Can you guess which president said this? What are your thoughts on it?

Question

"On the battlefield of energy we can win for our nation a new confidence, and we can seize control again of our common destiny ... . Beginning this moment, this nation will never use more foreign oil than we did [last year] -- never. From now on, every new addition to our demand for energy will be met from our own production and our own conservation."

This president was for domestic production of oil... AND for our own responsiblity to conserve our oil...and with congress...wrote into law legislation that guaranteed that we would be energy independant from Foreign Oil by the year 2000...

This president was Jimmy Carter.

this passed legislation was immediately rescinded and torn to peices by President Reagan as soon as he took office.

as a result, we have gone from importing 20% of our oil to now, relying on foreign oil for 60% of our supply.

IF the republicans had not thrown out this law, we would already be a world leader in alternative energy, and we would not be dependant at all on foreign oil.

we would not be involved in any wars for oil, and we would not be beholden to countries who hate us, just so we can get our fix.

What do you think of this?

Answer 1

Liberals always speak GOOD,  talk BIG and look GOOD but NEVER PERFORM GOOD.

Answer 2

First, presidents can't rescind legislation, and Reagan worked with a Congress in which both houses were controlled by the Democrats.

At the time, solar energy was the fad idea, but costs were about 10-12 cents per kwh, compared to the going rate of about 4, if I recall. Carter's navy background made him familiar with nuclear energy, and comfortable with the idea, but that was a political non-starter, and it was the Democrats who led that charge after the Three Mile Island incident of 1979. There were also other parts of the plan that were simply unworkable or would have been so burdensome on the poor and the lower middle class that it was simply too much after the oil crisis lessened.

The automotive rules would simply have made it impossible for those who bought SUV's in the past 20 years to get them. That might have been good public policy, but we do have to bend to the wishes of the consumer. And I think you're more than a little optimistic about the results of your alternate universe.

Answer 3

I think there are too many people on these blogs that think they're "conservative", so they parrot what everyone else says about being "republican" and "conservative". Most of the junk comes from negative campaigning ads, mostly from the right, and uneducated talk show hosts like Rush Limbaught.    People like to be told what to think, then get on the bandwagon and shout and wave the flag.   They don't like to think for themselves.   At least the vast majority.  

Look at Samm's answer.  See what I mean?   The first few words are "liberals always..", as if he knows what that really means.

Answer 4

Yes. Don't forget Carter had solar panels installed on the roof of the whitehouse, and Reagan had them removed as soon as he took office!

The Republicans are deeply entrenched in the status quo - it makes them and their oil baron friends big bucks, while keeping the middle class 'in their place'.

Answer 5

Carter's keen awareness of the energy issues and his progressive stance upon them is one reason why his is probably the best president of the last quarter 20th century.