I wonder if a Republican presidential candidate ran on drilling for oil in Alaska and the Gulf, would he win? I think one of the candidates should come out for drilling and see what happens. I bet if he links it the war on terror, it would resonate (“Why are we funding our the war against us?”).

High oil prices are fueling one of the biggest transfers of wealth in history. Oil consumers are paying $4 billion to $5 billion more for crude oil every day than they did just five years ago, pumping more than $2 trillion into the coffers of oil companies and oil-producing nations this year alone.
The consequences are evident in minds and mortar: anger at Chinese motor-fuel pumps and inflated confidence in the Kremlin; new weapons in Chad and new petrochemical plants in Saudi Arabia; no-driving campaigns in South Korea and bigger sales for Toyota hybrid cars; a fiscal burden in Senegal and a bonanza in Brazil. In Burma, recent demonstrations were triggered by a government decision to raise fuel prices.
High oil prices are fueling one of the biggest transfers of wealth in history. Oil consumers are paying $4 billion to $5 billion more for crude oil every day than they did just five years ago, pumping more than $2 trillion into the coffers of oil companies and oil-producing nations this year alone.
The consequences are evident in minds and mortar: anger at Chinese motor-fuel pumps and inflated confidence in the Kremlin; new weapons in Chad and new petrochemical plants in Saudi Arabia; no-driving campaigns in South Korea and bigger sales for Toyota hybrid cars; a fiscal burden in Senegal and a bonanza in Brazil. In Burma, recent demonstrations were triggered by a government decision to raise fuel prices.
[…]
Two of those nations — Iran and Venezuela — may be better able to defy the Bush administration because of swelling oil revenue. Venezuela has used its oil wealth to dispense patronage around South America, vying for influence even with longtime U.S. allies. And Iran could be less vulnerable to sanctions designed to pressure it into giving up its nuclear program or opening it to inspection.

Read the rest here.
Clinton’s solution to our dependence on foreign oil? Let’s throw more money at the problem. Yes, the government is well-equipped to handle our country’s energy needs. Here’s her New Hampshire ad:

CLINTON: We’ve got to get serious about ending our dependence on foreign oil. We could create millions of new jobs through new energy.
CLINTON: Let’s start investing in what I’ve called a strategic energy fund that will put 50 billion dollars to work with wind and solar and biofuels.
CLINTON: And where would I get the money? I would take away the tax subsidies from the oil companies. They don’t need your tax dollars anymore.

A candidate from the Republican side should seize this opportunity to shape the debate in a way that will actually end our dependence on foreign oil by drilling for it ourselves. I think that’s a winning message (yes, I do because deep down we say we car about the environment and yet that doesn’t stop us from using private jets and driving SUVs).