Regarding the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
Kucinich gave the following speech in Congress on September 21, 2005:
"Mr. Speaker, ladies and gentleman, there's an old saying that says 'If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.'
"I cannot think of a more appropriate metaphor for what we're seeing now.
"The hammer being used by some in Congress is drilling in our pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. And to them, there are simply not enough nails.
"The latest nail, of course, is spiking gas prices. The knee-jerk drillers will tell you that the logical solution to expensive gas is to drill in the Arctic. But in a best case scenario, we would only see a reduction in gas price of 1.5 cents per gallon. And production wouldn't even start until at least 10 years from now. That doesn't help you and me. That helps the oil companies.
"What they don't tell you is that, in the words of one oil industry expert, the difference between price gouging and taking advantage of market distortions is a political question. I strongly believe that price gouging may be occurring.
"I am not alone. In May of 2005, 33 of my colleagues joined me in introducing the Gas Price Spike Act. It would tax windfall profits tax on gas, create tax credits for ultra-efficient vehicles, and lower fares for mass transit. Now that's a part of a real solution.
"But our opponents are still convinced that gas prices are a nail. They are also convinced that our dangerous foreign dependence on oil is a nail. But even in a best case scenario, our dependency would still increase from 59 percent to 64 percent by 2025.
"Our hammer-happy friends think a job shortage is a nail easily solved with the hammer of the Arctic. But improving energy efficiency and motor vehicle efficiency would generate more than 1.3 million jobs in 15 years -- 185 percent more jobs than domestic oil production.
"The nail of investment in our economy can be covered by investing in Arctic oil extraction, they say. But one dollar spent on petroleum production creates only a buck-fifty in economic value to our economy. That same dollar, when invested in energy efficiency programs and incentives, gives us two dollars and 23 cents in economic value.
"It should be clear that drilling the Arctic will not solve any of these problems. And there is no way drilling in the Arctic can solve the mother of all these problems: climate change. I don't care how creatively they spin it. We can only expect more extreme weather in the coming years and we absolutely must address it with meaningful efforts to reduce greenhouse gases. Drilling can only make it worse.
"There are so many more realistic, more effective, more sustainable ways to proceed. In fact, some of my colleagues here today have joined me in efforts to address not only prices, but national security, our health, the integrity of our environment, and a lopsided economic recovery. We should raise the minimum fuel efficiency of cars and trucks, invest in the transition to wind and solar energy, emphasize biofuels like biodiesel, and encourage conservation.
"The solutions are there for the taking. The time is now.
"Please join me in driving the nail in the coffin on this backdoor effort to drill in the Arctic."
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