McCain Credits Bush for Oil-Price Drop

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. -- Republican John McCain on Wednesday credited the recent $10-a-barrel drop in the price of oil to President Bush's lifting of a presidential ban on offshore drilling, an action he has been advocating in his presidential campaign. The cost of oil and gasoline is "on everybody's mind in this room," Sen. McCain told a town-hall meeting. He criticized Democratic rival Barack Obama for opposing drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf. Mr. Bush recently lifted the executive order banning offshore drilling that his father put in place in 1990. He also asked Congress to lift its own moratorium on oil exploration on the outer continental shelf which includes coastal waters as close as three miles from shore. "The price of oil dropped $10 a barrel," said Sen. McCain, who argued that the psychology of lifting the ban... [read full story]