On Tuesday, President Obama met with his so-called Council on Jobs and Competitiveness to discuss its recommendations for the U.S. economy. Despite the panel being stacked with cronies and rent-seekers, its recommendations were mostly sensible. The council recommended aggressively pushing to develop U.S. energy resources, streamlining federal regulations and reforming the corporate tax code to reduce the rate and spur international competitiveness. (more)
Alberta’s top official said this evening that the White House’s surprise opposition to the Keystone XL pipeline pressures the province to seek different export routes for its valuable oil. (more)
Two months ago, President Obama announced his latest stimulus proposal, which is a continuation of the same failed policies we’ve seen over the last three years — higher taxes to fund more costly government spending programs. (more)
Time after time, politicians believe they know best. Taxpayer-funded investments in “green jobs” have been repeatedly exposed as failures, but what F.A. Hayek called “the fatal conceit” — the idea that central economic planners have the knowledge and wisdom to make decisions for us — keeps a firm grip on Washington. Politicians seem intent on picking winners and losers, substituting their own political whim for legitimate consumer preferences, but fail to recognize the disastrous consequences. (more)
In 2009, I directed a study entitled “Study of the Effects on Employment of Public Aid to Renewable Energy Sources.” It focused on the Spanish government’s efforts to become the world leader in renewable energy by subsidizing selected energy sources favored by interest groups (and therefore politicians) but not private investors, unless politicians guaranteed their investments. (more)
In the coming days, President Obama is expected to unveil another plan to create jobs, spur economic growth and revive our stagnant economy. This is critical, as the nation’s unemployment rate continues to hover above 9.0% and nearly 14 million Americans are out of work. Those caught in this economic malaise need help and they need it now. (more)
Why have oil and gasoline prices soared for most of the last few years — and why, despite a recent dip in prices, do many analysts expect them to rise for years to come? It comes down to supply and demand. (more)
Republicans framed the debt limit issue properly with “Cut, Cap and Balance,” which died today in the Senate. Now, they need a debt ceiling bill that showcases how they would change things if given an opportunity in the next election. (more)
New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg will donate $50 million to the Sierra Club to support its nationwide campaign to eliminate coal-fired power plants. (more)
Faced with the reality that his policies have failed to spur significant job growth, President Obama is blaming technology for high unemployment. (more)
In President Obama’s latest State of the Union Address, he proclaimed that in America, “We do big things.” Yet nothing about this administration’s energy policy (or lack thereof) is “big.” Squandering 30 million barrels of strategic oil that is supposed to be reserved for true emergencies isn’t “big.” This administration is a shrinking violet, afraid to embrace our vast energy resources, afraid to create jobs and afraid to confront unfriendly Middle Eastern countries with our own energy production. (more)
President Obama wants to force car manufacturers to raise average fuel efficiency to a ridiculous 56.2 miles per gallon by 2025. If this number becomes the law of the land, the only way car manufacturers will be able to comply is by selling millions of plug-in hybrids. (more)
The global clean energy industry is set for a major crash. The reason is simple. Clean energy is still much more expensive and less reliable than coal or gas, and in an era of heightened budget austerity the subsidies required to make clean energy artificially cheaper are becoming unsustainable. (more)
The Obama Administration is using social media for all it’s worth. On Wednesday, President Obama participated in a first-ever Twitter town hall, and federal agencies are following suit. (more)
There’s a poignant irony about the upcoming July 4 holiday: we’re celebrating our country’s political independence at a time when so many Americans are suffering from an acute lack of economic independence. Jobs are scarce and inflated fuel costs are making everything from food to appliances more expensive. And while the same could have been said about the economy last year, or even the year before, we are struck this year by the weak response coming out of Washington: tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. (more)
There is absolutely no good reason to release 30 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) this month. Yet that’s exactly what President Obama plans to do. In a coordinated effort with the International Energy Agency, a total of 60 million barrels of oil (30 million from the SPR and 30 million from other countries) will be released into a global market that uses over 84 million barrels a day. (more)
The White House announced today a large-scale release of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. (more)
When the U.S. Senate recently voted — by a whopping 73-27 margin — to end the 45-cents-per-gallon tax credit for ethanol, it did more than deal a glancing blow to a politically pampered product. It sent a signal that not even Big Corn, which for decades held Washington politicians in its iron grip, is safe from the harsh fiscal realities of a sputtering economy. (more)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democrats’ leading environmental messenger, Al Gore, is declaring that President Barack Obama has failed to lead on the issue of global warming. (more)
Our nation’s natural resources and access to affordable energy are under assault from environmentalists, business interests and progressive politicians. Their plan is to raise the price of fossil fuels to make renewable energy economically competitive. (more)
