A concerned citizen who just exposed Bush's oil reserve flip flop:
In the past, President Bush has criticized both the Clinton administration and Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) for proposing to use the reserve to lower gas prices.
In September 2000, during his presidential campaign, Bush was quoted as saying, "The Strategic Reserve is an insurance policy meant for a sudden disruption of our energy supply or for war. Strategic Reserve should not be used as an attempt to drive down oil prices right before an election. It should not be used for short-term political gain at the cost of long-term national security. ... That's bad public policy."
In 2004, again during a presidential campaign, Bush said: "(W)e will not play politics with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. ... The idea of emptying the Strategic Petroleum Reserve plays -- would put America in a dangerous position in the war on terror. We're at war. We face a tough and determined enemy on all fronts. And we must not put ourselves in a worse position in this war. And playing politics with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve would do just that."
What a difference a few years -- or the polls reporting decreasing public confidence in the Republican administration -- makes.
Jeanne Davis
Augusta
