Obama to Visit Cushing, OK, on Thursday for a Photo Op!

When I saw the article in the Oklahoman that Obama was going to visit, I couldn't believe it.  We are the state that went all red, gave him 34% of the vote, and his numbers here are some of the lowest in the Country.  He has not been here since being elected and was hoping he would keep it that way.  He is coming in Wednesday night and will head to Cushing on Thursday morning.  After Oklahoma, he heads to Ohio State University where he will be touting their energy program.  Guess the rift between Obama and President David Boren of the University of Oklahoma is still alive and well since he is not visiting OU just south of Oklahoma which has one of the premier petroleum colleges.

Obama turned down the permit to build the Keystone pipeline from Canada to Port Arthur, Texas, in favor of his environmental voters.  Now he is going to Cushing which is the hub for the southern Keystone pipeline which was negotiated by interested parties not the Obama Administration.  The man has done more to destroy oil and gas in this Country then any other President but now wants a photo op for his campaign on the backs of the people of Oklahoma.

Today in his Saturday morning address before Obama heads for Cushing on Thursday, he calls for ending all tax breaks for oil and gas.  What I would like to say would not be classy so suffice it to say that he is the biggest hypocrite to occupy the White House since he keeps trying to destroy domestic oil production but wants to use Cushing for a photo op.  Now that gas prices are up on speculation, Obama blames domestic oil producers when it is this country's dependence on Obama's friends in the Middle East and South/Central America starting with Chavez who are the root of the problem.  Bet if the Saudi King, Chavez or Castro wanted to build the pipeline instead of Canada, he would have asked what he could do as he immediately signed off on the permit.

Below I have posted a few of the statements from our Congressional delegation who get it that Obama is here for a photo op.  Coming to this oil and gas producing state makes him out of touch with reality when oil has had to lay off people after the Gulf Oil Spill when Obama kept the moratorium on Gulf oil drilling far too long and today wants all tax breaks to end.  He has put all sorts of roadblocks in the way of the Keystone pipeline but now is going to visit the Cushing hub like he is a supporter of oil and gas.  This is nothing but a campaign stop being paid for by the US taxpayers not for Oklahoma voters but for voters in other states because of high gas prices.  He does not have a chance to win Oklahoma so this photo op is all about blue states.  

Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa
“When President Obama visits Oklahoma in preparation for a new pipeline from Cushing to the Gulf, we hope that he will learn a thing or two about the benefits of using our own domestic oil and gas resources, especially as gas prices continue to skyrocket. Unfortunately, we know his visit is little more than a campaign stop in an attempt to put a favorable spin on his dismal energy record, because current gas prices threaten his job. America has more domestic recoverable resources of oil, gas and coal than any country in the world, and developing these resources is the best way to revive our economy while bringing down prices at the pump.”

Rep. John Sullivan, R-Tulsa
“During his visit, I want to hear the president explain to Oklahomans why he rejected the Keystone XL pipeline and turned his back on using the oil and gas resources in our own backyard instead of spending $1 billion per day for OPEC oil. Connecting Cushing to oil markets in Canada and the Bakken shale play in North Dakota is vital to our long-term energy needs, not to mention it would create 20,000 private sector jobs here in Oklahoma and across the country.”

Rep. James Lankford, R-Oklahoma City
“Oklahoma is always honored to receive a sitting president, but I am confident Oklahomans and all Americans will not be fooled by any political sleight of hand. The list of obstacles this administration has placed in the way of energy production could fill volumes, from onerous EPA regulations, to filing suit against producers when a bird dies near a drilling platform, to having six agencies ‘studying' fracking, to his extended offshore drilling moratorium and the refusal to approve the Keystone pipeline.”

Who cares if a sitting President visits?  Senator Inhofe is probably near the top of Senators Obama doesn't like because Inhofe is honest about the environment.  Couldn't believe it when I read this article late last night:

President Barack Obama to visit Oklahoma next week 

In the first trip to Oklahoma of his presidency, President Barack Obama is scheduled to spend the night in Oklahoma City on Wednesday and travel to the oil storage hub of Cushing on Thursday to talk energy. 

By Chris Casteel | Published: March 16, 2012  

WASHINGTON— President Barack Obama plans to visit Oklahoma next week, staying overnight in Oklahoma City on Wednesday and traveling the next day to the oil storage hub in Cushing, where he will talk about the administration's record on energy.

• Oklahoma congressional delegation reacts to....

It will be Obama's first trip to Oklahoma during his presidency and comes at a time when he is battling Republicans over high gas prices and his rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline. 

In recent speeches, Obama has been pointing out that he strongly supports the segment of the Keystone XL pipeline connecting Cushing to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. 

TransCanada has announced that it will proceed with construction of that segment to relieve a bottleneck in Cushing that has been unable to move because of a lack of pipeline capacity.
The president is expected to deliver remarks on Thursday at a storage yard for pipes that will be used for the pipeline. 

(snip) 

A White House official said Friday that the president would talk in Cushing about the administration's “sustained focus on expanding domestic oil production — with oil production currently at an eight-year high.”

Fight over Keystone XL

Oklahoma Republicans said Friday that the president deserved no credit for the increase in oil and gas production since his presidency began. 

Rep. James Lankford, R-Oklahoma City, said, “After single-handedly blocking the Keystone pipeline, it is audacious to now stand in Cushing to take credit for American energy production, as we can assume he will. 

“I hope that Oklahomans can inform the president of the consequences of his previous energy decisions, and he can change his policy direction.” 

Excerpt:  Read more: The Oklahoman 

As the clueless President tours Nevada and New Mexico before arriving in Oklahoma, he goes on the air to demand an end to tax breaks for oil companies.  Guess he figures if he makes the oil companies the boogeyman for the American voter, they will forget that our dependence on foreign oil is the real boogeyman in the room.  Obama has done more to destroy and put up roadblocks for domestic oil exploration and drilling to make us energy independent then any other President including Clinton which I didn't think was possible with his pumping limits.

Obama: End tax breaks for oil companies
By Dave Boyer-
The Washington Times Saturday, March 17, 2012
 

President Obama said Saturday he can’t do much to lower gas prices, and renewed his call for Congress to end tax breaks for oil companies. 

“The truth is, the price of gas depends on a lot of factors that are often beyond our control,” Mr. Obama said in his weekly address. “Unrest in the Middle East can tighten global oil supply. Growing nations like China or India adding cars to the road increases demand.” 

The president didn’t mention one of the few direct actions he could take to try to lower gas prices in the short term — releasing oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve. 

Mr. Obama called for that solution as a candidate in 2008 when gasoline prices neared $4 per gallon, and he reportedly discussed the option earlier this week with British Prime Minister David Cameron. 

Instead, Mr. Obama said his administration is cracking down on oil profits — on traders who “distort the price of oil, and make big profits for themselves at your expense.” And he called on Congress again to eliminate $4 billion in annual tax breaks for oil companies. 

“Your member of Congress should be fighting for you,” Mr. Obama said. “Not for big financial firms. Not for big oil companies.” 

A report by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service last year found that eliminating the subsidies would likely result in higher gas prices in the short term.   

Excerpt:  Read More at the Washington Times

My members of Congress are fighting for Oklahomans and all Americans when it comes to oil and gas production making our country energy independent.  Obama and the Democrats on the other hand prefer  making us dependent on foreign sources for oil which leads to speculation and driving up of oil prices. Keystone pipeline with Canada should have been an automatic approval but then it would mean our partner to the north along with the US would make us a lot more energy independent and less dependent on Obama's friends like the King of Saudi Arabia.