When, by the way, did the Republicans and almost all conservatives come to champion the frightening and economically ludicrous concept of "energy independence"? What they mean, of course, is autarky and socialism: All energy produced within America, and every single form of energy -- solar, coal, oil, nuclear, wind, etc. -- subsidized massively by the federal government. Even the Alaska drilling issue isn't conceived of with anything approaching market reasoning. "We," as in the federal government, should drill.
(Although the Republicans are more skeptical of the global warming zeitgist, they seem willing to champion big government programs such as carbon emissions limits to address climate change. Hey, environmentalists, with all the Republican leaders and corporate state adopting this line, you know it's wrong.)
