Georgia lawmakers: Drill, baby, drill
At the Gold Dome, a trite phrase rears its ugly head.
The Commies may have bested us in the space race, but state Rep. Tim Bearden will be damned — damned, I say — if he’ll let them drill for oil first.
Yesterday, a House Energy Subcommittee convened to hear House Resolution 32, a piece of legislation penned by the Republican lawmaker from Douglasville that urges Gov. Sonny Perdue to begin leasing land off Georgia’s coast so private companies could dri— oops, sorry, “explore” — for oil and natural gas.
The bill’s message is one near and dear to many lawmakers’ — as well as some citizens’ — hearts.
There are some hurdles, however. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar recently pulled the reins on a push to drill offshore. And the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says any oil tapped from the outer continental shelf wouldn’t make an impact until 2030.
That’s not stopping other countries from drilling, Bearden said.
“China is drilling off the coast of Cuba,” he told his colleagues.
Well, maybe not. China isn’t drilling off Cuba’s coast. At least not just yet.