When Conservatism Collides With America’s Oil Boom

Even the most committed free-marketers realize Washington will not look on this debate lightly. Old memories die hard, and politicians of all parties are also terrified that lifting the ban could raise gasoline prices, or at least be portrayed that way on the campaign trail.

"The jitters about energy independence are shared by House members as well as the general public," said Marlo Lewis, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a conservative, libertarian think tank. "There are a lot of people who still look at these issues through the memories of the 1970s, and that's a political reality."