Obama's magic energy policy

Houston Chronicle:

Prices at the gas pump may have fallen substantially of late, but energy hasn't dropped off the national agenda.

President-elect Obama, and his allies in a new, more Democratic Congress, intend to grapple with some of the critical energy issues of our time, from energy security to climate change.

Indeed, Obama has said energy is "the most important issue that our future economy is going to face."

The Obama White House is widely expected to take up energy early on, after focusing on stabilizing the economy.

Obama and Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill will have to decide — likely by March — what new areas offshore they might be willing to open up for oil and gas drilling, congressional staffers and lobbyists say.

Also watch for an early push during the new administration to resurrect an energy package that stalled out in the current Congress. That plan would require electric utilities to generate a portion of their power using renewable energy sources, force oil companies to renegotiate offshore royalties and push new energy efficiency standards for buildings and appliances.

Some other Obama priorities — including higher fuel mileage requirements for cars and trucks and creating a trading mechanism to cap greenhouse gas emissions — will almost surely wait until later in the term, while his call to impose a windfall profits tax on the oil companies may never happen, Capitol Hill experts say.

To help coordinate energy and environmental policy, the Center for American Progress Action Fund, a Democratic organization with close ties to the Obama transition team, is urging the president-elect to create a new national energy council within the White House, modeled after the National Economic Council.

A key figure in the debate, of course, will be Obama's pick for energy secretary.

While no nominee has yet been announced, names bandied about include Houston Mayor Bill White, who served as deputy energy secretary during the Clinton administration.

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White is probably too sane to be Energy Secretary in a Democrat administration. You have to start with the fundamental belief of many Democrats that energy is something to be hated instead of nurtured. There is no form of energy that some element of the Democrat party does not oppose. Oil, gas, nuclear and coal are obvious because of the Democrat carbon phobia. But, some also oppose wind and solar as well as hydro electric. You can also count on the environmentalist to find an objection to tidal turbines too.

To listen to Obama's expressions on energy policy you have to believe in magic. It is another area where he has made promises that are impossible to keep. He wants to do away with imported oil while still restricting domestic production. Democrats have sought to punish energy companies rather than increase domestic production. They hate drilling even though it is the best way to find domestic resources.

If Democrats were really serious about energy, they would look at someone like Mike Williams who was just reelected as chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission. It would also give them a chance to be bipartisan since he is a Republican. He is both intelligent and knowledgeable on the energy issues. Obama could do a lot worse and probably will.