Oil Demand in the US is Falling Significantly; Bush Panders

In light of the hoo-ey today by McCain and Bush about opening up offshore oil reserve areas along U.S. coastlines (an obvious pander to gasoline-price-stressed consumers more egregious by logarithmic factors than McCain's old gas tax holiday canard), I thought two articles that appeared tonight might provide some perspective.

Sorry I've been away. Busy, you know.

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Oil Falls a Fourth Day on Signs of U.S. Gasoline Demand Drop
By Christian Schmollinger
Bloomberg News

June 18 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell for a fourth day in New York in the longest losing streak this year on signs that gasoline demand in the U.S., the world's largest consumer, is declining as record prices curb usage.

Consumers purchased an average 9.305 million barrels a day of motor fuels, 3.2 percent less than a year earlier, MasterCard Inc. said in its weekly SpendingPulse report. It was the eighth week of decline. Gasoline demand was down 1.7 percent from last year, the U.S. Department of Energy reported June 11.

Read the rest of the story here.

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Bush To Echo McCain's Plan To Drill In Oceans
H. JOSEF HEBERT | June 17, 2008 09:16 PM EST |
Associated Press | Huffington Post

WASHINGTON — President Bush plans to make a renewed push Wednesday to get Congress to end a long-standing ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, echoing a call by GOP presidential candidate John McCain.

Congressional Democrats have opposed lifting the prohibitions on energy development on nearly all federal Outer Continental Shelf waters for more than a quarter-century, including waters along both the East and West coasts.

With oil prices soaring and motorists paying $4 a gallon for gasoline, political pressures have been growing for more domestic oil and gas production.

"He will explicitly call on Congress to ... pass legislation lifting the congressional ban on safe, environmentally friendly offshore oil drilling," Perino said. "He wants to work with states to determine where offshore drilling should occur."

Bush also will reiterate his call for development of oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, Perino said. McCain has opposed drilling in the refuge, maintaining that the pristine areas in northeastern Alaska should be protected from energy development.

On Monday, McCain made lifting the federal ban on offshore oil and gas development a key part of his energy plan. The Arizona senator said states should be allowed to pursue energy exploration in waters near their coasts and receive some of the royalty revenue.

Bush has made clear in recent weeks that the drilling moratorium in coastal waters should end to allow for more domestic oil production and help "take the pressure off the price of gasoline."

Democrats, as well as some Republican senators from coastal states, have opposed lifting the drilling prohibitions, fearful that energy development could harm tourism and raise the risk of oil spills on beaches.

Sen. Barack Obama, the Democratic candidate for president, opposes lifting the ban on offshore drilling and says that allowing exploration now wouldn't affect gasoline prices for at least five years.

Read the rest of the story here.