Honorable Barack H. Obama
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20500

The Honorable Ken Salazar
Secretary of the Interior
Department of the Interior
1849 C Street, N.W.
Washington DC 20240

Dear President Obama & Secretary Salazar:

On behalf of Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) and millions of taxpaying energy consumers, I am writing to encourage you to preserve and honor American Energy Freedom Day, celebrated on October 1st, 2008 by not reinstating the bans on OCS and offshore drilling.

According to AAA, as of this writing, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline nation-wide is $1.85 per gallon.

On July 14, 2008, the day President Bush lifted the ban on OCS and oil shale drilling, the national average rested at $4.11 per gallon. Clearly the market response to the lifting of these bans has been positive for all energy consumers.

The tremendous downward slide in gas prices throughout our country has been a boon to American taxpayers, especially working families. When the ban was lifted last year, the American people clearly expressed their bipartisan support. Americans are still against a ban on offshore drilling.

You can do much to alleviate the concerns of Americans who are worried about rising energy costs. By supporting domestic energy production, you can send a clear message to Congress and the American people that you are committed to providing jobs that will continue to alleviate our dependence on foreign energy. Currently, 58% of the oil used by Americans comes from foreign countries. It is time to bring those jobs and resources back to American soil.

For your convenience, I have attached ATR’s fiscally responsible energy points we sent to every member of the 111th Congress. If the United States is serious about lowering energy prices and reducing our dependence on foreign oil, we must look domestically. These principles should serve as a guide for fiscally sound energy solutions.

Onward,

Grover G. Norquist
GGN/bmj

Enclosures

cc: All Members of US Congress

For more information, contact Federal Affairs Manager Brian M. Johnson at bjohnson@atr.org

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