Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
America’s energy policy is critical to our national security and economic growth. Dependence upon foreign sources of oil limits our national security options, undermines our interests, and raises the cost of doing business in America.
Unfortunately, President’s Obama’s approach has facilitated foreign dependence by restricting oil and gas drilling, making it more difficult to get nuclear permits, hobbling our coal industry, and picking winners and losers through failed pet energy projects.
Thirty-two years ago, America had a president with similar policies—Jimmy Carter. America was mired in economic malaise and rising energy prices. When President Reagan came into office, one of his first acts was to deregulate energy markets. The results were dramatic. Gas lines vanished, energy prices declined, and the economy started a 10-year boom. That is exactly what will happen when I take office.
To be competitive and to create jobs, American businesses need cheap energy. Countries such as France and Canada are creating their own energy independence through nuclear power and domestic oil development respectively. Unfortunately, President Obama continues to burden and restrain our energy potential rather than unleash it.
The growth of our economy has also been unnecessarily constricted by the high cost of energy, in the form of expensive imported oil from the Middle East. I will unleash America’s domestic energy potential and exploration. I will not pick winners or losers, such as Solyndra, but encourage the private sector to promote all economically competitive energy sources.
I am committed to eliminating all energy subsidies and unleashing American innovation and ingenuity. I will also expedite the approval of leasing and permitting for domestic oil and gas companies in crucial onshore and offshore locales on day one of my Administration. I continue to support exploration in the Arctic North Wilderness Area (ANWR). It’s long past time to make oil and gas from that huge reservoir available for domestic consumption. Thanks to improved technology, this can be done so in an environmentally responsible manner.
The role of government should be to unleash our resources, not keep them in the ground. Unlike President Obama, I will allow states, rather than the Environmental Protection Agency, to set their own regulations regarding the use of hydraulic fracturing technology, giving America access to vast proven oil and gas reserves.
In my home state of Pennsylvania, market forces are driving natural gas exploration. Hydrofracturing in the Marcellus Shale, for example, has produced an economic boom. Experts predict that this kind of exploration will create up to 200,000 jobs by 2020. This has contributed to dramatically lower natural gas prices for consumers. It has transformed struggling rural communities, created additional revenue for state and local governments, and helped the environment through expanded use of natural gas. It can reinvigorate manufacturing in America through lower energy prices.
Fracking, as it is known, has turned shale in many parts of the United States into a huge economically-viable font of oil and natural gas. Fracking has reduced the unemployment rate in North Dakota to 3.3 percent, the lowest in the country.
The Bakken oil shale in North Dakota and adjoining states, coupled with the Canadian Tar sands across the border in Alberta, can change the geopolitics of energy by reducing U.S. dependence on imported oil from hostile Middle Eastern powers. Thus, the Obama administration’s job-killing decision to prevent the construction of the Keystone Pipeline is simply unconscionable.
Barack Obama blocked the Keystone XL pipeline project in order to appease radical, environmental activists. One of my first acts as president will be to approve it
President Obama is taking credit for bailing out Michigan’s auto industry, but he is hobbling the industry with mandates to make electric cars which sit unsold on the car lots, raising the price of more popular cars.
By picking winners and losers within the auto industry, President Obama is artificially shifting resources towards electric cars, rather than allowing companies to devote resources to cars that Americans want to drive.
He also wants to raise Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards to an unrealistic level of 54 miles per gallon by 2025—two years after announcing a 35 miles per gallon standard for 2016. When I am president, I will set the auto industry free to innovate.
America needs a policy that makes energy more affordable and our nation more secure by lessening dependence on unreliable or adversarial foreign sources. An effective energy policy will expand economic development and create high-quality jobs, resulting in a strong economy for America’s families and workers. It is time to get serious about unleashing America’s domestic energy sources. America's prosperity depends on it.
Rick Santorum, a former representative and senator from Pennsylvania, is a candidate for the Republican nomination for president.
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Comments:
Dec '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Senator, can we characterize your position as, "Drill here, drill now - all of the above"?
If so, it sounds pretty good to me.
Are there distinctions you'd care to draw between your energy policy and those of your main rivals for the Republican nomination?
Jul '11
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Welcome back cowboy. I hope you enjoyed your ricochet surge from your last articles.
Feb '12
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Sen. Santorum, I really appreciate you honoring this community by posting here. I have some questions for you.
How is government picking winners and losers among different sectors of the economy, like you propose to do with tax policy for manufacturers, different from Obama picking winners and losers in the auto industry, or picking renewable energy as a sector in the economy that needs special government treatment?
Also, you talk about he necessity of freeing up our resources. In this case you're talking about energy resources, but isn't labor an even more important resource? Yet, you opposed freeing up the labor market and opposed right to work reform. How is that consistent?
Edited on February 17, 2012 at 8:45pmApr '11
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Senator, I would like to offer you some constructive criticism: try to lighten up a little. Newt has the 'angry white man' market cornered and people are looking for someone serious, yet positive to lead us out of this mess we're in. You're currently getting trashed about contraception. This is definitely an area where a few light-hearted remarks can go a long way towards showing people you aren't a curmudgeon who wants to intrude into their bedrooms. Meanwhile, the Democrats are intruding into everything from brown bag lunches to the inner workings of churches right now. It shouldn't be too hard to throw all of this right back in their face with a little humor. Please give it a try and here's wishing you luck going forward.
Mar '11
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
This piece is refreshingly free of "high paying jobs" and "living wage" rhetoric. I'll be honest and say I would have preferred Palin, but keep this up Senator and you will have me comfortably resigned to you as the nominee. This piece could easily have been a Palin Facebook post. I had hoped for a pencil skirt and stilettos behind the Resolute Desk, but a sweater vest will work just fine. Either is better than mom jeans.
Santorum/Gingrich 2012?
Edited on February 17, 2012 at 8:50pmDec '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Gus Marvinson: This piece is refreshingly free of "high paying jobs" and "living wage" rhetoric. I'll be honest and say I would have preferred Palin, but keep this up Senator and you will have me comfortably resigned to you as the nominee. I had hoped for a pencil skirt and stilettos behind the Resolute Desk, but a sweater vest will work just fine. Either is better than mom jeans.
Santorum/Gingrich 2012? · 2 minutes ago
As Rudy Giuliani showed, you don't have to have a female candidate to have a candidate in a pencil skirt and heels.
Although somehow I doubt that's how Sen. Santorum rolls.
May '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
I for one am in favor of reducing corporate taxes in general, but I don't mind having it lower for some industries than others. There are strategic concerns at play, not to mention the fact that some of our competitors have undermined our manufacturing industry using unfair tactics on their side. A lower tax rate for manufacturing might help to right that imbalance.
Jan '11
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Rick Santorum:
To be competitive and to create jobs, American businesses need...
Please speak in these terms to any of your competition for the nomination. Remind the others [or better for you, just club them with the laissez faire distinction] that elected officials do not actually create the jobs and that organizations that offer something of value to their consumers/clients do.
I have found your candidacy -- through the interviews that you've done -- to be quite compelling. For me, you've said all the rights things distinguishing your social conservatism to how you would actually make policy; talking up the concept of federalism. And you've been pretty candid about the more controversial government-as-the solution positions that you've taken in the past and how things have changed for you. For my sanity, I hope you keep it up. But I'm on the minarchist kook fringe so my expectations are not high for anyone who seeks an elected office knowing what the mainstream voters want.
Jan '11
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
I didn't read this in his post. I read that Santorum wants to eliminate subsidies. The 'special treatment' would be in relaxing the stupid regulations that currently choke the energy sector. Am I missing something? What did you read? And I'm not being snarky or sarcastic here but really want to know where you're getting this from? Was it something he said or wrote elsewhere, perhaps?
Feb '12
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Sen. Santorum wants to allow manufacturers, and only manufacturers, to pay 0% in corporate taxes.
Edited on February 18, 2012 at 2:46amDec '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Senator Santorum,
In the late 70s I was a process control / analytical instrument salesman in the "rust belt". I was stationed in Michigan where you'll be headed soon.
I can tell you that there wasn't any rust on American Industry. What caused the problem was a combination of guilt over Viet Nam and a totally naive belief in environmental ideology. We multilated out own industrial base because of this.
Once Cambodia happened those of us with sophisticated excuses for the Reds were forced to admit that we were wrong. Evil was just Evil after all.
The big environmental lie has taken longer for people to catch on. I was selling EPA certified ambient air analyzers for SOx, NOx and Carbon. I sold the first complete system that GM bought to do their environmental audits for the EPA. They were required to do the audit before building a new plant. (cont.)
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Two notes about Senator Santorum's post:
First, and as MJMack already expressed, we're grateful to him for spending some of his time here. He has many, many other demands right now, and it's an honor to host him.
Second, please remember that any response we get from him will likely not be in the form of comments to this post. In the past, he has responded to selected comments via another post some days later, and we completely support this departure from our normal protocol.
Dec '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
(cont. from #11)
I literally said these words to myself at the time. "When the data comes in, cooler heads will prevail." The data came in but cooler heads never prevailed. The ideologue monsters continued to drag us further and further down. They were fixing a problem that didn't exist and destroying American Industry to do it. Evil is just Evil after all.
Now for the first time we have a chance to turn the madness around. With Gds help and great effort by all of the people we will do it.
Regards,
Jim
Nov '11
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Senator, it's good to see you addressing energy policy: as a former Perry supporter domestic production is an important concern to me that I feel is largely ignored in most elections beyond the "drill now" rhetoric and you're support of fracking is quite welcome.
You've stated that you want to allow states to set their own policies on fracking, would you also extend that towards allowing states to set their own permitting standards in regards to emissions like Texas' flexible permitting process?
On a different note, I'll offer what I think will be the least heard complaint about your candidacy: I'm awfully miffed I no longer get my Fridays with Frank! Your guest hosting Morning in America on Friday's was one of the entertainment highlights of my week.
Feb '12
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
MJMack:
How is government picking winners and losers among different sectors of the economy, like you propose to do with tax policy for manufacturers, different from Obama picking winners and losers in the auto industry, or picking renewable energy as a sector in the economy that needs special government treatment?
I look at it this way. Manufacturers face an incredible number of obstacles to set up in the US (EPA and OSHA come to mind). The service industry faces nowhere near as much scrutiny. For a manufacturer it's often more cost effective to design and warehouse in the US and manufacture overseas. That's the equation that I think Santorum is trying to affect. I think saying, "we'll help you if you choose to build something (anything)" is far different than "build a Chevy Volt."
Dec '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Karl D
MJMack:
How is government picking winners and losers among different sectors of the economy, like you propose to do with tax policy for manufacturers, different from Obama picking winners and losers in the auto industry, or picking renewable energy as a sector in the economy that needs special government treatment?
I look at it this way. Manufacturers face an incredible number of obstacles to set up in the US (EPA and OSHA come to mind). The service industry faces nowhere near as much scrutiny. For a manufacturer it's often more cost effective to design and warehouse in the US and manufacture overseas. That's the equation that I think Santorum is trying to affect. I think saying, "we'll help you if you choose to build something (anything)" is far different than "build a Chevy Volt." · 25 minutes ago
Also, there are a lot of service jobs that can't be done remotely by offshore outsourcers. Services are therefore qualitatively different from manufacturing.
Sep '11
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
While I recognize the intent of your proposal to level the playing field for manufacturers, by reducing their corporate tax rate to 0%, I fear that you're just setting the stage for another lesson in the Law of Unintended Consequences. Corporate taxes are assessed on the entire corporation--what's the tax rate on a corporation that has shifted some (or most) of its operations outside the U.S.?
The obvious example is General Electric--which has closed plants in the U.S. and moved their production to India. An example I'm sure your familiar with is H.J. Heinz, which closed plants in the U.S. and moved those jobs to China. Both companies still manufacture in the U.S.--what will their tax rates be?
I also worry about how you will define manufacturing. If "assembling raw materials into finished goods, involving substantial processing and/or transformation of the components" is manufacturing, then every McDonald's franchise in the country is a manufacturer.
The devil is in the details. And I worry that the details of your plan may prove to be very, very hard to explain to the electorate--let alone enact.
Edited on February 17, 2012 at 10:45pmOct '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Senator Santorum, I greatly appreciate your proactive approach toward expanding our country's energy production. I fear that if Obama is re-elected, he will try to shut down drilling on the Eagle Ford Shale. This drilling is bringing much-needed economic growth to rural South Texas, prosperity of a type not seen in the three decades since the last oil boom of the late '70s and early '80s.
Sep '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Rick Santorum:
I am committed to eliminating all energy subsidies..
Please confirm that this includes ethanol. Also, will you commit to ending the ethanol mandates?
I don't want to buy ethanol. I don't know anyone that wants to buy ethanol.
Dec '10
Re: Unleashing American Innovation and Ingenuity through Energy and Manufacturing
Mark Belling Fan
Rick Santorum:
I am committed to eliminating all energy subsidies..
Please confirm that this includes ethanol. Also, will you commit to ending the ethanol mandates?
I don't want to buy ethanol. I don't know anyone that wants to buy ethanol. · 0 minutes ago
I want to buy ethanol! I just want to put it in me and not my gas tank.