The Democrats in Congress can go a long way at this point in time towards renewing my personal faith in the party… by NOT responding to Bush’s obnoxious tactic to try and open vast regions of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) to oil drilling.Drilling in the regions of the OCS currently off-limits will have NO short-term impact on fuel prices (it could be argued that the speculation of future supplies may reduce the price of oil by a small amount, but in reality over the past 50 years any increase in domestic production has had little to no impact on the price of gasoline; these data are available from multiple government and industry sources).Expanding regions of the OCS open for future drilling WILL however allow many cronies of the president to make millions of dollars, if not billions, by domestic exploration alone, much less actual drilling (remember that much of both Bush’s and Cheney’s stock portfolios are involved with corporations that specialize in oil exploration and extraction).
Still… the entire reasoning behind the president’s decision to ‘open’ the OCS for expanded research and drilling is the reduction of gasoline prices.I say again that this legislation will have NO IMPACT on fuel prices.So, why will the Democrats in congress support it?It is getting increasingly bothersome to me that the Democratic Party is so willing to legislate rather than educate; our party’s position over the past decades on this issue has been the correct one!We need to be telling America why we are correct, not change our policy because we think this will work against Obama in the presidential campaign.The position of environmental protection is not a bad one.In addition, if we want to truly impact fuel prices, we would be supporting increased economy standards for automobiles, and an overall energy-efficient economy.The slight increase in future supply of oil will have a minimal impact on fuel prices compared to the almost instantaneous impact that higher fuel efficiency standards would have on demand.Wake up Democratic Party… DO THE CORRECT THING!
There will be an Obama rally this Sunday, February 10th at 1:15 at the Holiday Inn in Aberdeen. There is a volunteer coordinator for the campaign in the county, as well as an office at 16 N. Philadelphia Road which can be reached at 410-297-8530. They are also looking for people to do some honking and waving, make phone calls, door knock, and work at the polls on primary day.
Also, the L.A. Times has endorsed their first presidential candidate since 1972 by endorsing Obama. Click here to read the article.
Barack Obama has won in the Iowa caucuses, although the Democratic race is far from over. At this point, returns are mostly in and Obama has received 37% of the vote while John Edwards and Hillary Clinton are very close with 30% and 29% respectively. While this gives Obama an advantage going into the New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries, Edwards and Clinton are by no means out of the race. On the other hand, Chris Dodd and Joe Biden have both dropped out of the race and more are expected soon. Welcome to the 2008 election season!
Come visit the Young Democrats of Harford County this fall for one of our monthly meet-ups! Our next four meetings will focus on the candidates vying for the presidential nomination of the Democratic Party. There will be presentations by representatives of each candidate, and then the floor will be open for debate and discussion of that candidate’s political platform. All are encouraged to attend and participate. Is your mind already made up? Then please come and let us know why! Frank and open discussion is always welcome (and is preferrable!). Meet-ups are at 7:00 p.m. at Sean Bolans in Bel Air, and the upcoming dates are:
September 19th: Spotlight on Barack Obama
October 17th: Spotlight on Hillary Clinton
November 14th: Spotlight on John Edwards
January 16th: Mock debate between all candidates…one month before Maryland’s Democratic primary!
We would prefer the opportunity to give ALL of the Democratic candidates an equal chance to make their beliefs and platform known, but due to the relatively short amount of time remaining before the primary, this schedule seems to work best. We look forward to seeing you at one of the candidate forums! Please comment here if you have any questions or would like more information.
Here is Part 1 of the CNN/YouTube Democratic debate last week. It shows an interesting new debate concept for our wired political world. The rest of the debate can be found on YouTube, just search for the words CNN YouTube Democratic Debate.
by Adam Nagourney and Megan Thee of The New York Times
Young Americans are more likely than the general public to favor a government-run universal health care insurance system, an open-door policy on immigration and the legalization of gay marriage, according to a New York Times/CBS News/MTV poll. The poll also found that they are more likely to say the war in Iraq is heading to a successful conclusion.
The poll offers a snapshot of a group whose energy and idealism have always been as alluring to politicians as its scattered focus and shifting interests have been frustrating. It found that substantially more Americans ages 17 to 29 than four years ago are paying attention to the presidential race. But they appeared to be really familiar with only two of the candidates, Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton, both Democrats.
They have continued a long-term drift away from the Republican Party. And although they are just as worried as the general population about the outlook for the country and think their generation is likely to be worse off than that of their parents, they retain a belief that their votes can make a difference, the poll found.
More than half of Americans ages 17 to 29 — 54 percent — say they intend to vote for a Democrat for president in 2008. They share with the public at large a negative view of President Bush, who has a 28 percent approval rating with this group, and of the Republican Party. They hold a markedly more positive view of Democrats than they do of Republicans.
