In Your Heart, You Know He's Right

For regular readers of this blog, many know that I was not comfortable with Jim Gilmore's candidacy for the US Senate.  I boosted many candidates, most notably Eric Cantor.  But in the end, nobody stood up and I respected Gov. Gilmore for taking on a tough election instead of passing like several members of our congressional delegation (I'm looking at you Davis, Cantor, and Forbes).  So I backed Gilmore and I've resisted every attempt to go back on it.

But I have been severely tempted recently by the engaging and uncompromisingly honest conservative delegate from Prince William, Bob Marshall.  He shows up everywhere, talks about anything, and most of all his defense of being conservative.  But I've seen a lot of Marshall lately and there is one thing missing - national issues.  Marshall runs like he's running for a statewide seat in the House of Delegates.  Gilmore runs like he is running for the United States Senate.  While Marshall should be proud of the marriage amendment and his fight against the unconstitutional amendments of Gov. Kaine on HB 3202 (and let me remind all of you that much of HB3202 was upheld and much of it has done a lot of good.  And its not just my judgment, but that of Marshall's fellow PWCer Scott Lingamfelter), I remain unimpressed with Marshall's answers on the critical questions of Iraq, terrorism and most importantly - energy.

No issue dominates my thinking domestically more than energy.  Readers of this blog know that I am fascinated and trumpet alternative energy.  The Republicans in the legislature have, foolishly in my opinion, refused to fund a full study of Virginia s potential for wind, solar, and wave energy.  But nothing is more important right now than the price of gasoline at the pump.  All the alternative energy we want is there for the taking, but its needs more support to full fruition.  Right now, America needs to do one thing and that is expand our domestic oil exploration and . . . yes I'm not afraid to say it . . . DRILL.

Gas prices will be over $4 this summer, nevermind diesel, and the Democrats in Congress are more concerned with the existence of the caribou and pleasing their left wing masters than actually helping average Americans like myself who over in the $30-40,000 a year range that have to budget gas into their finances.  Sadly, Senator McCain has fallen under this spell as well.  And its not easy.  This country is at the complete mercy of foreign oil barons that would make John D. Rockefeller blush.  They control the more aspects of day-to-day life of Americans than our own government based on all of this.  And of all the candidates for the US Senate, Jim Gilmore is brave enough to say we must drill.  Mark Warner is in the pocket of Big Enviro and Bob Marshall talks about clean coal or soemthing like that that won't help our gas prices.  Gilmore not only trumpets this, but he also has a plan.

The DCTimes has more on Gilmore and energy:

Former Gov. James S. Gilmore III said yesterday that if elected to the U.S. Senate in November he would push for more domestic oil production to combat high gas prices — a message he hopes will reconnect him and the Republican Party with Democrat-dominated Northern Virginia.

Mr. Gilmore told an audience of about 40 people at the Fairfax Rotary Club that the federal government should explore for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. "That's what we have to do," he said.

Mr. Gilmore, the presumed Republican front-runner to replace retiring Sen. John Warner, also a Republican, also said it is time to expand offshore drilling — including off Virginia's coast — to tap into the estimated 86 billion barrels of oil in the intercontinental shelf.

"Increased domestic production, I can assure you, is going to make a big difference in the world oil market and gas prices can hopefully be going down," he said. "This affects real people. It affects people in Northern Virginia seriously, where gas prices are usually a little higher up here."

Mark Warner and the Democrats say its "a simple solution."  Damn right it is, but its the right position to take.  Its simple economics, no?  The Arab barons control the oil of the world, but if we are able to find our own sources that we control (AND, don't forget, winning in Iraq so we can get some of that as well), we suddenly can leverage the Arabs on this.  We can help flood the market with American oil to offset costs.  Now I'm not some fancy city economist and I know there are other things going on but this is the most important and correct step this country can take to yank this country back from the Arab barons and really help the regular folks at the pump who's wallets are getting murdered just trying to fill up a Ford Focus, nevermind a large SUV or minivan.  Gilmore has also outlined a four-point plan that won't sit well with the Warners and Pelosis of the world, but its something that needs to be done to bridge this country to total energy independence through alternative energy:

1.  Drill in ANWR
2.  Explore offshore drilling
3.  Build new oil refinaries
4.  Explore nuclear power, the cleanest and cheapest of all energy options out there.

Its fashionable to be green now, even Newt Gingrich will cut a commercial with Nancy Pelosi on a couch for this cause.  Its great, don't get me wrong.  American ingenuity knows no bounds and we must cultivate every avenue of energy independence.  But not at the exclusion of oil and nuclear power which can help us immediately and protect Americans from being at the mercy of the people who support those who kill us.  With the political climate what it is both nationally and in the commonwealth, Gilmore's candor on this issue is both refreshing and brave.  That is why I'm supporting him over the more trendy Bob Marshall.  I recently blogged about Barry Goldwater and his campaign slogan applies to what Gilmore is advocating here (fully aware of the outcome of Goldwater's campaign).  For Gilmore's stance on energy:

In Your Heart, You Know He's Right

Comments

[xcurmudgeon]

I just hope Jimmie is going to be crystal clear that he supports drilling off the VIRGINIA coast.

[JLWilcox]

I have to say that I'm right there with you when it comes to Marshall(he is a very tempting canidate) but can he actually beat Warner which all that really matters at this point. I mean I might actually vote for McCain for God sakes just so the other two don't destroy America...and any fellow blogger with "conservative" in the title should know how hard that one is...

[The Northern Virginia Conservative]

Gilmore is a mediocrity, as I originally feared he was, and as you say, Marshall isn't tackling the national stuff very well. As regards energy policy...

http://thenorthernvaconservative.blogspot.com/2008/04/energy-policy-senate-race.html

This conservative does not support drilling in ANWR. Not yet. Conservation is a conservative value and I don't see the need to invade that reserve yet. Maybe I'll have more sympathy when I see fewer gas guzzling SUVs driven by one lonely person to and from work. Oil is not renewable and we have an insatiable need to waste it in this country, even though wasting it is against our self interest. I figure as a conservative, you set a good example. You drive the efficient car that doesn't need to fill up as much.

I don't know what you know about oil refineries, but I wouldn't be holding my breath for new ones to start popping up all over. There have only been one or two start ups in recent memory. It's a huge undertaking taking several years to start up a refinery. Take the time to think about the business process and all the capital you need to raise and all the infrastructure you must build, buy and lease. It's a big deal.

Oil will retain its seat at the head of the table for many years to come. People are warming up to nuclear power again, with fears of TMI and Chernobyl in the past. It is a relatively safe and relatively clean energy source. Some of the cleaner coal technologies show promise, despite the misguided complaining of a couple enviro groups that object to anything involving coal. America is to coal what the Middle East is to oil. But there really are a whole lotta fuels we can burn that we just aren't burning. Remember, you can make diesel fuel out of grease left over from your local burger and fries shack. The increase in oil prices has made that a bit more attractive to entrepreneurs and to fleets. Necessity, as the old saying goes, is the mother of invention.

[A Conservative Conservationist]

True that, 9:06. I agree that conservation, like a lot of other issues the Democrats have somehow repossessed from us, started out as a Republican standard. Heck, we were the original party of civil rights and equal protection, but they've weasled that away from us to. Somehow, we've let them.

I am leaning toward Marshall myself. I actually didn't get all riled up about who "marries" whom, so that doesn't figure into my leanings. It's more that I lean away from Gilmore. Chris is correct that Marshall needs to focus more globally in the issues department. To me, Marshall is largely a clean slate. It is time for him to speak up and tell us what he thinks outside of one or two more local issues.

I believe points 1-4 that Chris has above from Gilmore are just rhetoric, although Gilmore has to say a couple of them.

1. Drill in ANWR? I'm with 9:06. I cannot go for that yet. Sorry, but we're not desperate enough to do that. There is probably a lot of oil in ANWR, but experts actually disagree about how much. The estimates are rather wildly different. If you could suck all that oil we reasonably know is there and use it to meet all our petroleum needs, it would last us only one year. And then it would be gone forever. Under conservative estimates of what's there and how we'd probably use it, it would probably last us about 12-15 years, and would replace about 5% of oil that comes from someplace else in th US, Canada, Middle East, Venezuela, etc. Then it would be gone forever. In those 12-15 years, you'd still be buying a good chunk of oil from the sheiks and dictators. (I like to picture mine coming from Texas and our friends to north of the border, but that just salves my conscience.) And because oil is something you cannot grow more of, it would just be gone. People have wanted to drill in the ANWR area for decades. This is not new. I think it first came up in WW2. When I was a really little kid, I remember Carter having trouble with it. If they'd have done it then, we wouldn't be having this debate. Because it would all be gone.

2. Explore off shore drilling. Okay, Gilmore. That would have been for natural gas and possibly oil off of Virginia, by the way. Far be it from me to suggest that we shouldn't explore as a concept. Exploration is at the basis of most great civilizations. But Senator John Warner tried it and couldn't convince his colleagues in the U.S. Senate. I don't think Gilmore has J. Warner's clout or his alliances in the Senate. He'd be a the new kid on the block. There would be significant impacts upon a portion of the Commonwealth (the Tidewater) that Gilmore certainly needs to win. I believe that #2 on the list is cute, but is politically and practically a non-starter, and one to take off the table unless he hopes to lose votes that might have been his in a very populous area of Virginia. Most people down HR and VA Beach way didn't seem to want #2 last go around.

3. Build new oil refineries? Ditto, 9:06. I know a little bit about that one, too. It takes a very long time. They are hard to finance, they are hard to site (no one wants to live by one - can you blame 'em?), they take years and years to permit and build. They need lots of infrastructure. Access near pipelines, by barge, etc. You can't always stick them where you want. They are technological marvels. That's why you can go decades without anyone stepping up to build a new one. I think one or two have come from mothballed state and many have expanded, but Gilmore must be smokin' something if he thinks there are people lining up in hopes of opening refineries. We're starting to suffer from a lack of American engineers to design these marvels to, too, and I tend to think that is part of the problem. American kids would just rather contemplate their navels in college and major in political science than they would major in something where they actually have to be intellectually challenged enough so that they can help to design and build something. It's just the way it is.

4. The good thing about nuclear power is that you don't have to explore for it. That's the one good idea on Gilmore's list in my opinion. Nuclear power really is quite clean. At the simplest level, it's because nothing is actually "burned!" Processes that "burn" stuff generate the most pollution, in general. You've got "spent" leftovers, but not all the much considering, really, compared to some other processes and their leftovers. One problem, though, is that fossil fuel plants still seem to be cheaper to build for various reasons. So, sorry big environmental groups, you've still got to look at the lower sulfur coal (what 9:06 refers to as cleaner coal; "clean" or "cleaner" is probably a misnomer), too. America has lots of coal. I know that some environmental groups don't like that we have lots of coal, but the truth is, that we have it and we're going to use it, so there has to be some thought going on as to how to use it better. I have no great love of coal (it killed by grandfather, he was a coal miner who died of black lung), but it's been mined for generations for a reason. There's a lot of it. It's dirty, but it's ours, and if we can clean it up a bit before we use it, then there is some benefit.

My bottom line after such a long winded post is that I don't think Gilmore's 1-4, as laid out by Chris in his post, amount to a hill of beans. I'm hoping to hear something new from Marshall. So far, all I've seen from him on energy is that campaign item he sent wherein he urged Governor Kaine to seek a waiver from a federal renewable fuel standard. He's got to do better than that. (Governor Kaine apparently disagreed.)

Said it before, will say it again to the last poster:

True that.