Colorado Senator Ken Salazar spoke on Friday to an energy forum of the Independent Petroleum Association of Mountain States. He called for a “balanced national energy policy” and dismissed claims he is against drilling and exploration in the United States. He told his critics to just turn it “down a couple decibels.”
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0FcNNeuf0E
He pointed to the fact that when he became Colorado’s natural resources director in 1990, there were 11,000 energy jobs in the state. He claims we have been successful in building the energy industry in Colorado because now there are 36,000 such jobs.
The response from oil and gas companies: “I think the industry feels he could be more helpful,” said Doug Hock, spokesman for EnCana Oil & Gas (USA).
But here are the facts:
- Ken Salazar with Congressman Mark Udall and Governor Bill Ritter worked to block leasing for natural gas exploration on the Roan Plateau.
- Ken Salazar has been persistently working to block development of Colorado’s vast oil shale reserves. He sponsored a bill that attempted to block the release of final regulations on oil shale development. There are an estimated 800 billion barrels of oil locked in the ground here in Colorado.
- In July, Salazar wrote a Washington Post editorial called The Heedless Rush to Oil Shale in which he argued that we should put off oil shale development because the energy companies developing methods to extract this oil are “still years away from knowing whether this technology can cost-effectively produce oil on a commercial scale.” What he didn’t note is that the reason they are so far away is because Senator Salazar, Congressman Mark Udall and others have been blocking regulations which would free up oil companies to do more research.
It is disingenuous for Senator Salazar to claim his is for drilling when he is against it. The You Tube video below makes it very clear that his true agenda is to block all energy development under any circumstances.
No tags for this post.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – August 18, 2008
Group Launches Statewide Hot Air Balloon Tour to Rally Citizens for Domestic Oil Production, Energy Independence
Americans for Prosperity Balloon has a Message for Udall: “Energy Taxes Hurt Families, Kill Jobs”
COLORADO – The free-market grassroots group Americans for Prosperity (AFP) will bring its hot air balloon to Colorado beginning on August 20 for a four-day, seven-stop statewide tour aimed at rallying hundreds of citizens around market-based solutions to energy challenges. The group’s balloon, which has already made 20 stops around the country, will highlight the need for policies that would lower gas and energy prices by increasing American supplies and making domestic production less expensive. Even as energy costs remain at record-high levels, AFP says many lawmakers continue to oppose commonsense solutions at the urging of global warming extremists like Al Gore.
The Tour will kick off on Wednesday, August 20, in Broomfield, before making stops in Fort Collins, Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Glenwood Springs, Grand Junction, and Denver. All events are open to the public, but citizens are encouraged to pre-register online. For more info, including a full schedule, visit www.CostofHotAir.org.
“Instead of focusing on positive, free-market solutions to energy challenges, Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic majority are pushing for the proven-failed tax and regulatory policies of the past,” said AFP Colorado Director Jim Pfaff. “And they are cheered on by global warming alarmists like Al Gore who want energy to be much more expensive so American use less. Our hot air balloon is going to educate citizens on the hot air in the energy and global warming debates. We invite anyone who is concerned about high gas prices to join us for these events by registering online at www.CostofHotAir.com.”
The Hot Air Tour is part of AFP’s overall nationwide effort to promote free-market policies that will reduce energy costs, and oppose proposals by global warming alarmists that would lead to huge energy price spikes. AFP is also airing statewide radio ads in Colorado. The group supports expanding oil exploration and production to the Arctic coastal plain and the Outer Continental Shelf, as well as tapping into the potential of shale oil in places like Colorado.
Read more »
No tags for this post.
Andrew Moylan of the National Taxpayers Union has an article in th Wall Street Journal today showing how we could lower taxes by allowing drilling in ANWR now. Using Congressional Reaserch Service numbers, he estimates that the federal government could bring in $2 trillion in extra revenue over the next 30 years.
No tags for this post.
Vince Carroll points out that even Mark Udall can’t ignore the facts. Americans want us to begin to expand energy exploration now. But is Udall’s sudden change of heart to support drilling offset by his consistent opposition up to this point?
No tags for this post.
Join us for a Town Hall event in Fort Collins:
Colorado: The Energy Crisis and Environmental Alarmism
High gas prices and domestic energy development is the number-one issue in the minds of voters this election. It’s abundantly clear that $4.00 per gallon gas has Coloradans concerned and ready for an increase in domestic drilling. And Coloradans are also ready to tap into the vast reserves of oil in our state in an environmentally friendly way. It’s time to stop talking about the problem. We need to take action now.
On Wednesday, July 30, we will be holding a Town Hall forum to discuss how Colorado can take the lead in turning back high energy prices and overcoming the threat environmental alarmism poses to our national security.
We hope you can attend our event:
Colorado: The Energy Crisis and Environmental Alarmism
Fort Collins Elks Club
General Meeting Room
140 E Oak
Fort Collins, CO
6:30 Reception/Registration
7:00 – 9:00 Event
Speakers:
Jim Pfaff, Americans for Prosperity
State Rep. Kevin Lundberg
State Rep. Scott Renfroe
Other invited guests
We launched our Colorado state chapter saying that our first goal would be to educate and mobilize grassroots taxpayers in support of the removal of artificial, government-imposed barriers to energy development, which will help lower prices for cash-strapped citizens. This includes the vast oil shale reserves in our own state. It will take a grassroots army of activists to turn the tide of environmental alarmism. Can you join us on Wednesday, July 30th as we discuss these important issues and how we can take action to push back the roadblocks to domestic energy development?
RSVP using one of following:
email: info@afpcolorado.org
Or use our contact form: www.afpcolorado.org/contact/
No tags for this post.
Join us for a Town Hall event:
Colorado: The Energy Crisis and Environmental Alarmism
High gas prices and domestic energy development is the number-one issue in the minds of voters this election. It’s abundantly clear that $4.00 per gallon gas has Coloradans concerned and ready for an increase in domestic drilling. And Coloradans are also ready to tap into the vast reserves of oil in our state in an environmentally friendly way. It’s time to stop talking about the problem. We need to take action now.
On Wednesday, July 30, we will be holding a Town Hall forum to discuss how Colorado can take the lead in turning back high energy prices and overcoming the threat environmental alarmism poses to our national security.
We hope you can attend our event:
Colorado: The Energy Crisis and Environmental Alarmism
Pikes Peak Library District
Ruth Holly Branch Meeting Room
923 North Murray Boulevard
Colorado Springs, CO
6:30 Reception/Registration
7:00 – 9:00 Event
Speakers:
Jim Pfaff, Americans for Prosperity
Paul Prentice, PhD, Limited Government Forum, UCCS Economist
Colorado Rep. Marsha Looper
Colorado Rep. Bob Gardner
We launched our Colorado state chapter saying that our first goal would be to educate and mobilize grassroots taxpayers in support of the removal of artificial, government-imposed barriers to energy development, which will help lower prices for cash-strapped citizens. This includes the vast oil shale reserves in our own state. It will take a grassroots army of activists to turn the tide of environmental alarmism. Can you join us on Wednesday, July 30th as we discuss these important issues and how we can take action to push back the roadblocks to domestic energy development?
RSVP using one of following:
email: info@afpcolorado.org
Or use our contact form: www.afpcolorado.org/contact/
No tags for this post.
Nancy Pelosi continues to stand firmly against offshore drilling.
She and Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, appear intent on holding the line against calls to approve drilling in areas now off limits. They mount the counterargument that the oil and gas industry is not aggressively exploring large expanses it has already leased on land and offshore. They also have urged Bush to pour some fuel from national reserves into the commercial supply chain in an effort to lower prices.
Pelosi cited the 1969 Santa Barbara, CA oil spill which eventually led a ban on offshore drilling in 1981. But, in reality, Mother Nature is the biggest polluter of oil. Read more »
No tags for this post.
This morning’s Washington Post carries an op-ed by U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar of Colorado, in which he repeatedly talks down the promise of oil shale exploration in his home state, which could create thousands of new jobs and significantly increase domestic oil production, thereby easing gas prices.
In response, Americans for Prosperity’s new Colorado State Director, Jim Pfaff, has submitted the following letter to the editor for publication in the Post:
To the Editor:
In his recent op-ed (“Heedless Rush to Oil Shale,” July 15, 2008), U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar pessimistically and cynically disparages the idea of opening up Colorado’s vast oil shale reserves as a way to lower the price of gasoline for American drivers.
Read more »
Tags:
State
Bob Schaffer and Mark Udall traded jabs over energy policy at Monday’s first U.S. Senate debate.
Bob Schaffer proposed reduced taxes on energy production as a way to make it more profitable to do so. Mark Udall blamed high oil prices on oil and gas companies which he claims do not need tax breaks.
Rocky Mountain News
No tags for this post.
The Denver Post today reports that FasTracks, the organization planning RTD expansion in the Denver area, has abandoned negotiations Union Pacific to obtain a right of way. Though the Union Pacific land is better suited for rail expansion, FasTracks is unwilling to pay the price. The problem? Union Pacific’s price is too high. The solution? Take the land from citizens because it’s so much less expensive. And why is it less expensive? Because FasTracks can use the power of the easement to reduce the price by 50%.
The upshot: FasTracks doesn’t have the resources or the authority to obtain Union Pacific’s land, so they are turning to private citizens where they can get 50 cents on the dollar under the cover of eminent domain. It’s a travesty of justice when property rights on lands near the RTD expansion zone are being abused. (link to this audio for more from iVoices)Bulldozed:’Kelo,’ Eminent Domain and the American Lust for Land
No tags for this post.
Energy, Environmental Alarmism, Featured, Politics 2008 | Jim Pfaff, September 9, 2008 8:18 am | 
Comments (1) 