June 18, 2008

Securing our Energy Future

This week, John McCain Outlined The Growing Energy Challenges Facing Our Nation And The Need To Reform Our Energy Sector.  Over the coming weeks, John McCain will lead a dialogue with the American people about their energy concerns, and the goals that we must set now to end our dependence on oil.  

• John McCain Will Break From Past Failed Energy Policies And Lead A Great National Effort To Achieve Energy Security For a Peaceful And Prosperous America.

• Working with the leading energy experts John McCain will work to design and implement the right energy policies to effectively govern our energy future by enhancing our economic stability, national security and environmental protection.

Our Growing Energy Challenges

The United States And Our Economy Are Overly Dependent On Foreign Sources Of Oil.  America currently imports approximately two thirds of the oil it needs. We have doubled our imports of foreign oil in the last 30 years which is a clear failure of leadership from both political parties, the Administration and Congress.  

American Dependence On Foreign Sources Of Oil Contributes Wealth To Undemocratic Governments, That Are Both Supportive Of, And Vulnerable To Terrorist Attacks.  Oil revenues are enriching our enemies. Iran alone receives more than $66 billion a year from oil sales. Relying upon oil from the Middle East not only provides wealth to the sponsors of terror – we provide high-value targets to the terrorists themselves.

Increased Oil Prices Effect More Than Just Fuel For Our Cars.  In recent months, the world has seen an overall increase in the price of food. This is a direct result of increased fuel prices for transportation and the redirecting of grains and feed towards ethanol.

Breaking Our Dependence On Foreign Sources Of Oil

John McCain Believes That It Is Time For The Federal Government To Allow States And Localities To Open Their Oil Reserves On The Outer Continental Shelf.  The Federal Government has prohibited oil and gas leasing on most of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) since the 1980s. John McCain believes we should lift the federal moratorium on these areas and allow the local stakeholders and states decide whether or not they would like to allow exploration in these areas. 

Over Time, John McCain Believes That We Must Reform Our Entire Energy Economy Toward A Sustainable Mix Of New And Cleaner Power Sources.

• Nuclear Power Is A Proven, Zero-Emission Source Of Energy And It Is Time To Recommit To Advancing Our Use Of Nuclear Power.

• Coal Will Play A Critical Role In Our Energy Future. 

• John McCain Will Commit His Administration To A Prosperous Clean Technology Agenda And To Becoming The World Leader In Green Technologies. 

• Barack Obama Does Not Support Expanding Domestic Development Of Any Of Our Abundant Energy Resources. Barack Obama believes we should keep all federal moratoriums in place for offshore exploration and does not support expanding the nuclear power. He has also been unclear about the role coal will play in our energy future even though it is our most abundant domestic resource for energy production. 

This Week’s Note From Jo Ann:

High gas prices are at the top of the list of concerns of Americans.  Here are some very strong talking points you can use when discussing this issue in the weeks ahead.  We will continue to provide you information on John McCain’s proposals to lessen the country’s dependence on foreign oil sources.

Again, I hope you will share these talking points with your e-mail list and encourage them to go to our website, http://women.gop.com and sign up to receive Talking Points and other communications on conference calls, campaign events, etc.

Thanks for all you do.

Click here for the complete archive of the Co-Chairman's Talking Points