Myths, Falsehoods and Outright Lies
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The Grand Oil Party? Who's the newest Pahrump-ian? How many debates is too many? Reid On!
Nevada First: Sobering Numbers. On Friday, Nevada's Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation reported that unemployment in the Silver State jumped half a percentage point in one month. It now stands at an astounding 6.2% - that's .7% above the national average. Here's a couple of statistics to help put that number in perspective: According to the Review Journal, drive-in traffic to Las Vegas dropped 7.8% in the month of April; every hotel room in Las Vegas equals six jobs - and more and more of those jobs are union.
So, gas prices are through the roof, Americans are cutting back on discretionary spending, families and frat boys are canceling trips to Vegas. Fewer tourists means fewer jobs in tourism driven cities (like Las Vegas). Fewer job at casinos and hotels means fewer union members at these hotels, which means fewer people getting their ticket to the middle class punched. As people lose their jobs, they struggle to make payments on their credit cards and their mortgages. And Nevada leads the nation in home foreclosures. What's the cause? The Failed Policies of Bush-McCain Republicans, for one. Gas Prices. Plummeting consumer confidence. Obstructionist Republicans blocking The Consumer First Energy Act, the Foreclosure Prevention Act, the Climate Change Bill, and...well, you get the idea.
Did you know that 84% of Americans believe our country is on the wrong track? Or that 76% of Nevadans believe the country is on the wrong track. But, guess what? All of that can change - when we elect Barack Obama president. And when we convene the 111th Congress with an expanded Democratic majority in the Senate - because a President Obama is stronger with a filibuster-proof Senate majority.
We've got the answers. The Las Vegas Review Journal poses 9 questions that may help shed light on which way Nevada will swing in the fall (we've already told you why one Nevada pundit thinks it will go blue). Molly Ball asks, "Will Democrats be unified?" Yes, and now we have proof. "What role does rural Nevada play?" A big one - and Barack Obama has shown us he knows how connect with rural Nevada, and with every passing day, John McCain becomes more like President Bush, and less like the maverick he claims to be.
Noted, without comment. Michael Jackson - the gloved one - living in Pahrump, NV?
Must Reid: How in the world? The Weekly Reid noticed something last week. Right after President Bush had his Rose Garden presser saying he wanted to start drilling off the coast, the Republican noise machine kicked into hyperspeed. We had Lindsey Graham on Meet The Press, Tom Ridge on Fox News Sunday, Tim Pawlenty on CNN - all talking about how OFFSHORE DRILLING will lower gas prices. Excuse me?! Since when did the GOP, where the O stands for OIL, have any credibility on our nation's energy policy? In typical Bush-McCain fashion, the Republican surrogates on the Sunday shows obfuscated and peddled myth and falsehood after outright lie.
Allow the Weekly Reid to set the record straight:
Myth: We're drilling as much as we can domestically - if we want more domestic oil, we need to open up new offshore wells.
Truth: We have 44 million acres of land onshore, leased from the federal government, capable of producing oil. 31 million - that's 70%! - are not currently producing. The Weekly Reid's father had an expression, "Champ, before you start a marathon, you've gotta finish a 5K." They want to build new rigs when they're not even working the land already allocated!
Falsehood: We can drill our way to cheaper gasoline.
Truth: US demand for oil is 25% of the world supply, yet we have only 3% of the reserves. Even if we followed the Bush-McCain Republican's plan, domestic output on the Outer Coastal Shelf would only be 7% higher - and that's a measly 22 years down the road.
Outright Lie: Opening up more area to drilling will relieve the pain Americans are feeling at the pump.
Truth: The price of a barrel of oil is determined on the international market - just because the oil is closer, doesn't mean it's cheaper. Oh, and we wouldn't even see any of that offshore oil until 2017.
Continue Reading - Below The Fold
Tom Freidman said it best: "Two years ago, President Bush declared that America was 'addicted to oil,' and, by gosh, he was going to do something about it. Well, now he has. Now we have the new Bush energy plan: 'Get more addicted to oil.'It is hard for me to find the words to express what a massive, fraudulent, pathetic excuse for an energy policy this is."
Thoughts For The Week: On the housing bill - it's a bipartisan bill that that stops foreclosures before they begin, and keeps the American Dream of home ownership a reality. On unemployment - the Bush-McCain economy has shed jobs in every month of 2008 - and 1.5 million Americans have seen their unemployment benefits expire this year.
Reid's Watching: Debate Time! After 217 televised Presidential debates, it's good to see debates of a more local nature. And over the weekend, Kay Hagan, the Weekly Reid's favorite Senate challenger (don't tell the others), squared off with Sen. Liddy Dole at the first debate of the North Carolina Senate race. From the Winston-Salem Journal, "U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, a Republican running for re-election, came under attack from Democratic challenger Kay Hagan, who tried to paint Dole as a symbol of a broken system in the federal government. 'When it comes to Sen. Dole and her 40 years of experience in Washington, experience just means a way of doing business. It's a way of doing business that puts special interests and their lobbyists before working families,' Hagan said." We'll make sure we let you know when Tom Brokow hosts these two for a Meet The Press Candidates Forum.
Rhode Island. All over Again. An update from the Maine Senate race. Rep. Tom Allen has been steadily making his case to unseat Susan Collins. Despite her best efforts, Sen. Collins knows the people in Maine are getting the message - her reelection is not a certain thing. And the more we tie her to the failed policies of the Bush-McCain Republicans - well, the more the Weekly Reid begins to think Maine is the new Rhode Island. Rasmussen dropped a poll this week showing Sen. Collins under 50% for the first time, edging out Tom by only 7 points 49% - 42%. Tom's right where he wants to be - sneaking up slowly. On the web: www.TomAllen.org.
Have a great week! Tune in next Tuesday for another edition of the Weekly Reid!
Nevada First: Sobering Numbers. On Friday, Nevada's Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation reported that unemployment in the Silver State jumped half a percentage point in one month. It now stands at an astounding 6.2% - that's .7% above the national average. Here's a couple of statistics to help put that number in perspective: According to the Review Journal, drive-in traffic to Las Vegas dropped 7.8% in the month of April; every hotel room in Las Vegas equals six jobs - and more and more of those jobs are union.
So, gas prices are through the roof, Americans are cutting back on discretionary spending, families and frat boys are canceling trips to Vegas. Fewer tourists means fewer jobs in tourism driven cities (like Las Vegas). Fewer job at casinos and hotels means fewer union members at these hotels, which means fewer people getting their ticket to the middle class punched. As people lose their jobs, they struggle to make payments on their credit cards and their mortgages. And Nevada leads the nation in home foreclosures. What's the cause? The Failed Policies of Bush-McCain Republicans, for one. Gas Prices. Plummeting consumer confidence. Obstructionist Republicans blocking The Consumer First Energy Act, the Foreclosure Prevention Act, the Climate Change Bill, and...well, you get the idea.
Did you know that 84% of Americans believe our country is on the wrong track? Or that 76% of Nevadans believe the country is on the wrong track. But, guess what? All of that can change - when we elect Barack Obama president. And when we convene the 111th Congress with an expanded Democratic majority in the Senate - because a President Obama is stronger with a filibuster-proof Senate majority.
We've got the answers. The Las Vegas Review Journal poses 9 questions that may help shed light on which way Nevada will swing in the fall (we've already told you why one Nevada pundit thinks it will go blue). Molly Ball asks, "Will Democrats be unified?" Yes, and now we have proof. "What role does rural Nevada play?" A big one - and Barack Obama has shown us he knows how connect with rural Nevada, and with every passing day, John McCain becomes more like President Bush, and less like the maverick he claims to be.
Noted, without comment. Michael Jackson - the gloved one - living in Pahrump, NV?
Must Reid: How in the world? The Weekly Reid noticed something last week. Right after President Bush had his Rose Garden presser saying he wanted to start drilling off the coast, the Republican noise machine kicked into hyperspeed. We had Lindsey Graham on Meet The Press, Tom Ridge on Fox News Sunday, Tim Pawlenty on CNN - all talking about how OFFSHORE DRILLING will lower gas prices. Excuse me?! Since when did the GOP, where the O stands for OIL, have any credibility on our nation's energy policy? In typical Bush-McCain fashion, the Republican surrogates on the Sunday shows obfuscated and peddled myth and falsehood after outright lie.
Allow the Weekly Reid to set the record straight:
Myth: We're drilling as much as we can domestically - if we want more domestic oil, we need to open up new offshore wells.
Truth: We have 44 million acres of land onshore, leased from the federal government, capable of producing oil. 31 million - that's 70%! - are not currently producing. The Weekly Reid's father had an expression, "Champ, before you start a marathon, you've gotta finish a 5K." They want to build new rigs when they're not even working the land already allocated!
Falsehood: We can drill our way to cheaper gasoline.
Truth: US demand for oil is 25% of the world supply, yet we have only 3% of the reserves. Even if we followed the Bush-McCain Republican's plan, domestic output on the Outer Coastal Shelf would only be 7% higher - and that's a measly 22 years down the road.
Outright Lie: Opening up more area to drilling will relieve the pain Americans are feeling at the pump.
Truth: The price of a barrel of oil is determined on the international market - just because the oil is closer, doesn't mean it's cheaper. Oh, and we wouldn't even see any of that offshore oil until 2017.
Continue Reading - Below The Fold
Tom Freidman said it best: "Two years ago, President Bush declared that America was 'addicted to oil,' and, by gosh, he was going to do something about it. Well, now he has. Now we have the new Bush energy plan: 'Get more addicted to oil.'It is hard for me to find the words to express what a massive, fraudulent, pathetic excuse for an energy policy this is."
Thoughts For The Week: On the housing bill - it's a bipartisan bill that that stops foreclosures before they begin, and keeps the American Dream of home ownership a reality. On unemployment - the Bush-McCain economy has shed jobs in every month of 2008 - and 1.5 million Americans have seen their unemployment benefits expire this year.
Reid's Watching: Debate Time! After 217 televised Presidential debates, it's good to see debates of a more local nature. And over the weekend, Kay Hagan, the Weekly Reid's favorite Senate challenger (don't tell the others), squared off with Sen. Liddy Dole at the first debate of the North Carolina Senate race. From the Winston-Salem Journal, "U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, a Republican running for re-election, came under attack from Democratic challenger Kay Hagan, who tried to paint Dole as a symbol of a broken system in the federal government. 'When it comes to Sen. Dole and her 40 years of experience in Washington, experience just means a way of doing business. It's a way of doing business that puts special interests and their lobbyists before working families,' Hagan said." We'll make sure we let you know when Tom Brokow hosts these two for a Meet The Press Candidates Forum.
Rhode Island. All over Again. An update from the Maine Senate race. Rep. Tom Allen has been steadily making his case to unseat Susan Collins. Despite her best efforts, Sen. Collins knows the people in Maine are getting the message - her reelection is not a certain thing. And the more we tie her to the failed policies of the Bush-McCain Republicans - well, the more the Weekly Reid begins to think Maine is the new Rhode Island. Rasmussen dropped a poll this week showing Sen. Collins under 50% for the first time, edging out Tom by only 7 points 49% - 42%. Tom's right where he wants to be - sneaking up slowly. On the web: www.TomAllen.org.
Have a great week! Tune in next Tuesday for another edition of the Weekly Reid!
