A reporter, saying the energy debate will continue into the next administration, told President Bush that "one thing nobody debates is that if Americans use less energy the current supply/demand equation would improve. Why have you not sort of called on Americans to drive less and to turn down the thermostat?"
Bush responded: "They’re smart enough to figure out whether they’re going to drive less or not … it’s interesting what the price of gasoline has done, is it caused people to drive less. That’s why they want smaller cars, they want to conserve. But the consumer is plenty bright. … The marketplace works.
"Secondly, we have worked with Congress to change CAFE standards and had a mandatory alternative fuel requirement," he continued. "One way to correct the imbalance is to save, is to conserve. … I talked about good conservation. And people can figure out whether they need to drive more or less; they can balance their own checkbooks."
"But you don't see the need to ask? You don’t see the value of your calling for a campaign?" the reporter persisted.
"I think people ought to conserve and be wise about how they use gasoline and energy … and there’s some easy steps people can take. You know, if they’re not in their home, they don’t keep their air-conditioning running," Bush said, adding that "it’s a little presumptuous on my part to dictate to consumers how they live their lives."
Lefties tell me all the time that it's the right that wants to take away your freedoms and tell you how you must live. I honestly don't see it.
Obviously, it's not too presumptuous of the reporter to want too dictate to consumers but nobody elected him to anything so the best he can do is to try to nag the president or hope someone's elected who's as presumptuous as the reporter.
ReplyDeletePart of the liberal ideology is that the ones at the top of the pyramid know more than those at the base and that those at the top should call the shots. Conservatives are more like a Greek temple where every individual is a column that supports the structure. It doesn't surprise me that liberals are resistant to true diversity of thought. By the way, have you noticed since Obama is out of the country, gas has gone down and the stock market has stabilized? Could it be that the normal route for negative press placement by the Obama campaign are tied up overseas? I don't think it's a coincidence.
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