Elizabeth Dole

“ Any exploration off our coast is bad for our tourism industry and bad for North Carolina.
As an editorial in the Charlotte Observer on March 31st of this year explains, “A drilling accident threatens everything North Carolinians hold dear about the coast – the beaches, the ocean water, the fin fish and shellfish, the pelicans and pipers, the marsh grass and live oaks. Allowing drilling off the coast of the Carolinas – in an area of the Atlantic that has some of the roughest weather in the world – is foolish.” ”

“ Exploring off our coast would endanger North Carolina’s booming tourism industry, a true economic engine of my state. According to the North Carolina Department of Commerce, tourism is one of North Carolina’s largest industries, supporting nearly 183,000 jobs. And tourism remains strong, despite declines in other important North Carolina industries in my state such as textiles, furniture manufacturing, and fiber optics. ”

“ There is no question that now, more than ever, we must work to end our dependence on foreign oil – but we cannot do so by ignoring the wishes and economic needs of the majority of the people of North Carolina, and many other coastal states, who oppose this exploration. ”