| on Jun 17, 2008, 01:00 AM E.S.T.
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Most voters favor the resumption of offshore drilling in the United
States and expect it to lower prices at the pump, even as John McCain
has announced his support for states that want to explore for oil and
gas off their coasts.
A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey—conducted before
McCain announced his intentions on the issue--finds that 67% of voters
believe that drilling should be allowed off the coasts of California,
Florida and other states. Only 18% disagree and 15% are undecided.
Conservative and moderate voters strongly support this approach, while
liberals are more evenly divided (46% of liberals favor drilling, 37%
oppose).
Sixty-four percent (64%) of voters believe it is at least
somewhat likely that gas prices will go down if offshore oil drilling
is allowed, although 27% don’t believe it. Seventy-eight percent (78%)
of conservatives say offshore drilling is at least somewhat likely to
drive prices down. That view is shared by 57% of moderates and 50% of
liberal voters.
Nearly all voters are worried about rising gas and energy prices, with 79% very concerned and 16% somewhat concerned.
McCain is expected to formally call today (Tuesday) for the
lifting of the federal moratorium on states being allowed to explore
off their coasts for oil and gas deposits. While acknowledging it is
only a short-term response, he has described it as a good first step
toward reducing U.S. energy dependence on overseas sources.
The Outer Continental Shelf moratorium, passed in 1981,
bans exploration for offshore natural gas and oil deposits. Barack
Obama, McCain’s opponent for the White House, voted against an effort
to lift the ban last year in the Senate. He argued that it was only a
short-term solution. National Democratic Party leaders and most
environmental organizations for years have strongly opposed efforts to
explore for oil off the coast of the U.S.
According to the new survey, 85% of Republicans are in
favor of offshore drilling as opposed to 57% of Democrats and 60% of
unaffiliated voters. Those who call themselves conservatives favor such
drilling 84% to 46% of liberals and 59% of self-designated moderates.
African-American voters are less supportive of such drilling than whites – 58% to 71%.
Women are more skeptical than men about the impact such
drilling will have on gas prices: Nearly one out of three male voters
(32%) say prices are very likely to go down, a view shared by only 23%
of women.
Four out of five Republicans (79%) think prices are likely
to fall thanks to offshore drilling, a view shared by only 55% of
Democrats. Sixty percent (60%) of unaffiliated voters expect it to
happen.
Voters also believe 61% to 22% that oil companies should be
required to reinvest at least a portion of their profits into
alternative energy research. On this question, liberal and moderate
voters are strongly supportive of the proposal while conservatives are
more evenly divided (47% of conservatives in favor, 35% opposed)
Data released yesterday showed that Americans believe
developing new energy sources is the best long-term solution to the
nation’s energy problem. Forty-seven
percent (47%) said private companies were more likely to solve the
nation’s energy problem than government research programs. But,
at the same time, only 52% said companies should be allowed to keep the
profits from the discovery of any alternative fuel sources. Source
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