In 2008 former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich broke ground in this book, Drill Here, Drill Now, Pay Less, noting, “America is suffering from an artificial energy crisis that is also a dangerous national security crisis—artificial because America is gifted with enormous reserves of energy.” In 2011 President Clinton took up the topic in Back to Work, insisting, “The surest way to create jobs, cut costs, enhance national security, cut the deficit by up to 50 percent, and fight global warming is to change the way we produce and consume energy”.
So the dialogue continues and the United States still does not have a strategic plan. From President Nixon in the 70s to President Obama, we have been told time and again that an energy policy is in the works and a national energy plan is on the way. Instead, we seem to see more regulations and more legislation.
For the first thirty years of my thirty-seven year career in the energy industry, very little serious attention was paid by the media or government officials to energy policies and issues. Today, the media is covering energy issues daily if not hourly, but still no plan.
Our national security has long been one of the most important assets we all cherish. Nothing in America moves without energy and the definition of energy security extends to transportation and power generation.
I recently made remarks at President Eisenhower’s Library/Museum in Abilene, Kansas and had opportunity to tour the museum. As part of the exhibits, was President Eisenhower’s contribution of the interstate highway system. If not for President Eisenhower back in the 1950s to construct this massive infrastructure, the road system we so heavily rely on today wouldn’t exist. We need vision and we need to develop a strategic energy “highway” plan.
In Hillary Clinton’s recent book, Hard Choices, she states, “where US leadership is most needed—is energy. Many of the international challenges I dealt with over my four years directly or indirectly sprang from the world’s insatiable hunger for energy and the shifting dynamics created by new sources and supplies coming online” and she goes on to say “natural gas (which isn’t perfect but is cleaner than coal) could help us slow the effects of climate change.”
Dr. Ben Carson in his most recent book, One Nation, states “several administrations have talked about the importance of energy independence…it is estimated that the amount of oil in the Dakotas and Montana is eight times greater than the amount of oil in Saudi Arabia. Yet the EPA has made it difficult for us to take advantage of the enormous amounts of shale oil available in that part of our nation.” He states, “I thoroughly believe that we have a duty to protect our environment not only for ourselves but the next generations. However, we also have the duty to develop our economic potential and free ourselves of unnecessary stress and dependency on volatile foreign sources of energy.”
It is time we come together. The US has the immediate challenge of striving for energy independence. It is extremely important that the US be in a strong position of securing energy reserves within its own boundaries. America Needs America’s Energy!
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