With the 2010 elections only days away, the White House and its allies in Congress are feeling about as welcome to voters as pork roast at a PETA rally. Much of the public’s repulsion stems from a stark contrast between the promise candidate Obama’s popular campaign rallying cry — “Yes We Can!” — made, and the reality of President Obama’s “Yes I Can!” actions. The administration has driven dubious regulations and legislation in the face of overwhelming voter opposition. Its relentless attack on U.S. oil and gas firms offers a revealing case study on this point.
In the wake of the Gulf spill, Obama’s Interior Secretary imposed a drilling ban despite the recommendation of not only economists, engineers, and industry leaders, but also the views expressed by his own commission. The President’s panel warned that the moratorium would “not contribute measurably to increased safety and [would] have immediate and long term economic effects.” Fast forward six months, and America continues to bleed jobs overseas while oil rigs sit idly and our vast natural resources remain locked behind red tape.
As Democrats suffered in the polls, the Interior recently lifted the outright ban. Yet, permitting delays — which all but shut down shallow water operations in the Gulf over the last 5 months — now act as a continued de facto moratorium for all offshore drilling. While maintaining a chokehold on domestic exploration, the White House is also pushing to increase the industry’s tax burden. At a time when the U.S. is working to reassert itself as a global power, our leaders in Washington are proposing to repeal a particular tax protection that would handicap U.S.-based multinationals in competition with foreign competitors.
The tax rule in Capitol Hill’s crosshairs — known as ‘dual capacity’ — currently shields American firms from being taxed twice on income earned overseas. By threatening to strip away this protection, Obama risks making the U.S. industry the least competitive in the world, save India, according to a study by energy economists Daniel Yergin and David Hobbs. Such a move would effectively subsidize foreign oil and natural gas operators, including BP.
Further decrementing domestic progress is the administration’s misuse of stimulus funds. As the administration waves the rescue flag of a bloated stimulus package in front of struggling Americans, $1.05 billion in clean energy grants is being pushed at wind and solar projects in other countries. As politicians peddle “green” initiatives, they are pouring billions into foreign markets, developing technologies that will only benefit their economies. While Washington touts stimulus funds as the answer to American hardship, they are actually being used against them.
The push for renewable electricity standards (RES) during the lame-duck congressional session is just another threat on the horizon. No matter how it is packaged, RES remain an unrefined and costly deal for the American people. While RES proponents continue to lobby policymakers, the fact is that in states suffering under these mandates, consumers pay as much as 40 percent for their electricity. Yet again, the Obama administration is pushing a costly agenda that to the detriment of those they claim to protect.
It turns out that Obama’s “Yes I Can!” attitude means that America’s economic recovery can’t. As the voting booths open it will be interesting to see if citizens cast their ballot for those who are quick to serve their own needs instead of the needs of those they represent.
– Tom Pyle is President of the American Energy Alliance.