Sedona, AZ (June 11, 2008) - Businessman, author and candidate for US Congress in Arizona's 1st congressional district, Brent Maupin, commented on published news reports that Congress is going to look at offshore oil drilling.

According to the reports, US Rep. John Peterson is pushing for an amendment to a spending bill that would open up U.S. waters between 50 and 200 miles for off shore for drilling. The first 50 miles off shore would be left alone.

Speaking of the plan Brent Maupin said, "Considering the Minerals Management Service estimates, there are more than 80 billion barrels of oil located offshore obviously Congressman Peterson's amendment is worth discussing. However, we can not look to off shore drilling without putting the proper environmental safeguards in place."

"We can not drill just for the sake of drilling," Maupin continued. "If we are going to look off shore for oil it must be a part of an overall plan to achieve energy independence and those involved in the planning process have to understand that drilling for more oil is only a short term solution. We must put more time, money and energy into alternative sources and move away from oil. There is no reason to open areas to exploration that have been closed since 1981 if we are not doing it to eliminate our dependency on foreign oil."

"I can not support any plan that does not have the elimination of foreign oil as its objective. We send our young men and women off to foreign countries to protect foreign oil and that is too high a price to pay," Maupin said.

Brent Maupin is a business owner, civil engineer and architect, author, singer and songwriter and won a battle with cancer that doctors said could not be beaten. He is a father of two and has been a resident of northern Arizona for over 15 years. For more information please visit http://www.winwithmaupin.com/.

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Paid for by Brent Maupin for Congress, PO Box 21032, Sedona, AZ 86341