NPR reported on the debate over increased drilling. It presented the comments of Ohio Senator George Voinovich, that the country should drill everywhere that it could find oil. Of course, it is possible that oil can be anywhere, including our toilets. However, realistically we know that the any amount of oil that might lie in our collective toilets is too trivial to have any impact on world prices. We also know that the amount of oil that could potentially lie in the offshore areas in which Senator McCain and other Republicans want to drill is too trivial to have any impact on world prices. However, NPR managed to mislead its listeners this morning by implying that increased drilling in protected areas would lead to lower prices. Its story on the topic highlighted the point that the Republicans theme "drill more, use less," may be contradictory, since drilling more will lead to lower prices, which will cause us to use more. While the Republicans very much want the public to believe that "drilling more" will lead to lower prices, this is not true as any expert on oil markets would have told NPR's reporters. Drilling more may pose real risks to the environment, it does not hold out any realistic hope of lower oil prices.
--Dean Baker
