An Energetic Liar

Gov. Sarah Palin "knows more about energy than probably anyone in the United States of America." -- John McCain, ABC interview, Sept. 11, 2008.

"My job has been to oversee nearly 20 percent of the U.S. domestic supply of oil and gas." --Gov. Sarah Palin, Campaign event in Golden, Colorado, Sept. 15, 2008.

Quotes lifted from The Fact Checker by Michael Dobbs (WaPo)

Sarah Palin may not know much about foreign affairs, but she is an expert on energy - or so we have been told. Unfortunately, she is also given to exaggeration, and flagrant disregard for the truth. She is a liar - perhaps this explains her appeal to McCain?

Here's more from Dobbs:

After the non-partisan Factcheck.org pointed out Palin's error in her interview with Gibson, the Alaska governor revised her claim somewhat, limiting it to oil and gas. But data compiled by the Energy Information Administration contradict her claim that she oversees "nearly 20 percent" of oil and gas production in the country. According to authoritative EIA data, Alaska accounted for just 7.4 percent of total U.S. oil and gas production in 2005.

It is not even correct for Palin to claim that her state is responsible for "nearly 20 percent" of U.S. oil production. Oil production has fallen sharply in Alaska during her governorship. The state's share of total U.S. oil production fell from 18 percent in 2005 to 13 percent this year, according to the EIA.

Maybe Palin doesn't know jack about the most basic national energy statistics, but by continuing to spout her 20% figure after being confronted with the facts, she is clearly a liar.

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