Obama Eyes Active Role In Oil Markets

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT/Reuters: Obama Eyes Active Role In Oil Markets
By REUTERS
Published: March 20, 2008

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrat Barack Obama would take an active role in U.S. oil markets as president, tackling concerns about the dominance of large oil companies and eyeing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a potential weapon to combat high prices, his top energy adviser said. The presidential hopeful's adviser, Jason Grumet, told Reuters that an Obama administration would crack down on any competition lapses in the sector that have resulted from big corporate mergers.

Fleshing out the Illinois senator's energy and environmental policy goals, Grumet also said Obama would seek to link a future U.S. carbon emissions trading system with the European Union's scheme as soon as possible while focusing attention on China and India in forging a global warming pact....

Grumet, head of the Washington-based Bipartisan Policy Center in addition to advising the Obama campaign, said the oil industry had "concentrated incredible market power in a small number of companies" in a way that caused alarm....

***

With oil prices at record highs, Grumet said Obama would seek to tax the "windfall" profits that oil companies are making - a threat that rival Hillary Clinton has also made....Obama would also consider tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to bring down prices while recognizing that such a move is normally meant to aid in the case of an acute supply disruption, Grumet said....

***

Obama has said a key factor in bringing oil prices down will be tackling the transport sector and increasing the fuel economy of cars. That ties in with another key goal: reducing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming....

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-energy-obama.html

[Donnachaidh]

1. and not word one on price freezes or caps to immediately help consumers

But boy howdy -- all the committees that will need to be set up sure is job security for those political IOU's he's got hanging out of his back pocket. :sarcasm:

Same old, same old.... :eyes:

[phantom power]

2. If he's smart, he'll start rebuilding our rail system...

and other public transit. Facilitating a retraction from the suburbs and exurbs would also be beneficial, if there is any way to make that transition easier.

[flor de jasmim]

3. There was a report earlier in the day that W. Buffett was buying up railroads...

[phantom power]

4. Warren Buffett is shrewd.

[sharesunited]

5. The DOE should be trading the

Strategic Petroleum Reserve like an 800-lb gorilla, aggressively selling delivery contracts during rallies and buying them back on market declines. They could be slapping the hell out of oil speculators by doing this, and would seldom if ever need to release any actual oil.