Administration's crude shell game

U.S. President Bush's decision Monday to lift an executive-level ban on offshore oil drilling effected by his father in 1990 and to increase pressure on Congress to lift a legislative ban is nothing short of demagoguery. Bush is trying to harness frustration over rapidly rising gasoline prices -- the result of his administration's inept handling of energy and foreign policy -- and use it to despoil the coastline and even further enrich his greedy friends in the oil industry. "Failure to act is unacceptable -- it's unacceptable to me and it's unacceptable to the American people," Bush said at a White House event, according to the Associated Press. Bush called on the Democratic Party majority in Congress to "facilitate responsible offshore exploration." Of course, Bush made no mention of his administration's failure to develop a comprehensive energy policy, failure to encourage the use of solar energy and failure to encourage domestic output from existing oilfields and leased lands. He also failed to mention why Congress failed to act when his Republican Party allies were in control.