Bush Lifts Ban on Offshore Oil Drilling

President George W. Bush has lifted the executive ban on oil drilling on the outer continental shelf in an effort to increase the nation's oil production in the face of soaring gas prices. In ending the ban, which was signed by President George H. W. Bush in 1990, Bush has pushed the Democratic-led Congress to lift their own legislative ban.

Opponents of the plan -- many within the Bush administration -- believe that opening up offshore drilling would neither reduce prices at the pump in the short-term, nor provide a long-term energy solution, a viewpoint shared by Democratic presidential nominee Senator Barack Obama.

GET INFORMED

• Read "Bush lifts executive ban on offshore drilling" (Associated Press, July 14, 2008)
• Watch the video of Bush's speech (Associated Press, July 14, 2008)
• Read Senator Obama's response to Bush (Time Magazine, July 14, 2008)

GET INVOLVED

• Sign the National Resources Defense Council's petition urging Congress to oppose the lifting of the legislative ban

photo courtesy JohnMMM, Creative Commons