January 31st, 2011, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson today issued the following statement calling on the Obama Administration to lift restrictions on domestic energy, mineral, and nuclear resources:
“Today’s turmoil in the Middle East reminds us of the risks of being dependent on foreign nations for resources like energy. Today in America, most of the nation’s energy must be imported, leaving us at the mercy of hostile regimes in Venezuela and the Middle East, and unstable nations like Nigeria, Mexico and in others in Central and South America.
“The shame is that we have enough energy and other resources in America to provide for our own needs as a nation, but we choose not to. Federal restrictions are in the way. Those restrictions should be lifted to open 650 million acres of federal lands and to dramatically expand oil, mineral, rare earth metals, and nuclear leasing and permitting. The Obama Administration could do this immediately, for example by reopening the Gulf to drilling, expanding drilling leases in Alaska, rescinding the EPA’s endangerment finding, and allow Texas refining to go forward unhindered. Additionally, we must begin exploiting our oil shale, coal, and nuclear capabilities.
“A rapid expansion of the nation’s natural resources production would create tens of thousands of jobs and investment opportunities, increase revenues through economic growth, and reduce our dependency on foreign natural resources. Even without the turmoil in resource-rich lands, with close to 10 percent unemployment, we need to get the real economy unleashed. One way to do that is to rescind these government-created barriers to growth like those imposed on natural resources.
“It makes one wonder why it is this Administration and the leftists that support it are so opposed to America being energy independent and able to produce its own resources.”
Interview Availability: Please contact Rebekah Rast at (703) 383-0880 or at rrast@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.
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