Oil-export law would cost jobs, not create them

Honesty should be its own reward. The same with dishonesty. On Friday, Oc. 9, Congress passed a bill to lift the 40-year-old ban on exporting crude oil. By their vote, 261 Republicans, joined by 26 Democratic Party Corporatists, want the USA to export crude oil.

Within 48 hours, the Daily Herald had a letter to the editor from Timothy Pendergas of Evanston extolling the benefits of such a move. The original law was called "self-imposed sanctions," claiming that "sanctions here also hurt our economy and suppress employment."

Once again we heard the calls for free trade and free markets. The Congressional vote included legislative support from our own local corporatists, Hultgren and Roskam.

Nothing claimed in this letter could be further from the truth. A report on the Dow Jones newswire of the same day said this: "Some refineries with business primarily in the U.S. and consumer groups oppose oil exports, saying they could raise gasoline prices for U.S. drivers."

"A U.S. Energy Department analysis from September estimated American refiners' profits could be more than $22 billion lower by 2025 if the oil-export ban is lifted."

This proposed law most certainly would cost America more jobs, not provide them, due to lost refining and increased gas costs. It is also intended to allow oil producers to sell oil not to free trade or free market customers, but to anyone they choose, including the worst polluters on the planet. They could then sell the gas back to us.

But worst of all, this proposal is brought to you by the same people who support the Keystone Pipeline, and the false claims that project made, including the claim they were not building the Keystone pipeline to export dirty synthetic crude oil to unregulated foreign refiners.

They lied. Let their deceit be their reward.

Philip Graf

Rolling Meadows