Why is there debate over drilling for oil off U.S. coasts and in Alaska?
President Bush recently lifted a presidential ban on offshore drilling, but Congress would need to do the same to give oil companies access to regions off-limits since 1981. The ban was originally spurred by a 1969 oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara, Calif. McCain supports removing the ban; Obama is opposed. Opponents say drilling is not worth the environmental risk and that it’s likely the oil would simply sell at the global market price at the time. McCain said last month that offshore drilling wouldn’t greatly ease the supply crunch but would provide a “psychological impact” to Americans and ease concerns the government was not acting on the issue. Obama said McCain is focused on drilling because it “polls well.” Numbers tell the story best. The banned offshore reserves hold about 18 billion barrels of oil, which sounds like a lot unless compared with daily global demand. If all the off-limits offshore areas and Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge were open to drilling, t
