.. and shit happens. Obaminable lied. Shit happens.
Bidenoxious lied. Shit happens.
Candy had her Dan Rather moment. Shit happens.
Hillary shot herself in both feet. Shit happens. Originally Posted by LexusLover
There has been more oil and natural production on private lands than in federally controlled areas. So Romney is correct in pointing out an imbalance.
But it is an overstatement to say that "all of the increase" has been on private lands -- since, by definition, new permits and licenses have been granted for federal lands (bringing in more gas and oil).
Romney's claim that Obama's administration has "cut the number of permits and licenses in half" for federal lands is also not on the mark.
True, there has been a significant drop -- one tied, in part, to the unprecedented Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Yet the actual numbers of permits and licenses haven't been "cut ... in half." As mentioned above (and including data from part of the Bush administration), there has been a 42% decrease in leases and 37% decrease in drilling permits -- not 50%, as Romney implied.
Even the Institute for Energy Research acknowledged that "this decrease isn't a result of President Obama's policies exclusively, but it is the result of decades and policies that have systematically reduced energy production on federal lands."