Most folks don’t realize that aside from countries like Iran who have had sanctions imposed on them, the United States is the only country that does not trade oil freely in the open market. This is because of the crude oil export ban, which was established in 1975 as a way to counter the Arab oil embargo against the U.S.
There is no arguing that this embargo had a negative effect on our economy. In the wake of the massive gasoline shortages it caused, price controls and this ban on crude oil exports were implemented by President Carter’s administration to decrease the nation’s dependence on foreign oil.
However, today the crude oil ban is a badly outdated relic of the past. The past forty years have given us a much larger crude oil reserve than expected. We are now the largest crude oil producer in the world, and have plenty to spare.
No matter what political party controls parts of our federal government system, it’s very likely that this ban will eventually be lifted no matter what. Right now, however, with the American economy’s sluggish growth and record numbers of able bodied Americans leaving the workforce, lifting this ban could provide a spark we desperately need.
Our economy would experience a great surge if we took advantage of our ability to sell this oil. Oil companies would be incentivized to produce even more oil, and some estimates show that production could rise by nearly 3 million barrels per day by 2020, and raise GDP by as much as $1.8 trillion by 2039.
Lifting the export ban would spur economic growth and create thousands of jobs. Furthermore, it would diversify the world oil supply, which would strengthen our national security while giving us more leverage in foreign policy matters.
Recently, I helped pass bipartisan legislation to end this ban through the committee I sit on, the House Committee on Energy & Commerce, and ultimately passed it through the full House. Ending this ban just makes sense and would grow our economy. It is my hope that the Senate and President Obama understand the importance and benefits of this legislation as well, so that it can start paying dividends for the American people.
Absolutely spot on,
ReplyDeleteThank you Billy,
Harvey Hutchinson
Joplin, MO 15th precinct Jasper County
Selling oil overseas it could be YOOGE!
ReplyDeleteUse it or lose it! Better to hurry up and pump and sell it all before we all start choking on the fumes from burning it.
In 20 years all that oil will be just like the locked in asbestos or lead we can't mine anymore! Buncha PINHEADED LIBS doing socialist things like banning lead paint and asbestos. The worst insult is how many smokers lives could have been saved by asbestos cigarette filters? Filters which were recommended by many doctors but Nader and all his seatbelt safety crashtest dummies knew best!
One more thing. How much money could be saved if we still used lead water pipes? They last forever and save repair costs up front. They reduce Social Security payouts on the back end too.
Hoping to see these important ideas addressed by Billy and the Tea Party Caucus soon.
Hey Randy, there's a fascinating story about the City of Joplin and the Blasters' stadium lease.
ReplyDeleteIf you can take time out from thumbing through divorce filings and starting pillow fights with Bright Futures folks, your readers might enjoy learning about it from a source other than the goofs at the City who created this latest mess.
I rarely if ever agree with Billy Long, but he is correct on this one. Natural gas is a by product of oil exploration and this the the primary source. If this country wants to wean itself off of coal and oil it needs natural gas fired electrical generation as a bridge to renewable sources as well as to provide reliability to offset the variability of solar and wind generation. If prices/demand for one of these 2 linked commodities is depressed refinement of the other is adversaly impacted. Quite simply the only path to Clean Energy compliance and a greaner future is to leverage our natural gas resource (without developing a dependence). Right now US demand for oil is very weak while there has been an increase in exploration from fracking which has caused oil prices to plummet. As a result natural gas prices are low too but the demand is increasing. In order to stabilize oil prices supply must be reduced or demand increased. If oil exploration is reduced natural gas production will fall at a time when demand will be increasing. There is no elasticity in the natural gas supply chain and scracity pricing will occur creating a significant economic headwind. A better way to prop up the price and demand for oil is by exporting crude as we do with some other refined by products. I know it sound counterintuitive but it is actually a very green thing to do.
ReplyDeletePolitically it would give the US an opportunity to counter the influence that Venzuela's oil export subsidies have had on Central and South America
The only reason we do not have natural gas at the pumps is because it would cost too much to revamp our distribution system. Now, as to Billy Long, I seem to recall that both he and Roy Blunt invested heavily in Ethanol. To get a return to mandated Ethanol in your tank, the oil reserves have to be depleted and Billy Long is willing to step forward to help us all out on that one. This guy is totally self serving and if you believe he gives a damn about the average Citizen, you are sadly mistaken.
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