Moran Remarks on One-Year Anniversary of BP Oil Spill

Columns

by ARLnow.com April 20, 2011 at 1:37 pm 2,352 68 Comments

Rep. Jim Moran has released a statement marking the one-year anniversary of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon blowout is a sad reminder of the dangers of offshore drilling to our economy, environment, and our people. Those who claim we can drill our way toward energy independence are misleading the public.

The truth is that we will never achieve energy independence by drilling for more oil from domestic sources. The United States holds less than two percent of the world’s oil reserves, while we consume more than 22 percent of the global annual supply of oil.

Ironically, more oil is in production today under [the] Obama Administration than at anytime during the last seven years of the Bush Administration. Yet, this increase in production has not had any impact on price. Prices are set in the world market based on world supply and demand, and market speculation. Even if all restricted areas in the U.S. were to be brought into production tomorrow, their delivery world boost production by less than two percent. Each day, we consume approximately 18.8 million barrels… while producing approximately 5.4 million barrels. More drilling will not close this gap.

Until we truly commit to investing in alternative sources of energy, ones that don’t poison our air and water, we will be dependent on a volatile commodity that the rest of the world is competing in price to consume.

mehoo

I’m so glad some of our leaders understand the oil market and the fact that domestic drilling will have no impact on price.
- Burger
  
  Thou Jim Moran isn’t one of them.
  
  Unless, someone magic figures out how to make 300+ million cars not run on gas, or on the food we eat, the US as a whole, needs to do more to at least come closer to satisfying some of our energy needs.. This also includes other types of fuels but no fairy is going to stop by tonight and change my car from running on gas to something else.
  
  Isn’t investing in oil investing in the future. Anyone arguing to the contrary isn’t paying attention.
  - Boom! Roasted
    
    Drilling our last reserves in order to fuel everyones’ cars is clearly not investing in the future. In fact, there are better arguments for keeping it in the ground than drilling it:
    
    1. The price of oil is only going to go up in the long run, which makes our oil more valuable the longer we hold onto it. Let’s use up other peoples’ reserves and save ours.
    
    2. If God forbid we’re still dependent primarily on oil in the future, consumer automobile usage would have to be pretty damn low on the hierarchy of needs to run this country. Oil would be reserved for higher priority items (like military, etc.)
    - Lou
      
      Don’t hold your breath waiting for the legislation to end all US oil exploration. Be thankful rational people are in charge.
- ToolPusher
  
  We’ve done a pretty good job so far of following a “Deplete America First” strategy. The mainland is a dry hole and we’ll soon very efficiently clean out the rest. We are the best drillers and pumpers in the world. We need the oil, we are utterly dependent on it. As Kunstler says Americans will keep doing what we are doing until we can’t and then we won’t. Simple.
Rick

“Ironically, more oil is in production today under today under Obama Administration than at anytime during the last seven years of the Bush Administration.”

was he playing the repeater?
- Mac
  
  Would you mind
  stepping down from there with
  your license and registration?
  
  Would you mind
  stepping down from there with
  your license and registration?
- brendan
  
  not sure right meow would be an appropriate time for that.
- Burger
  
  And why is that? You mean the production allowed by the previous administration that takes years to come on line.
Lou

typo typo
- ARLnow.com
  
  Not mine, for once. I’ll change the quote for clarity.
Rosslynite

Instead of spouting platitudes, perhaps Rep. Moran could offer a specific, achievable, and affordable alternative we should pursue and a plan for how we should get there. Oh, right. That is not what gets you elected these days. It is much better just to crap all over someone else’s idea.
- Thes
  
  @Rosslynite: Also sounds like what we get from blog posters. What’s your idea?
  - Lou
    
    Keep drilling for what we have. Nobody said we have to be #1 in oil. Just like the US is the leading wheat exporter in the world, that does not stop smaller countries from growing wheat in less favorable climates.
    - mehoo
      
      Do you know how much oil we have? It’s equal to the amount we use about every three years. That’s it.
      
      Drilling for what we have has NO impact on price. None. For it to have an impact, we’d have to pump so much out that we’d overwhelm our refinery capacity, and the impact would only last a few years.
      
      Drilling for what we have will, however, rapidly deplete our reserves down to zero, making our ability to deal with a protacted shortage in time of war or other crisis impossible. We have so little oil that it’s best to hold onto it.
      - mehoo
        
        And, of course, aggressively drilling our own oil gives us huge disasters, with negative economic impacts, like the Gulf spill.
      - Lou
        
        So, lets get at it, then we can stop when it runs out. Shouldn’t take that long by your figures.
      - mehoo
        
        Like I said, not only is there no good reason to deplete our reserves (no impact on price), there’s a good reason not to (national security).
      - Lou
        
        The SPR is full. What is unrefined in the ground is not counted as strategic reserve. That is one of the most bizarre arguments against domestic oil production I have ever heard.
      - South Arlington
        
        Dude, the SPR only has about 35 days worth of oil in it when full. I think Mehoo is saying that were some type of war or emergency happen that went on longer than 35 days, the untapped oil reserves (roughly 3 years worth) might come in handy at that time.
      - mehoo
        
        What part of “it won’t have any impact on prices” do you not understand?
        
        The SPR holds about one month’s worth of oil at our current consumption levels. A big war that disrupted foreign supplies would likely require alot more than that. If we were looking at a war lasting years, it makes sense to keep our untapped reserves too, because the discovered reserves are only worth 3 years.
        
        Not bizarre at all, just not what you’re used to because you didn’t realize we’re an extremely oil-poor country, because nobody tells you. Thank Moran for telling you.
      - mehoo
        
        Yes, I’m saying what’s under the ground SHOULD be counted as a strategic reserve, because it’s so little.
      - Lou
        
        We are not just sitting on top of wells that could extract that 3 year supply at the flip of a switch. In the time it would take to drill and refine it, its strategic value is gone. That’s why nobody ever says we should keep that crude in the ground until we desperately need it, expect when flailing around on internet discussions.
      - mehoo
        
        Um, Lou, if we drill it all now, it’s going to be GONE.
        
        If we ever need it in a war, we will have the existing production to rely on. Even if that’s less than when combined with imports, it’s still more than what we’d have if we pumped it all away. Three year’s worth, Lou – that’s all we have in proven reserves.
      - Lou
        
        The funny part is where you claim people think we have a lot of oil. Can you direct me to where anybody said that?
        
        And on the reserve point, again I think you are a lone voice in the way you categorize it. The SPR is considered strategic because it is ready to go, on-demand for draw down. And it can be expanded, even though it is literally full right now. There is not strategic value in unrefined oil deposits that we have not even tapped. The only thing logical that approaches your fantasy is to physically build the SPR bigger, and then drill and refine that product so it is ready. But of course, that would mean drilling, and obviously Moran and his ilk are against that.
      - mehoo
        
        Lou, anyone who thinks the solution to our oil problem is to just drill our own is someone who thinks we have alot of oil.
        
        No, Lou, nobody is against drilling in times of war or national emergency – just depleting all our reserves before war or national emergency. That’s the point. Nobody, including me or Moran, has said to stop all drilling. Just don’t increase production with the hope of lowering prices, because that’s impossible.
        
        The SPR has only 34 days of oil. That, and production from wells at current levels that would last beyond 34 days, could be an essential supply in an emergency. It’s not that hard to understand.
      - mehoo
        
        Lou – I see that perhaps you weren’t saying we need to try to increase domestic drilling either.
        
        However, we are already producing at an aggressive rate – we’re something like the 3rd largest producer now. We can’t keep that going for very long with our small reserve levels.
      - Lou
        
        Look, there’s a whole lot you obviously do not understand and I’m not here to educate you. For starters, the SPR will last longer than that due to refining time. That’s a free bit of enlightenment for the day! But that’s all I’m giving.
      - mehoo
        
        Um, there’s alot you don’t know, Lou, like basic math.
        
        Sure, if you consume less each day, it will last longer. That’s like saying if you only drink one drop of water a day, you could make a glass last a year! Awesome! Good luck with that.
        
        The SPR has 34 days worth of oil, meaning the amount we consume every 34 days. Just like the amount we have under our soil is equal to the amount we consume in 3 years. Neither is very much.
      - Lou
        
        Do you believe Moran’s number of 18.8 million barrels a day? Cause if ya do, I’d say your comment about math is pretty hilarious.
      - mehoo
        
        You’re right Lou! That number is WRONG.
        
        It’s from 2009. In 2010, we consumed EVEN MORE (19.1).
        
        http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_cons_psup_dc_nus_mbblpd_a.htm
        
        You were saying something about math?
      - Lou
        
        Either number, your division skills are lacking.
      - Lou
        
        Damnit, I said I would only give out one freebie today. That’s it, I’m done being so generous.
      - mehoo
        
        Hey Lou, that’s an awesome way of not admitting you’re wrong!
      - Lou
        
        At least I can divide.
      - mehoo
        
        You said Moran’s number was wrong. I showed you’re wrong. No division necessary. You’re wrong, and you can’t admit it.
        
        If you have a problem with some math I did, you could actually try to show why I’m wrong there too. Until you do, it stands. I can see why you’d want to stop trying to question me though.
      - ARLnow.com
        
        Please end this line of discussion, it’s obviously going nowhere fast.
      - mehoo
        
        I think it was really really productive. The myth of plentiful American oil and drill baby drill is dead.
      - JD32
        
        Unfortunately, people are going to believe what they want to believe, facts and logic be damned.
      - Arl News or Not?
        
        The bashing over national energy policy is another reason why I thought this press release didn’t deserve a story on ArlNow, whether or not Moran issued a press release on it.
        
        I’d rather read people bash each over the HOT lanes lawsuit, East Falls Church development, the need for more burger / yogurt / pizza places, etc… than something that happened in the Gulf of Mexico last year. Much more entertaining.
      - mehoo
        
        Hey, Lou, are you confusing production and reserves? Did you think my 3% figure comes from production?
        
        Nope. It’s our percentage of world reserves, i.e. how much oil we have still underground compared to the rest of the world. Not production.
      - Lou
        
        It’s really very simple. If you divide the SPR by your usage per day (whichever of the numbers you finally settle on), you get a different number of days than what you keep posting.
        
        At least get your numbers right if you want to base your position on numbers.
      - mehoo
        
        Wow, Lou, you discovered that it varies from something like 25-40 days depending on when you measure it. Great, that really matters.
        
        ArlNow has asked us to quit this, so I’m done. I think my point is well made.
      - Patrick
        
        I’m sorry but to suggest that anyone knows with any certainty the total amount of recoverable oil in ANWR is a complete myth. Thus no one can say with any certainty “how much oil we have”.
      - mehoo
        
        Well, sure, but we can make reasonable estimates, with ranges. And even if it’s at the high estimate – or even double the highest estimate – it’s still relatively tiny.
        
        No amount of hoping for some magical, untapped, undiscovered giant pool of oil is going to fix the problem. We have 3% of the world’s oil. It is very unlikely at this point that we can dramatically increase that share, especially when everyone else is looking for all their oil too.
      - outoftowner
        
        Mehoo, please site your ‘3 years of oil left under our soil.’ I’m not doubting you, I just find it interesting that someone who is jumping on other’s ‘facts’ is just retorting with his own ‘facts’ and not exactly backing them up.
    - brendan
      
      at what cost?
      
      drilling here does not make us energy independent.
      
      drilling here does not lower the cost of energy.
      
      drilling here clearly does put us at significant risk and for what?
      
      The royalties earned by the US (and thus all of us) for extracting all this doesn’t come close to offsetting the risks associated with it. The only benefit to this is potentially higher profits by a few large corporations, many of which, such as BP and TransOcean, are foreign companies.
      
      For all the jokes and fuss by McCain about Obama’s remarks on properly inflating your tires – that actually does more to reduce our demand on foreign oil than tapping out every domestic supply.
      
      Plus, if all this doomsday ‘running out of oil’ stuff that “drill here, drill meow” proponents often regurgitate is true… why not hold onto it for 25+ years when oil hits $500/barrel and safer deep water drilling techniques are available?
      Make 5x the profit and significantly cut the risk.
  - Rosslynite
    
    I am not the one who released a grandstanding statement on the one-year anniversary of the BP oil spill.
    
    As for me, I have no problem with more oil drilling, or even $4.00/gallon gasoline. What I would do if I had my way, though, would be to raise taxes on the very wealthy and use the money to buy solar panels to give away for free to anyone who would agree to pay the cost to install them. I would have the government pay the installation costs for anyone with a household income below $65,000. In addition, I would raise the federal gasoline tax by $0.35 per year in perpetuity. You can see I would be quite the popular fellow if I ever got a little power.
    - mehoo
      
      Yeah, but if you just go saying things like that without first explaining why we can’t just drill our own oil, you’ll get simplistic idiots responding with “why don’t we just drill our own oil?” So you have to start at the beginning.
    - Burger
      
      No, you would be thrown out of office for lacking basic economic skills, Komrade.
      - brian
        
        agreed… solar power isn’t going to save us from nothing
- mehoo
  
  Moran is exactly right to crap on the idea of drilling our own – because it’s an incredibly enduring myth that must be destroyed before we can start with alternatives. Most Americans have bought the notion that we somehow have this huge magical pool of oil under our soil that we just need to drill and it will solve all our problems.
DT

I am just glad now that a dem is in office, that liberals suddenly realize the President doesn’t control gas prices. It’s odd how educated people become when you throw their own quotes back at them.
- mehoo
  
  Which quotes?
  - PCB
    
    Report Issued by Senator Levin (D-MI), March 25, 2003.
    
    http://www.access.gpo.gov/congress/senate/pdf/108hrg/85551.pdf
Lou

And seriously, who edits this guy’s press releases?

“Each day, we consume approximately 18.8 million barrels a day “
- ARLnow.com
  
  Just took care of that too.
Arlwhenever

No price impact? And here I thought that the price per barrel of oil was about $150 a barrel was Obama was nominated for President. Bet before they 2012 campaign hits full steam that the Obama administration is taking credit for controlling energy costs.
Arlington News or Not?

Not sure why this story belongs on ArlNow since Moran and every other Members of Congress send out press releases like Nigerian spam and the topic has little to do with Arlington. A Moran press release noting an anniversary of 9/11 would make sense since it happened in Arlington.
- mehoo
  
  You could make a reasonable connection between 9/11 and oil. 😉
  - R.Griffon
    
    There is nothing reasonable about questioning US foreign policy. REASONABLE people (read “REAL Americans”) know that they only hate us for our FREEDOM.
- ARLnow.com
  
  We will occasionally run national news stories with local tie-ins. The tie-in, of course, is that Moran represents Arlington in congress. We did the same for Sen. Webb and Libya.
- Kat
  
  I’m an Arlington resident and have been for 4 years but more importantly, I’m a New Orleans native. It nice to know, even if through a hollow press release, that people haven’t forgotten about Deepwater Horizon.
4Arl

We should have passed the Al Gore energy tax. People were afraid of paying more at the pump, right?
Pingback: Jim Moran’s Lies About The BP Horizon Spill « Red Alexandria()
Red Alexandria

In making the statement, Mr. Moran lied through his teeth. Sadly, ARL Now didn’t call him on it…

http://redalexandriava.wordpress.com/2011/04/21/jim-morans-lies-about-the-bp-horizon-spill/
- ARLnow.com
  
  The statistic has some basis in fact, whether you agree with it or not. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_oil_reserves
  
  This isn’t PolitiFact.com — why don’t you worry about running your own web site.
drilling not the answer

the bp catastrophe should have been a wake up call to us as it wrecked the economy and ecology of a REGION. the true cost of oil, gas, coal and nuclear is not the price you see at the gas station, on your electric bill, or natrual gas bill. factor in the cost of iraq, afghanistan and medical costs related to asthma and cancers….also add in the polltion to air and water, the loss of wildlife. time to move forward and adopt solar, wind, fuel efficient cars. america did not learn the lesson from the coal mine collapse, nor from the bp spill, nor from the nuclear disaster in japan. i don’t understand what it takes to wake up this society from it’s complacency.

Subscribe to our mailing list