White House: No 'Magic Solutions' For Rising Gas Prices

2/21/12 | Fox Nation.com

1:30 minute mark

JAY CARNEY, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY:

"...Lets talk a little bit about oil prices. There are no magic solutions to rising oil prices and the pain Americans feel at the pump. The fact is that the President is very aware of the impact that the global price of oil has on families and this is not something that this administration discovered or rediscovers every spring as some politicians do. As you're aware Jake, oil production in the United States has increased every year that this President has been in office and right now..."

JAKE TAPPER, ABC NEWS:

That's not all because of his actions. Isn't some of that because of previous administrations?

CARNEY:

Well, it is now a combination of both. And the fact is that American oil production is at its highest now than it has been in eight years. Moreover and this goes to our actions for the past 3 years we have opened millions of new acres for oil and gas exploration as part of our focus on continuing to expand possible responsible domestic production. Last month the President directed his administration to open more than 75% of our potential offshore oil and gas reserve resources, including 38 million acre lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico scheduled for this Summer which could produce up to 1 billion barrels of oil and 4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. 

And also lets step back and look at this as a long-term issue and not magic solutions politicians propose in the spring and forget about come Summer and Fall this President put into place historic fuel efficiency standards that will more than nearly double the efficiency of the vehicles we drive in the next decade and that alone will save American families 1.7 trillion dollars at the pump and cut oil consumption by 12 million barrels.

The president is also committed to, I mean he takes an all of the above approach. We've approved new nuclear reactor development, first time I believe in 30 years. We are focused on increasing domestic oil and gas production. But we're also focused on developing alternative sources of fuel whether they are biofuels, wind or solar. Alternative energy is another means by which we can reduce our reliance on foreign oil, reduce our vulnerability because of global oil, changes in the global price of oil. That’s the kind of approach we have to take to ensure our economic future.