Matthew Yglesias » Palin on the “Energy Weapon”

Sep 3rd, 2008 at 10:55 pm

Palin on the “Energy Weapon”

Give Sarah Palin this much — her understanding of the geopolitics of energy is every bit as daft as that of much more seasoned conservative pseudoexperts. She can spin out outlandish and ultimately nonsensical scenarios about Iran (or Venezuela) deploying the mythical “oil weapon” and she, too, can ignore the fundamentally global nature of hydrocarbon markets by prattling about “energy independence.”

Comments
28

28 Responses to “Palin on the “Energy Weapon””

Jack Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:58 pm
She has a Canadian accent! She has “Canadian raising” and even pronounces “about” properly. I think I’m now for her.
El Cid Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:58 pm
Why does Barack Obama want to free the 9/11 terrorists ’cause of the Miranda rule? Is it ’cause he’s a secret Muslim arugula-chomper who got all a buncha fancy ideas in big gay Yurrup?
Justin Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:00 pm
Ok she has mentioned clean coal twice now. Can someone please tell them that such a thing doesnt exist?
55 Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:00 pm
Seems like the GOP is giving Obama an easy weapon. First the campaign guy says it’s about personalities, not issues. Then the speakers try to reignite the culture wars and barely touch any issues at all. I’m pretty sure Obama’s “It’s not about me” line was a hit.
cdman Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:01 pm
Could totally tell she was uncomfortable spouting out that nonsense about Iran and Venezuela and the oil weapon, primarily because she didn’t know what she was talking about.
Mark Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:04 pm
Clean coal?!? Can anyone please explain what that is, apart from science fiction?
fostert Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:19 pm
“nonsensical scenarios about Iran (or Venezuela) deploying the mythical “oil weapon””

Umm, Iran really can deploy an oil weapon. The great thing for them is that the weapon is actually us. If they make threats about the Strait of Hormuz, we will start escorting ships, which will slow down traffic. There’s only a 2-3% reserve capacity in the oil market now, and half the world’s oil flows through that strait. So, a 10% reduction in the traffic there would be enough to really screw up the oil market. And a 10% reduction is pretty likely if every ship must be escorted. So, our reaction could easily trigger a crisis, even if it’s just a bluff on Iran’s part.
Matt L Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:26 pm
I agree. In fact, she referred to Iran’s 20% of global oil supplies as the “world’s resources” and the reserves in the North Slope of Alaska as “Our resources”
James Robertson Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:39 pm
Matt,

So then Obama is a tool as well, since he blathers on about energy independence a lot?
ben Says:
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:49 pm
“She has a Canadian accent! She has “Canadian raising” and even pronounces “about” properly. I think I’m now for her.”

Ewww. I hate me some Candadian accent. Too much enunciation and every 10th word emphatically misprounounced.

I also don’t believe that “Canadian culture” and “Canadian food” exist. I wouldn’t mind living in one of the great Canadian cities or enjoying free healthcare, but I would have a hard time getting over hearing that awful accident all the time.
Richard Steven Hack Says:
September 4th, 2008 at 12:00 am
What does Palin know about Iran? Well, she keeps an Israeli flag in her office!

Who runs the United States again? Us…or them?

Palin at AIPAC: That Didn’t Take Long
http://www.antiwar.com/blog/2008/09/02/palin-at-aipac-that-didnt-take-long/

MSNBC and the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) are reporting that Gov. Palin met this afternoon with the board of directors of the America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and Sen. Joe Lieberman to, in the words of one McCain campaign official cited by MSNBC, put “the American Jewish community at ease over her understanding of US-Middle East relations.” It’s worth noting that Palin, who has obviously been completely off-limits to reporters since she was rolled out as McCain’s running-mate in Dayton Friday, stiffed a reception in her honor sponsored by none other than Phyllis Schlafly a couple hours later. (One wonders what other lobbies have tried to arrange a meeting with Palin in the last 96 hours and with what success.)

“We had a good productive discussion on the importance of the U.S.-Israel relationship, and we were pleased that Gov. Palin expressed her deep, personal, and lifelong commitment to the safety and well-being of Israel,” AIPAC spokesman Josh Block said after the meeting. “Like Sen. McCain, the vice presidential nominee understands and believes in the special friendship between the two democracies and would work to expand and deepen the strategic partnership in a McCain/Palin Administration.”

“She was extremely well received,” McCain campaign spokesman Michael Goldfarb said, noting that Palin was interrupted by applause twice,” according to the JTA account. He added that Palin spoke about “the relationship between Israel and American national security, and the threats to Israel from Iran and others.”

Evidence of nervousness in the McCain campaign about Palin’s impact on Jewish voters and donors was made clear when the Likudist Republican Jewish Coalition circulated a video of her Alaska office in which it found a small Israeli flag, in the words of Politico, “poking out from behind a drape.”

“I think it speaks volumes that she keeps an Israeli flag on the wall of her office,” RJC’s executive director, Matt Brooks, told Politico in an e-mail. “It clearly shows what’s in her heart.” Politico’s analysis is well worth reading. As I noted Friday, a Nexis search of the two years previous to her selection as McCain’s running-mate failed to find a single published article in which Palin ever mentioned Israel. I suspect it may make it into her acceptance speech Wednesday night.
cmholm Says:
September 4th, 2008 at 12:03 am
Off (the immediate) Topic: at what point will the Anne Kilkenny letter get some traction in the MSM? Maybe too old news?
James S. Says:
September 4th, 2008 at 12:03 am
Don’t American oil tankers deliver Alaskan oil to foreign ports?
Owen Says:
September 4th, 2008 at 12:15 am
Russia has used energy as a weapon in Europe, cutting off supplies when it’s upset.

But maybe she’s talking about how easy it is for terrorist to attack nuclear power plants. Maybe we should secure a couple of those before building new ones.
Glen Tomkins Says:
September 4th, 2008 at 12:17 am
Don’t be such an Adlai

Her message is strong, direct and simple. It doesn’t have to bear any relationship to reality. If you’re a Republican in 2008, there’s no way you can stay on a strong message and not have it doing mortal violence to reality.

Her message only has to appeal to people who have had this campaign, much less the last 8 years, much less the last 40 years, going on all around them, and still don’t know how to vote. These are not people who reality test all that well. Let us pray that there aren’t too many of them, because it is far from clear that what she is selling would not sell to people who haven’t already noticed the credibility gap on their own.
fostert Says:
September 4th, 2008 at 1:57 am
“Don’t American oil tankers deliver Alaskan oil to foreign ports?”

Look on a globe, Los Angeles is the same distance as Tokyo is from Alaska. And Tokyo needs it more. Where else would it go? So, yes, those tankers often go to foreign ports.
phi Says:
September 4th, 2008 at 2:04 am
matt,
based on what i’ve read about/by her thus far i find it hard to believe that she wrote any of the speech tonight… aside from the pitbull line.
James S. Says:
September 5th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Dear fostert,

Thanks for the geography lesson. I was trying to emphasize M.Y’s point. Oil is a fungible commodity. Palin’s nationalistic sentiments about energy security clash against the reality of the global spot market for oil. Let’s face it, in Pax Americana, Japan is the 51st state, but try telling that to the country people living in Wasilla.

Regards–Jim S.
MrModerator Says:
September 11th, 2008 at 9:54 pm
THIS IS NOT CHANGE, this is boldly going where previous Republican administration officials have gone many times before; hoping that the average American will completely ignore the fact that what they are proposing are political actions in direct contradiction to what they want you to think they support!… more
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Matt Yglesias

Palin on the “Energy Weapon”

28 Responses to “Palin on the “Energy Weapon””

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