Think Solar. LINK

Vote the issues, vote the person, stop the partisan nonsense.

The American people would certainly benefit from the exploration in Alaska and off the Gulf Coast. By decreasing our depenendcy on foreing oil, we would lower the cost.

Also, the President mentioned adding new refineries to our existing ones. There are so few in the US now that they have to shut down production to switch to make the summer blends mandated by the EPA. This disruption also causes our prices to spike temporarily (as they have the past few weeks).

Ultimately, this can't be done tomorrow. Any new exploration would not yeild a significant enough quantity for a few years and refineries just can't be built overnight. So, our energy crunch appears to be with us for a while.

The oil companies would also benefit due to the increased flow of their product that would cause consumers to buy their product more. However, it is important to note that while the oil companies have been making record profits, their profit margins have remained constant.

I think that what the President was trying to convey is that while this is a very complex issue that can't be solved very quickly it would behoove our country to begin those steps while investing in alternate energy sources now.

The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public's money.

Well Alaska has a sweet scheme going. Oil revenues are that state's principle revenue stream. Personal state taxes are not levied. If memory serivces me correct their state budget has a surplus this year.
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