The American people and especially the people of Louisiana have been out right deceived and lied to concerning offshore drilling in the Gulf Of Mexico, the impact of rigs working or not working, the moratorium and the effects there of. This commentary will provide the true facts and show what President's policies were best for the nation, the people of Louisiana and yes the best for the oil industry.
The deceivers opposed the moratorium after the BP spill even though the explosion took the lives of 11 rig workers and no one seemed to have the answer as to what caused the explosion. President Obama made the right decision with the temporary moratorium. The opposition shoved safety aside and did a disservice to the families of the 11 workers who lost their lives and the workers themselves. The deceivers will herein after be addressed as the opposition.
The opposition kept talking about rigs moving out of the Gulf, being idle, rig workers in the thousands being laid off and making America more dependent on foreign oil all because of the moratorium. However, as Boone Pickens pointed out, the nation was more dependent on foreign oil before the BP explosion.
The record you are about to read concerning offshore drilling in the Gulf off Louisiana will not only tell the real story of the deception but point out how the largest exodus of rigs from Louisiana offshore in the Gulf happened on the republican watch of President George W. Bush along with the highest sustained price of a barrel of oil in the past 40 years.
The below annual yearly average of rigs working offshore Louisiana in the Gulf under the following administrations are:
1) The administration of President George H. W. Bush:
1989 72 Rigs working
1990 76 ditto
1991 57 ditto
1992 38 ditto
The annual average of rigs working under Bush's time in office 60.75
2) The administration of President Bill Clinton:
1993 60 Rigs working
1994 78 "
1995 82 "
1996 88 "
1997 102 "
1998 106 "
1999 88 "
2000 118 "
The annual average of rigs working under Clinton's time in office 90.25
3) The administration of President George W. Bush:
2001 119 Rigs working
2002 92 "
2003 85 "
2004 79 "
2005 79 "
2006 73 "
2007 61 "
2008 53 "
The annual average of rigs working under George W. Bush's time in office 80.12
Note 1: The above number taken from Baker-Hughes rig count annual average by states 1987-2010 and is the bible of rig activity used by the oil industry. The numbers do not represent the high or low for the year but the average.
One must note the offshore rig count declined 34 rigs on President George H.W. Bush's watch from his first year in office to his last. It increased by 58 rigs on President Clinton's watch and increased every year except one. The rig count not only declined on George W. Bush's watch by 66 rigs, it also declined every year except one. Does any one remember the opposition asking what happened to those rigs that caused the exodus on Bush's watch and where did they go.
The annual average price of a barrel of oil on George H.W. Bush's watch was $33.26. Under Bill Clinton's watch it was $24.78 and under George W. Bush's watch it was $51.34. In fact the highest sustained annual price of a barrel of oil on George W. Bush's watch was the highest in over 30 years and lasted 6 straight years.
Note 2: The above numbers on the annual price of a barrel of oil was taken from Historical Crude Oil Prices posted at inflationdata.com. It does not show the highest or lowest yearly price but the average.
The above numbers show that the Clinton Administration and its economic policies provided the oil industry with the best conditions to operate under and they responded with rig activity. Clinton's policies also provided the American people and the people of Louisiana the lowest sustained prices of a barrel of oil and there fore gasoline in the last 40 years. The record also is complete that Clinton raised the Corporate tax rate during his administration and increased taxes on those making over $200,000.00 a year and it had a positive effect onthe economy and did not hurt drilling one bit. The opposition has egg all over their faces.
There were good reasons for the moratorium on Gulf drilling after the BP spill that anyone with common sense can understand. What happened on George W. Bush's watch with the more than doubling the price of a barrel of oil and the exodus of rigs from the Gulf is called greed and one can be justified in concluding it was the result of the secret decisions made by the Bush administration and the energy industry executives. Why operate more rigs when the price of oil was doubled.
You could go back to the Reagan years and the results would be the same. The Clinton record would knock Reagan's socks off. So much for the fairy tale of republican conservatism.
Special Note: For related comparison of the above Presidents see my past commentaries on the Economy, Deficit Spending, the National Debt and Federal Spending.
