Here's an interesting interview with William Perry Pendley, author of the just released Sagebrush Rebel: Reagan's Battle with Environmental Extremists and Why It Matters Today. I hope to have a review of the book posted this weekend.
http://youtu.be/5gG7OhEyL3M
2 comments:
I am ordering the book today. Thank you for the interview. Reagan did play a crucial role in expanding OCS leasing. One effect of the sagebrush rebellion is that it led to the seaweed rebellion. However, seaweed activist tend to have a much more "extreme environmental" point of view than sagebrush rebels.
I do take a couple of exceptions to one statement that the author makes that Reagan opening the Outer Continental Shelf drove companies into deep water of the Gulf of Mexico.
The Deepwater Royalty Relief Act enacted in 1995 and signed by Bill Clinton did more to open the deepwater GOM than any other factor. The GOM was pretty much of a backwater of oil company interest at the time the law was enacted. Some companies were developing the technology to work in deep water before the act, but billions of dollars provided by incentives spurred the growth we see today.
The growth in leasing in the aftermath of the DWRRA resulted in more OCS acreage being leased in fewer sales under Clinton than were leased under 12 years of Reagan and George Bush. Some would argue, it is not what is offered leasing that matters, but how much that is offered is eventually leased.
Frankly, I had forgot about Reagan, Watt, etc. and their battles with the most extreme elements of the environmental movement. Looks like this book will be a good historical refresher of the issues and I look forward to the Dubois review.
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