The shifting political sands of energy

One’s antenna always should go up when a special interest group releases a poll that shows a result favorable to the special interest group. But a poll is a poll and today’s comes from the American Petroleum Institute which reports its poll finds 58% of Minnesotans support “increased access” to oil and gas reserves (i.e. ANWR and coastal drilling). Twenty-percent of those people only somewhat support the idea.

Ninety-four percent of those surveyed are “concerned” about the price of gas. Five percent “aren’t concerned at all.”

The results are pretty much the same as a survey Quinnipiac took in Minnesota last month. In that survey, 59 percent of those surveyed said they support drilling for oil off the coasts. Half of those who said they supported drilling, said they have always held that view; that’s a sign of the shifting political sand on the issue.

But in that same survey, 61 percent of those surveyed said they’d rather have politicians focus on alternative forms of energy, than drilling for oil.