Palin acknowledged that her presidential running mate, John McCain, is opposed to drilling in ANWR, and then winked at the camera as she promised to “keep pushing” McCain to change his mind about ANWR.
Offshore Drilling and Energy Independence
Palin reaffirmed McCain-Palin support for offshore drilling and chastised Biden for referring to offshore drilling “as raping the Outer Continental Shelf” (even though the Obama-Biden energy plan calls for a limited increase in offshore drilling). Palin also accused Obama and Biden of saying “no to everything in trying to find a domestic solution to the energy crisis that we're in,” a charge not supported by the details of the Obama-Biden energy plan or the Democratic candidates’ public statements.
Drill, Baby, Drill
Throughout the evening, Palin continually reminded the audience that she is from “an energy-producing state” and argued that “energy independence is the key to America’s future.” She repeated the “drill, baby, drill” mantra she launched at the Republican National Convention and said, “That's what we hear all across this country in our rallies, because people are so hungry for those domestic sources of energy to be tapped into.”
What about Renewable Energy?
Palin stressed McCain’s “all of the above” approach to energy policy, which would feature increasing the use of oil, coal and nuclear power along with natural gas and renewable energy sources such as wind power and solar power—even though the “alternative fuels” Palin mentioned specifically were ”nuclear” and “clean coal” which are not renewable and carry serious environmental and public health drawbacks—but Biden accused McCain of merely paying lip service to the use of renewable energy while “he voted 20 times against funding alternative energy sources.”
Biden-Palin 2008 VP Debate FAQ Index:
- How Do Biden and Palin Differ on Climate Change?
- How Do Biden and Palin Differ on ANWR, Offshore Drilling and Renewable Energy?
- Where Does Biden Really Stand on Clean Coal?
- Why Do Biden and Palin Disagree About the 2005 Energy Bill?
- Where Do Biden and Palin Disagree on Subsidies and Tax Breaks for Oil Companies?
- Where Do Biden and Palin Line Up on a Windfall Profits Tax for Oil Companies?
- What Can Pro-Environment Voters Learn from the Biden-Palin Debate?
