The Essentia Blog

In a disturbing piece of news, the offshore drilling ban that has stood for 25 years in the United States was ended by the passing of a bill in Congress. Bush had threatened to veto a $635 Billion stopgap government spending bill if the ban was not lifted.

The lifting of the ban shows a paradigm shift towards domestic energy production over environmental protection. Coastal states such as Texas and Florida are also concerned about oil spills and the consequent ruining of high-dollar tourist areas. Environmentalists are concerned because of the marked potential for wildlife habitat disruption.

Despite the seeming victory for the oil companies, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has called this battle “far from over” and remarked that “We look forward to working with the next president to hammer out a final resolution of this issue.”