Paul Driessen

Dear Lord, what were you thinking?

What a marvelous evening it was. World-class drummer Tommy Igoe and his Birdland All-Stars treated the George Mason University Center for the Arts audience to a joyous evening of jazz, funk, Brazilian and original music that featured new renditions of classics by David Bowie, The Police, Steely Dan, Charlie Parker and other famed artists. Every high-energy number captivated these jazz aficionados.

Lease the OCS--to benefit all Americans

Under the current offshore energy program developed during the Obama years, 94% of the nation's Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) is off limits to leasing and drilling. Under the Draft Proposed Program (DPP) announced January 4 by Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, over 90% of OCS acreage and 98% of "undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources" in these federal offshore areas (beyond the 3-mile limit of state waters) will be considered for possible future leasing, exploration and development.

The fake 'Trump is racist' issue

By now, nearly the entire world has heard reports that President Trump referred to the origins of some immigrants as "sh**hole countries."

Blatant Blue State hypocrisy

You've got to admire the full frontal audacity of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio, and their union and pressure group comrades in arms. Their hypocrisy, fraud and tyranny are boundless, especially on fiscal, energy and climate change issues.

The biofuel crony capitalist revolving door

Yet another congressional aide is about to pass through Washington's infamous revolving door to a lucrative private sector position. Kurt Kovarik, legislative director for Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), will become vice president of federal affairs for the National Biodiesel Board.

A little slice of Alaskan tundra is finally open for drilling

Reducing Antiquities Act land grabs

Acting on recommendations by Department of the Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, on December 4 President Trump significantly reduced the size of two enormous areas in Utah that Presidents Clinton and Obama had set aside as limited-access, no-development zones under the 1906 Antiquities Act.

Keystone is anti-hydrocarbon zealotry in microcosm

UN agency to Congress: Drop dead

Sharing our blessings

This Thanksgiving weekend is a good time to express our gratitude for the jobs, living standards and life spans we enjoy today--largely because of abundant, reliable, affordable energy, 83% of it still because of fossil fuels.

Virginia goes Don Quixote

Democrat Ralph Northam had barely won the Virginia governor's race when his party announced it would impose a price on greenhouse gases emissions, require a 3% per year reduction in GHG emissions, and develop a cap-and-trade scheme requiring polluters to buy credits for emitting carbon dioxide.

Agitators, regulators and predators on the prowl

Legal and scientific ethics seem to have become irrelevant, as anti-chemical agitators, regulators and trial lawyers team up on numerous lawsuits against Monsanto. They're seeking tens of billions of dollars in jackpot justice, by claiming a chemical in the company's popular weed killer RoundUp causes cancer.

DC Swamp denizens strike back

Despite what I thought were persuasive articles over the years (here, here and here, for example), corn ethanol and other biofuel mandates remain embedded in US law. As we have learned, once a government program is created, it becomes virtually impossible to eliminate, revise or even trim fat from it.

The Obama EPA's crooked prosecutors

Suppose a crooked prosecutor framed someone and was determined to get a conviction. So he built an entire case on tainted, circumstantial evidence, and testimony from witnesses who had their reasons for wanting the guy in jail. Suppose the prosecutor ignored or hid exculpatory evidence and colluded with the judge to prevent the defendant from presenting a robust defense or cross-examining adverse witnesses.

Politicized sustainability threatens planet and people

Sustainability (sustainable development) is one of the hottest trends on college campuses, in the news media, in corporate boardrooms and with regulators. There are three different versions.

Funding the arts--or hurricane recovery

A couple of friends recently said it was terrible that some in Congress and the White House could even consider reducing National Endowment for the Arts funding. It's a critical program, they feel, essential for the very survival of many community and even big-time theaters, orchestras and other arts programs. The thought of trimming the NEA shows a low regard for this important component of civilized society.

Now it's a war on pipelines

The radical environmentalist war on fossil fuels has opened a new front: a war on pipelines. For years, activist zealots claimed the world was rapidly depleting its oil and natural gas supplies.

Irma illusions--and realities

Hurricanes Harvey and Irma brought out the best in us. Millions of Americans are giving money, toil and sweat to help victims rebuild. Unfortunately, the storms also highlighted some people's baser instincts.

Finally, some commonsense western fire policies

President Trump promised to bring fresh ideas and policies to Washington. Now Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue are doing exactly that in a critically important area: forest management and conflagration prevention. Their actions are informed, courageous and long overdue.

The Hurricane Harvey Hustle

"When a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight," English essayist Samuel Johnson observed 240 years ago, "it concentrates his mind wonderfully." That's certainly true in the climate change arena. After ending US participation in the Paris climate treaty and abolishing many government restrictions on fossil fuel use, the Trump Administration began preparing red team-blue team examinations of the science behind claims of "dangerous manmade climate change."