Schwarzenegger ends support for Calif oil drilling

[villager]

Source: SF Chronicle

Schwarzenegger ends support for Calif oil drilling

By SAMANTHA YOUNG

Sacramento, Calif. (AP) --

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is withdrawing his support of a plan to expand oil drilling off the California coast, citing the environmental tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico.

Speaking during a news conference Monday, Schwarzenegger said television images of the oil spill in the Gulf have changed his mind about the safety of ocean-based oil platforms.

The Republican governor had proposed expanding oil drilling off the coast of Santa Barbara to help close the state's $20 billion budget deficit, so withdrawing his support essentially kills the idea since he would have to include it in his May budget revision.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/05/03/national/a134509D87.DTL&type=business#ixzz0mu5HPzD6

[KingFlorez]

1. Good

As a native of Santa Barbara, I wouldn't like to see a disaster ruin that scenic coastline. This is one time the President should take a cue from a Republican, Obama need to reverse on drilling.

[The Second Stone]

17. This happened off the coast of Santa Barbara in the 60s

http://www2.bren.ucsb.edu/~dhardy/1969_Santa_Barbara_Oil_Spill/Home.html

But Arnold was busy committing fraud as a roofer back then. Why wouldn't the same thing happen again and again? Yes, we can increase safety measures, but those will be eliminated every time a Republican takes office in charge of inspections.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. duh!!!!!!! Now that every kid in the state is crying that the emperor is naked, he agrees???

[Hell Hath No Fury]

3. Good is right.

Oil rigs off mny coass? Hell no! Wind and wave farms? Hell yes!

Time for Obama to take que...

[Webster Green]

4. He can't change his mind. He doesn't have one.

He does whatever is politically advantageous for him at the time.

He has no core values. I still want to know what went down at his secret meetings with Enron.

Actually, I'm still waiting for an electricity bill rebate from the Enron rip-off of CA.

Fuck that steroid addled cretin!

[catzies]

7. I will NEVER FORGET what Enron did to California thanks to him.

Still mad, still not over it. :grr:

[Bette Noir]

11. Enron was pillaging California when Arnold was still a movie star.

Gray Davis was governor. It was the Enron debacle that caused Davis to lose his seat. Darryl Issa started the recall move, because he thought he could become governor. Arnold ran in the recall election, and, having the greatest name recognition, won on the "wouldn't it be a hoot" vote.

It's Enron itself, and Darryl Issa, whom I won't forgive.

[Webster Green]

12. Yes, I know.

But Arnold had his grubby little paws in the Enron thing as well.

I think the meeting was before he was elected. He was receiving his instructions in advance.

[ljm2002]

23. Yes, the meeting was before he was elected...

...and yes, I too would really like to know what was said there.

As soon as that happened, Issa was O.U.T.

Gray Davis was railroaded, the recall election was a joke, Issa was a stooge, and Enron et al ushered in the Terminator, knowing that name recognition alone would make him a shoo-in. The rules of the recall election did not require a majority, whichever candidate gets the most votes wins. With something like 100 candidates, that was nice and fragmented, just ripe for such a strategy.

I think they went after Davis as soon as he made it known he was going to try and recover the billions that Enron had stolen from the people of California. If you mess with the big money boys, you're going to get hurt. Enron, and the Bush clan, were in this up to their chins.

[Maat]

21. I agree.

You have such a way with words!;-)

[villager]

5. Be interesting to see how this impacts the Gov race...

Whitman and Poizner are trying to out-rightwing each other; do they dare stand up to their oil buddies and declare "no new drilling" along the Calif. coast?

[tblue]

14. Was wondering the same thing. Neither wants to be out-right-winged.

I'm gonna enjoy watching their convolutions as they vie for that teabagger vote. I hope they are forced to take a public stand on drilling off the California coast.

[villager]

27. the Dems -- and Brown -- will have to pin these pathetic fuckers down

...and make them either sell out the Teabaggers, or the rest of California...

[flamingdem]

28. Brown has got to be smiling nt

[Duer 157099]

6. This is so infuriating!

Not because I want him supporting the drilling, but that the ONLY reason he changed his mind is because of what happened in the Gulf, as if that's totally unprecedented and unexpected!

It just shows, once again, how these politicians don't live in the "reality-based" community and that EVERYTHING is driven by superficial appearance.

I wonder if he'd change his mind about other policies, health care, education, social services etc, if he personally were exposed to all of the people whose lives are directly affected, now, daily. Does he not know these problems exist until he sees it on CNN or something?

WTF is wrong with people!

[tomm2thumbs]

9. +1 -and they'd flip back again if suddenly it was politically expedient

those that portray themselves to be above the issues are most often found mired deep down inside of the issues, thrashing and twisting their positions to fit the whims of the press and their ratings. McCain is another case in point. Perhaps the worst given his self-portrayal as a man 'above politics'.

[Auggie]

18. Agree. But at least his position changed. And it becomes a huge issue

in the gubernatorial race now.

[bluestateguy]

8. Flip flop, flip flop

But I guess that's only bad when John Kerry does it.

[Bette Noir]

10. !!!!! Even Arnold can learn.

[dana_b]

25. yep!

I was pleasantly surprised that he said that.

[shanti]

26. don't know about that...

he was just parroting what pete wilson, the puppetmaster, told him to say.

[dipsydoodle]

13. I'm beginning to wonder

what some of you would said if he'd increased support instead of withdrawing it. :sarcasm:

[Duer 157099]

24. IMO, the issue is changing opinion because an accident happened

The logic in that suggests that prior to the accident, he didn't know that accidents like this could happen.

And if that's truly the case, then one HAS TO question his qualification for any public office.

It's the behavior of a 2-year-old who cannot extrapolate beyond their own immediate experience, what's directly in front of their face at that moment.

We don't need any more 2-year-olds running things in this world.

[dipsydoodle]

29. Oh

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/mar/31/barack-obama-drilling-offshore-approves

[PinkFloyd]

15. Good call, Arnie!

[Demeter]

16. Now We Get To See Who Is Smarter--Ahnold or Barack

I'm waiting.....

[dipsydoodle]

30. Its not the why or the reason

people do things that affects us - it's what they actually do. That's the reason why I don't give a fig about what Arnold has done that preceeded this - it what he's done now that is important.

It will be interesting to see if your President now backtracks : http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/mar/31/barack-obama-drilling-offshore-approves

[Demeter]

31. Yes well, we are still waiting for apologies on health care, torture, habeus corpus

and it's only the first year. Obama better pace himself.

[IDemo]

19. I can remember going to Sunset Beach during my youth

And everyone having to use gasoline to clean the tar off the bottom of our feet at the end of the day. There were a couple of platforms visible then out on the horizon. I can't say whether they were the source of the tar; a Navy base was immediately north in Seal Beach. But this was during the Santa Barbara spill period, so the oil derricks generally took the blame. I can't contemplate a disaster of today's size striking that area now.

[Taverner]

20. Could you imagine a day where a Republican Governor is more liberal than a Democratic President?

Wibley wobley, timey wimey

[ljm2002]

22. Good for him...

...he should have done it before, but I'm glad he's doing it now.