drilling

So I guess Obama has at least partially flip-flopped on drilling.  Given his previously strong statements against it, we can not allow him to get away with it.

If, by some happy chance, someone with contacts to the RNC or the McCain campaign is reading this, here's some possibilities for new attack ads:

The annointed one, Barack Obama, proclaimed his opposition to offshore drilling

(play montage of Obama statements)

until he had a new revelation in Florida two days later...

(play new Obama comments)

Barack Obama: False Prophet, or shameless panderer?

OR

Barack Obama opposed offshore drilling

(play montage)

until he realized that the poll numbers didn't agree (show poll numbers)

(play comments)

Barack Obama: In touch with the polls. Out of touch with the American people.

OR

Barack Obama said offshore drilling would be bad for America

(play montage)

but then the citizen of the world changed his mind again

(play comments)

Barack Obama: Politics first. Country second. 

Or something like that.  I don't know if it is too "harsh" to run. 

Either way, he shouldn't be allowed to get away with it.  The only reason I wouldn't run it is if it obscures the fact that it is a partial flip-flop.  But the whole thing is pretty obscure already.

From the AP:

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080801/D929PVL00.html

The two things that worry me the most are Obama getting yet another pass - he continually obfuscates on issue after issue that is vital for the direction of the nation.  Second, Drilling may be the only major issue the GOP has that can appeal to voters in a year we really have no business winning.

But it’s still been a good week. O’s lead has dropped from his bounce a few days ago. Dems are worried about this – worried enough to open fire on conservative blogs. These warm-up commercials are driving a powerful narrative about how superficial the Obama campaign is.

This is when it gets interesting.

Democrats say domestic oil production will not help in the short term and probably will not help for at least 5 years.

Obama also said there is "no way that allowing offshore drilling would lower gas prices right now. At best you are looking at five years or more down the road." - Associated Press

In 1995 the Clinton administration said we didn't need to pursue domestic drilling because, hey, there's "plenty of oil in the market"...

"The bottom line is, there's no national emergency. The prices of oil are at an all-time low, reflecting the fact that there's plenty of oil in the market. ...  And one must really ask, what is the spirit of the times in which oil companies -- in a world flooded with oil, oil prices going down, with no current intentions to really do any major exploration, announcing day after day that they don't have the money to do anything more, with 85 percent of the Arctic shore open -- and they want this. It's absolutely incomprehensible." 

We would have that oil today if Democrats had gotten out of the way.  And try to grok, for a moment, the hubris involved in Babbitt questioning "the spirit of the times in which oil companies" want to expand oil supplies.  Obviously, oil companies understood something that politicians did not.

Five years from now, Democrats will still be explaining that opening up domestic oil supplies will not help for at least 5 years or more.

That's what I told the charming young volunteer from the RNC who just called requesting another donation to match the ones we made last month and the month before that and the month prior to that, back to January.  Not one more dime until Jonn McCain decides to lead from the top down to allow drilling in ANWR and block any global warming legislation until we have an unimpeded permit process for building as many nuclear power plants along the lines of the French and Japanese models as it takes to ensure uninterrupted power in our future.  Not one more dime until we determine to repair and strengthen the power grid and provide drought crisis management plans and security measures against sabotage.

"Yes ma'am, but if the Democrats take the White House then we won't have any chance of implementing the things you talk about".  To which I replied, "right, but what chance will we have of the Republicans circumventing the veto pen of a Republican President who is either against or has absolutely no agenda regarding these vital issues?".  "Ma'am, I'm just a citizen like you, I don't know what I can do except to tell you that we need your help to offset the millions that the Democrats are going to raise against us."  I thanked him for his public service, told him he was doing a wonderful job, and wished him the best of luck in his efforts to engage continuing contributions from other Republicans. 

I will vote for McCain in November, but I will divert every penny that I've consistently donated to him and the RNC into my gas tank until he rewrites the playbook on energy and environmental reform.  For now, I'm voting with my wallet.