Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

Will Californians Support Offshore Oil Drilling?

Earlier this month, President Bush lifted the executive ban on offshore oil drilling as a way to combat escalating gas prices. Democrats in Congress and environmentalists oppose the plan. A Congress

Will Californians Support Offshore Oil Drilling?

Tom Fudge : The high price of oil has taken a bit of a dip lately. But it's rise to more than four dollars a gallon has sent politicians into a tizzy. They've been working hard to mollify voters who are very upset about the amount of money they've been pouring into their gas tanks.

One proposed solution to the high price of gas is to increase supply by lifting the moratorium on off-shore drilling on the U.S. continental shelf. The current moratorium, which bans oil exploration off the California coast, was, ironically, imposed by George W. Bush's father when he was President.

Advertisement

Now, the current President Bush wants Congress to do it's part to lift the ban, saying it would provide financial relief to American motorists. Opponents, who include most of California's political establishment, say it would make little or no difference to current gas prices.

Guest

  • Gloria Penner , KPBS Political Correspondent and host of Editors Roundtable on KPBS.