Obama Misleads on Oil Reserves, Networks Defend Him, Fail to Fact Check
When President Barack Obama recently pontificated on gas prices, the broadcast networks listened, and parroted his explanations of why gas prices have more than doubled since he took office. But the networks had a much different take on gas prices when a Republican president was in office.
On March 7, 2012, Obama declared: “We've got 2 percent of the world oil reserves; we use 20 percent. What that means is, as much as we're doing to increase oil production, we're not going to be able to just drill our way out of the problem of high gas prices.”
While technically true, Obama’s “oil reserves” numbers are very misleading due to the narrow definition of “proven reserves.” The three broadcast networks failed to clear up that misconception for viewers and passed blame for high prices on to others.
The Washington Post’s “Fact Checker” columnist Glenn Kessler dismissed Obama’s figures as a “non sequitur,” noting that proven reserves “have a very strict definition, in part because reserves are considered actual assets owned by companies. The oil must have been discovered, confirmed and economically recoverable, with at least 90 percent certainty. The level of reserves, in fact, may vary depending on the price of oil, since a higher price may suddenly make some finds economically viable.”
John Merline of Investor’s Business Daily also pointed out the “myth of scarce oil” on March 14. He noted that the United States had 60 times more oil than Obama claimed saying: “When you look at the whole picture, it turns out that there are vast supplies of oil in the U.S., according to various government reports.”
He continued, “All told, the U.S. has access to 400 billion barrels of crude that could be recovered using existing drilling technologies, according to a 2006 Energy Department report.” (“Proven” reserves of oil in the U.S. total 22 billion barrels.) Merline also cited a Rand Corp. study that estimated there are about 800 billion barrels of additional recoverable oil in shale just in Wyoming and nearby states.
Yet, Obama has claimed that he has little control over gas prices and perpetuated the idea of scarcity saying, “Anyone who tells you we can drill our way out of this problem doesn't know what they're talking about -- or isn't telling you the truth.”
Major media figures have agreed with the president. CBS anchor Charlie Rose directly defended Obama’s gas prices record on “This Morning” on March 13: “There's little that he can do … in the short term to affect gas prices, and gas prices hurts his political chances. CBS “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer was included in that segment and agreed with Rose saying, “That's right on all counts … the problem is … people think there are things he can do about it.”
Of course, there are several things Obama could do to help supply long-term that might impact prices. William O’Keefe of the George C. Marshall Institute noted that while “there are few short-term fixes,” Obama is “wrong in implying that he has done all that he could have done [to lower gas prices]. Sensible and realistic policy decisions over the past three years would have led to lower priced gasoline.”
Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has been particularly critical of Obama on energy issues, calling for him to approve the Keystone XL pipeline and take other steps to increase domestic production of oil.
Yet, ABC, CBS and NBC have refused to discuss these important details. Instead, the broadcast networks have advanced explanations of rising gas prices that do not blame the president. ABC’s George Stephanopoulos put the blame for high gas prices on Wall Street on Feb. 24, citing a “top government watchdog (namely Bart Chilton, a former Democratic staffer) who tells us that a big chunk of the pain at the pump is Wall Street's fault.” NBC’s Brian Williams repeated that claim: “The problem is gas prices are largely set by commodities traders, also know these days as speculators.”
These are the same networks that repeatedly bashed President Bush over high gas prices. Their news broadcasts hyped the horrors of high gas prices when Bush was in office, and at times directly pointed the finger at Bush for high gas prices.
But Obama has largely gotten a pass from the media on the issue – despite the fact that he appointed an energy secretary who wanted higher prices, saying, “Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.”
- Paul Wilson's blog
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Comments
Obama can only blame himself
Submitted by needle on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 9:21am.
CBS anchor Charlie Rose directly defended Obama’s gas prices record on “This Morning” on March 13: “There's little that he can do … in the short term to affect gas prices, and gas prices hurts his political chances.
There is much Obama could have done to have affected gas prices favorably by today; and there is much Obama did deliberately to ensure the present high gas prices. If it hurts him politically, he deserves it no matter how he tries to palm off the blame.
- Looking forward to the self-annihilation of the Manipulated Stories Machine.
Just wait until a strategic time right before the election
Submitted by nonncom on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 4:09pm.
Obummer will approve Keystone, and most likely other things regarding oil....it's all good....it's all part of the plan....
Still non sequitur.
Submitted by JohnMcGrew on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 8:47am.
It's not so much about drilling, imports or reserves. It's simply "inflation".
The reason we may soon be all be paying more than $4/gallon is because of 10 years of Keynesian economics; cheap monetary policy from the Federal Reserve, and trillions of dollars injected into the economy in the form of bailouts, stimulus & "quantitative easing" that did not create a corresponding growth in our national wealth. Simply put, our dollars are worth much less that they were 5 years ago. Since oil is traded internationally in dollars, it is probably the clearest sign (like the rise in the stock market) that our dollars are getting cheaper by the day. And unfortunately, there's no amount of domestic drilling that can keep up with this level of monetary and fiscal malfeasance.
spot on
Submitted by Wineguy13 on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 9:13am.
You are absolutely correct, and the idiots (the ones who think that borrowing money and spending it it stimulative) will see the rising stock market as a good thing and the oil rise as bad when they both reflect de-valued currency. Now here's the best part, these ignoramuses have one vote each, just like you.
Not just that...
Submitted by JohnMcGrew on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 10:39am.
...inflation punishes "the poor" far more brutally than it does "the rich". The "poor" have nowhere to hide from inflation; they already spend well over 100% of their income on goods and services. The "rich", on the other hand are able to somewhat shield themselves from inflation by investing in assets that appreciate at the rate of inflation.
So what has basically happened is that the classes of people that Progressive claim they will never raise their taxes on will are in fact are getting a massive tax increase. The only upside is that inflation is a far more "fair" and broadly applied tax than anything Congress is able to conceive anymore.
RIght. It takes petro-dollars
Submitted by rbosque on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 11:11am.
RIght. It takes petro-dollars to purchase oil. If the dollar is lower, it takes more dollars to by that oil than before.
Circular argument
Submitted by Cappmann1962 on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 1:55pm.
Inflation and the devaluing of the dollar can also be said to be CAUSED by higher oil costs, as EVERYTHING around us is directly affected by the cost of fuel. Manufacturing, delivery, energy production, and even the cost of milk is based on the price of oil. And we are at the mercy of OPEC and their ilk who are setting prices. If we were to use even a fraction of our true energy reserves (something this administration adamantly refuses to do) we would have far more control over the price of oil, thus lowering the cost, thus lowering the cost of manufacturing and such, THUS strengthening the dollar. Producing more of our own oil and not taxing such production into the red would do much, both immediately and into the future, to lower our energy costs, strengthening the dollar, increasing employment, and once again making America the envy of the rest of the world. Instead Obama is denying permits, restricting or forbidding exploration, denying the XL pipeline, pissing away insane amounts of money into the pit called "green energy", and doing everything in his power to INCREASE our energy costs. I'm all for renewable green energy, BUT not until it is feasible, practical, efficient, and cost effective to replace oil and coal. Until then, we need to use what we have and not force-feed this inefficient and cost prohibitive green agenda to the entire country.
I do however, 100% agree with your statement on Keynesian economics and fiscal malfeasance, which are other activities on Obama's part which are driving the devaluing the dollar.
Market forces are not nullified by OPEC
Submitted by JohnMcGrew on Wed, 03/21/2012 - 10:44am.
It ultimately comes down to the ratio of dollars to the value and availability of goods and services. There has been well over 3-trillion dollars directly injected in the last 18 months alone. OPEC charges more because dollars are now worth less.
If you plot the dollar vs the Euro and oil over the last 5 years or so, you'll see that pre-meldown they tracked very closely.
I'm not disagreeing with you John
Submitted by Cappmann1962 on Thu, 03/22/2012 - 3:56pm.
What I'm saying is that while oil alone isn't the culprit, or even the initiator, of the drop in the dollar, it is now a major factor in the continuing decline. We could have gotten over the housing bubble and the banking meltdown. Even both virtually together as they were. Tacking on increasing energy and fuel costs is what perpetuates this mess. Nothing has gotten better. Real unemployment is off the charts, small business failings are increasing, commodity prices are continually rising. Not to mention Treasury printing vast amounts of currency causing further devaluation. My point is that no, market forces are not nullified by OPEC. But they are manipulated by them. And their manipulation drives the speculators to hedge higher prices, which in turn, drives up the price. Increasing oil cost drives higher energy production costs, manufacturing costs, delivery costs and so on. All these factors add up to increased commodities costs to the consumer, which leads to inflation, which further devalues the dollar. Fiscal policy and poor Treasury decisions and policy has also exacerbated and prolonged our economic difficulties, further causing devaluation, further causing inflation, further causing increased pricing, and on and on, ad infinitum...
"2%...20%..."
Submitted by spepper on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 9:03am.
This "2%....20%" of Obama's is starting to sound about as annoying as the "caws" from the crows that fly overhead every morning where I live. COMPLETELY MISLEADING, ON PURPOSE. What it REALLY means is that we only represent 2% of the world's oil reseves because it is ONLY that which is ALLOWED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT to obtain. The POTENTIAL OIL RESERVES, or that which is readily available but the access of which is currently BLOCKED BY THIS ADMINISTRATION, is SEVERAL HUNDREDS OF TIMES HIGHER as documented in this article. So when he starts in again with his "2%....20%" crowing, it makes me want to PUKE. COMPLETE LIE.
If........
Submitted by Joe W. on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 9:12am.
If we had started drilling in earnest, 4 years ago when the left said that our available oil could not be produced for 5 years....we would have plenty of oil today. As I recall, Barack Obama was one of those eviscerating George W. Bush over the price of gas & oil at that time. It's really beginning to suck to live in Amerika these days, and it's only going to get worse. Obama is hoping for civil unrest, leading to wide spread violence, in order for him to declare martial law and cancel the 2012 election. He'll declare himself President, and the shackles will be in place, folks. Welcome to The United Socialist Communes of Amerika.
Obama Misleads...
Submitted by NVRAT on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 9:17am.
Did not have to read the article. It`s the same old BS from him as the MSM. BS to back-up the BS. I thought it was funny when someone said that he was going to release our oil reserves and the oil prices started to tumble and then the WH quickly came out and said it was not the truth then prices stabilized quickly and, back to the higher dollar amount. Now, if that is not proof enough that more oil on the market will lower the price of oil I don`t know what is. This POTUS is deliberately trying to ruin our country, our Economic markets and our society as a whole, he knows exactly what he is doing he uses his platform and media backing to continue to reap destruction on our country. But, I guess that is what the Progressive Democratic Party is all about destroy the Constitution, turn our sovereignty over to the United Nations and, make us a two tier society (communist style) upper and lower class. He is almost there because the middle class is about destroyed. How many small business` are left in your town? have you looked at all the empty business park buildings? they were part of the middle class and they are disappearing slowly. Unemployment is higher than they say and, things are a lot worse than they let on. Four more years of Obama and his communist CZAR`s and the Progressives will have succeeded in their goal to "Destroy America". It`s been said for every penny that raises up the price of gas our economy looses 1 billion dollars, if this is true...I guess you can see the impact and strategy Obama is using. Good luck to the US in 2012 if there is anything left.
The liberals always say...
Submitted by c5then on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 9:32am.
There is nothing that we can do right now to affect the price, but they are not willing to do all they can to avoid another crisis in the future.
We are stuck right now because Obama will do nothing (short of rhetoric) to help us in the future. On Jan 21, 2013 the new President can simply sign some executive orders and cancel a few existing ones and open up GIGANTIC areas for production and exploration and the evil speculators will drop the price of crude oil by 20% over-night as the future OPEC contracts are shorted to oblivion.
All of Obama's actions since he has taken office have been designed to increase the price of oil and therefore gasoline. When He is asked about it, he replies with a sarcastic question of "do you really think thay I want higher gas prices in an election year?". The answer is of course YES! but he also doesn't want to take the political blame for it either.
Almost the entire media industry is acting as the administration's press office. And that includes FoxNews, although to a lesser extent for them. But no one is challenging the incorrect statistical assertions, the actions that are opposite of the rhetoric and the outright lying.
Madison and Jefferson and Franklin built a Republic - Roberts killed it!
For sure Obama is losing the 2% - 20% Fact Distortion.
Submitted by acaiguana on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 9:41am.
And people are seeing right through it.
ACA
...
Quoted from: 'Acaiguana notes from the Underground' (Soon to be at theaters near you)
I remember friends of mine
Submitted by misterbee241 on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 10:49am.
back when Bush was president, were sending emails around blaming Bush for high gas prices (around 1.82 per gallon). I defended Bush, saying the president did not control gas prices or dictate the economy. I was only partially right. I did not realize at the the time how much impact the president has on the economy by just what he says or does. When Bush announced that off shore drilling would be approved, the price of gas went down. Then back up again when the enviro nuts filed law suits. And when Obama revoked permits in the Gulf, prices went back up.
I'd bet the rent that if Obama came out today and said he'll approve the Keystone line, you'd see prices drop. So up to a point, the president really does have some say in this.
If that 20% consumption
Submitted by ant on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 10:52am.
If that 20% consumption number were accurate his comparisons would still be flawed. The 20% would account for fuel produced throughout the world, not the unrecovered crude in the ground. He seems to be equating available oil production consumed and oil reserves still untapped. I'm pretty sure we are not using '20%' of untapped oil reserves for our energy needs.
Gas Prices
Submitted by oldfart on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 1:02pm.
For once Obama is right - he may NO control over the price of oil because as the FED continues to monetize our debt the futures traders are factoring in the Jimmy Carter style inflation that is starting to move our way.
Why will gas hit $5.00 a gallon by memorial day? Because of inflation, not because of supply and demand issues.
Anyone been to the grocery store lately?
As long as oil is quoted in an increasingly worthless US $ that is what is going to happen.
This inflation will wipe out any economic gains made in the past year, wipe out any gains the unions are trying achieve in the Wisconsin recall, wipe out savings and make everyone mad as hell.
It is getting to the point where the people in the Obama Administration are praying (to what ever god(s) they believe in) that the 'big' inflation will not hit until after November. These people are so wrapped up in their ideology that they cannot publicly acknowledge the economic reality that is currently unfolding. One thing for sure the lame stream media will not report it.
They, the Administration and their financial and ideological backers, are loosing control of the situation and there will be Hell to pay.
This has all happened before – can anyone say Weimar Republic?
The FED is a creation of congress.
Submitted by CobraMan on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 2:37pm.
You act as if the FED is an independent, non-government controlled entity. That's far from the truth. The FED is a creation of Congress. It is highly regulated, by Congressional legislation, and Congress has almost complete oversight over its activities. If you musty place blame, place it where it lies, with Congress.
Also, our "debt"is the result of the administration spending, with full congressional approval, far more than it can possibly receive in tax revenue. How is that the fault of the FED? The FED isn't the one who passed those "continuing spending resolutions," resolutions which authorities Obama to spend more than a trillion dollars than the government can possibly receive in tax revenue, every year since Obama took office. Congress did that.
By the way, do you know what enabled the Weimar Republic? That's right, it's own legislature.
The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States. The US Constitution
Unless you're a fetus. The US Supreme Court
Or Anwar al-Awlaki.
Your reply is a straw man.
Submitted by oldfart on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 6:33pm.
No beef with the means or who is involved how we got her but when has the FED answered to Congress in the past 3 1/2 years?
I am sure there is enough blame to go around to everyone but your statements, while factual, have no meaning because however we got to the edge of cliff, we are there.
Please read what I actually said - Obama is right - he has little or no control over the price of gas.
So who is going to assume leadership?
The President? Don’t think so – he is too busy running around blaming everyone but himself. Guess he missed the Harry Truman part about THE BUCK STOPS HERE. He is NO leader.
Congress? Don't think so - not as long as we have a Senate that has NOT passed a budged in 3 1/2 years - Go talk to Harry Reid about that one.
The FED? Don't think so - Bernake is following someone's marching orders. Be it the President or Congress.
So who is going to stop inflation ?
Oldfart, got to disagree with you on this one.
Submitted by acaiguana on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 7:21pm.
If you disavow the impact of psychology on markets (which I do not believe you do) then your comment might carry weight.
Obama has a lot of control over gas pricing. He could make sweeping changes of policy which will have long lasting effects on the current stranglehold over oil pricing that the Cartel currently holds.
For example; the Cartel knows that all oil development is a three to five year window. If Obama opened up the restricted lands from oil the Cartels would have to factor the window. The window would be between three to five years. Their choice would be to milk the system now for the short term or reduce their income and live with the onslaught of oil in five years.
The bully pulpit works both ways.
ACA
...
Quoted from: 'Acaiguana notes from the Underground' (Soon to be at theaters near you)
LEFTISM AS PSYCHOPATHY
Submitted by HardRightTurn on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 1:10pm.
Before I read “Leftism As Psychopathy” by John Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.), I was merely repulsed by the Left. Now, I am scared to death of them.
http://jonjayray.tripod.com/psycho.html
To more fully comprehend the Left, one must read “Leftism As Psychopathy” by John Ray, M.A., Ph.D. Caution, it might scare you a little bit.
http://jonjayray.tripod.com/psycho.html
Who wants to join the class action lawsuit
Submitted by antiObamunist on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 1:24pm.
to seek damages done to the constitution and the citizens for media malpractice. The networks should be made to carry insurance.
Production vs Reserves
Submitted by Pahlavan on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 2:27pm.
While the US may use 20% of today's annual production of oil, that has nothing to do with "proven reserves". "...the California Department of Food and Agriculture notes that California is the world’s fifth largest supplier of food and agriculture commodities...." yet no one complains that our production goes to the rest of the world! If one of the 50 states represents 20% of the world's production, then should we keep our grain and produce to ourselves since someone else only produces a small percentage? When I was in Saudi Arabia the markets were full of imported food. Why? Because the Saudi's have camels, dates, and not much else besides sand and oil. We get oil, they get food. Should Florida keep its oranges since it produces so much and deny the people of Colorado their morning juice?
Obama and all others who play this stupid game of 2% and 20% are charlatans. I want problems solved not finger-pointing and that's all the liberals give us.
Gee Bob,
Submitted by RESTLESS 1 on Tue, 03/20/2012 - 3:00pm.
“That's right on all counts … the problem is … people think there are things he can do about it.”
I wonder where anyone would get that idea.
For the life of me, I can't fathom what on earth would lead people to believe the president is responsible for gas prices.