Obama to allow oil drilling off Virginia coast

WASHINGTON (AP) - In a reversal of a long-standing ban on most offshore drilling, President Barack Obama is allowing oil drilling 50 miles off Virginia's shorelines. At the same time, he is rejecting some new drilling sites that had been planned in Alaska.

apnews.myway.com...

I didn't see this posted anywhere and I did use the search function, so my apologies in advance if someone beat me to it.

Here's something else I can agree with Obama on - at least the part about opening drilling off the Virginia Coast. But it's going to take a lot more drilling approval to get us anywhere close to being independent from foreign oil. Either way, something has to be done. Obamacare is about to hit us with a new round of taxes and gas is edging up to the $3.00/gallon mark again.

I hope that he will keep up with the approvals and allow other sites to be drilled as well.


[edit on 31-3-2010 by sos37]

I heard about this. Pretty clever to open up the red states to offshore drilling, while keeping it off limits by CA/OR/WA.

Those states that it's off limits for should have to pay a 50% value added tax for those states that do allow drilling to offset the costs.

The recovered oil will get sold on a global market. There is no guarantee the oil from those areas will even go to the US.

reply to post by sos37


Can we, just once, have a discussion about President Obama without the stupid refernce to the Right-Wing Republican code word "obamacare"???

IF former Pres. Bush had championed a Health Care Bill, would the Republicans demean it by calling it "bushcare"?

AS TO oil drilling off-shore...sheesh!! The current President does what the Right have been screaming for him to do, and STILL he gets criticism?

BTW....it's NOT just off the coast of Virginia...

The plan, which would allow drilling along the Atlantic coast, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and the north coast of Alaska, is intended to reduce dependence on foreign oil and help win political support from Republicans for climate change legislation.

roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com...

Sometmes it's good to read ALL of the information on a topic, get both sides...

Oh, and here's the image, showing drilling sites off the coast of ALASKA too!








[edit on 31 March 2010 by weedwhacker]

I heard it was actually 150 miles. I guess he is trying to meet in the middle, allowing a little offshore drilling but not making it easy. Not easy to drill 150 miles, but it can be done.

And any area that has any environmental issues already is off limits.

Drilling is just a temporary bandaid till better and alternative solutions are found.

Eurisko2012 would probably still bash him lol