum Association of Mountain States, the Consumer Energy Alliance and the Independent Petroleum Association of America — issued similar statements alleging the plans would stymie development.

....But Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee's top Republican, criticized the new policies.

“Interior Secretary Salazar claims the changes announced today will provide certainty, but the only certainty they provide is that more production will be driven overseas,” said Murkowski spokesman Robert Dillon.

In the end our President is working to keep one of his promises, the one were he said that Energy prices will sky rocket.