By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN, Associated Press Writer Michael Kunzelman, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 30 mins ago
NEW ORLEANS – A federal judge struck down the Obama administration's six-month ban on deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico as rash and heavy-handed Tuesday, saying the government simply assumed that because one rig exploded, the others pose an imminent danger, too.
The White House promised an immediate appeal. The Interior Department had imposed the moratorium last month in the wake of the BP disaster, halting approval of any new permits for deepwater projects and suspending drilling on 33 exploratory wells.(link)
Of course the Government will appeal, but at least this judge can see what the ban would do to the economy (especially in the areas where thousands of jobs would be lost). In this 'recovery' we need more jobs and more resources, not less.
