The Obama Administration lifted its moratorium on offshore drilling Tuesday afternoon. The move comes in the wake of an oil spill caused by a BP drilling station that devastated the Gulf Coast. In spite of the environmental consequences, Gulf area politicians and citizens alike largely opposed the moratorium, which resulted in the loss of tens of thousands of jobs. The end of the moratorium brings with it new regulations on maintenance and observation of drilling sites, as well as stricter guidelines of emergency procedures such as fail safes and cashing wells. Support for the administration's decision has been limited and mixed.
As Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal points out, the moratorium was intended for deep-water drilling but since April only 12 new shallow water permits have been issued. The slowing of the federal review process has inhibited the process of all domestic drilling. Many companies are expected to object to the new regulations, but federal officials say there is no going back to 'business as usual'. Louisiana Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu has a lock on Obama's nomination of Jack Lew as his new director of the Office of Management and Budget; one she's refused to lift until the moratorium is finished. She still refuses to lift her lock, claiming she needs to examine how the OMB will handle new contracts before she'll consent to nominating a director in the midst of re-organization.
Of course the administration's decision has it detractors. Florida Gov. Charlie Crist opposes the lift on the grounds that until real investigation and problem-solving can be completed on the devastating BP spill. He claims that while the process of claims and repair on the coast cripples business, it's not appropriate to restart deepwater drilling regardless of new precautions. Natural Resources Defense Council executive director Peter Lehner called the action premature. He claims prevention is the most important tool available. Until we understand the damage of the spill and why it happened initially, we should not risk another disaster. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar responded by saying ""The truth is, there will always be risks associated with deepwater drilling, but we have now reached a point where we have, significantly, in my view, reduced those risks,"
This decision reflects the ability of a president to seize and consolidate power during times of crisis. Be it through rally around the flag ideals, a surge in sympathy or patriotism, or classic support for leadership executives often grow in strength during times of need. Unfortunately for Obama, Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing economic difficulties in the Gulf and nationwide have his approval ratings low. His attempt to reconcile the dangers of continued drilling with the need for oil industry workers to earn was seen as arbitrary and short-sighted. Our classic respect for leadership has declined steadily since an increase in media exposure rendered the White House less formal. There were no prescribed solutions for this disaster and both the government and BP came out looking unprepared, ineffectual, and poorly managed.
http://money.cnn.com/2010/10/12/news/companies/deepwater_drilling_moratorium_lifted.fortune/
http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2010/10/12/130515423/deepwater-drilling-ban-no-political-plus-for-obama
http://www.timeslive.co.za/world/article703915.ece/US-lifts-moratorium-on-deepwater-oil-drilling
http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/US-Lifts-Ban-on-Deepwater-Oil-Drilling-104807834.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/13/us/13drill.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hD3eceN6XYCd91U0H_GAfAKgJ96AD9IQC8AO3?docId=D9IQC8AO3
3 comments:
This moratorium is a really interesting source of debate in the wake of the BP oil spill. Some will most likely twist the end of the moratorium as Obama making rash decisions and ending the moratorium too quickly. These people will also leave out the pressure Obama must have been facing from the oil industry about the jobs that were lost. Obama is stuck between a rock and a hard place on this one.
It is a real problem in which the oil spill should have created a push for alternative energy, but the economic troubles and lack of jobs makes it difficult to justify slowing the oil drilling industry in the Gulf. If the economy had been much better, Obama could have used this as a justification to explore cleaner forms of evergy. Now he has to satisfy both those calling for more restrictions on oil drilling and those who are complaining about potential job loss should drilling become more restricted.
This is a very interesting topic. The BP oil spill had a huge impact on our economy. I agree with Alyssa that some people will twist this and say that it is Obama making rash decisions . I feel that we should not start deep sea drilling anytime in the near future. They say that precautions have been taken to limit this from happening again but if there is the smallest chance that this could happen again there is no way we should drill again. We should wait until we are near 100 percent sure that something like this will never happen again
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