The Heritage Foundation - Leadership for America

The two big issues in Washington this week are drilling and bailing out the automakers.

Drill, baby, drill. For years, Congress has banned oil and natural gas drilling on most of America’s Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Less than two weeks ago, the Republican convention erupted with chants of “Drill, Baby, Drill.” In a recent Quinnipiac poll, 62% of likely voters support “drilling for new oil supplies in currently protected areas off shore.”

James Gattuso and Nick Loris of The Heritage Foundation have written that the federal government should put the brakes on the automaker bailout. Nothing gathers a crowd in Washington like the sight of money being handed out. Thus, in the wake of last weekend’s federal takeover of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, automobile manufacturers in the United States were requesting help from the government as well. The Big Three—General Motors, Ford and Chrysler—are asking for $50 billion in low-interest federal loans to develop alternatives to conventional fossil fuel powered vehicles.