http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/06/18/mccain_calls_for_lifting_ban_on_offshore_drilling/?page=1

McCain has been considered one of the more "environmentally-friendly" Republicans in Congress, but his speech yesterday is sure to anger his allies both on the Hill and off. He says that in order to lower oil prices, we need to lift the ban on offshore drilling. Currently only a few places in the Gulf of Mexico and around Alaska permit this. McCain wants to give power to the states to regulate drilling off their coasts.

"With gasoline running at more than four dollars a gallon, many do not have the luxury of waiting on the far-off plans of futurists and politicians," McCain told cheering political leaders and oil industry executives in Houston yesterday. "We have proven oil reserves of at least 21 billion barrels in the United States. But a broad federal moratorium stands in the way of energy exploration and production. And I believe it is time for the federal government to lift these restrictions and to put our own reserves to use."

President Bush also supports McCain's idea, but unlike the Commander-in-Chief, McCain still opposes drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Democrats have blasted McCain, who wanted to uphold the moratorium in 2000 before our current energy costs began to surge.

Boston Globe; June 18, 2008

Submitted by B.Shapiro