That’s what The One has idled by a word when he suspended offshore drilling permits in waters over 500 feet deep.

President Barack Obama suspends drilling at 33 wells in the Gulf of Mexico
By Times-Picayune Staff
May 27, 2010, 9:36PM

Bruce Alpert and Rebecca Mowbray wrote this report.

President Barack Obama said Thursday that he’s “angry and frustrated” about the BP oil spill and that he is committing his administration to tougher regulation of the industry and a six-month suspension of exploratory drilling at 33 deepwater wells in the Gulf of Mexico.

4000 direct jobs. Indirect? Hard to say. Nothing offshore happens without a huge “tail” of support infrastructure. Helicopters weave back and forth from the shore bases to the platforms hauling personnel and critical equipment. Service boats cleave the waters hauling equipment, men and supplies. Teams of contractors show up to handle everything from painting and cooking to incredibly critical and esoteric tasks like logging (“My pipe is a thousand feet through the water and 16,000 feet into the rock. What’s down there?”) and mudding and cementing.

A lot of those companies are dependent on those thirty-three platforms to keep crews busy. We’re not talking about burger-flippers, either, for the most part. Folks all over the South have known for decades that good livings were to be made in “the oilpatch” and offshore doing jobs where sharp minds and merit carried more weight than Ivy League diplomas, places where hard physical labor in demanding surroundings resulted in good homes and money to send kids to college. Sure, it’s a tough life, but many a family clawed its way to a good living on the money paid to work out there.

In return, America got the oil it needed, and we became a great country.

The affected rigs include floating deepwater facilities operated by Shell, Chevron and Hess, among other companies.

Chris John, president of the Mid-Continent Oil & Gas Association, said a temporary shutdown of well operations could put people out of work, and will affect offshore marine service companies, catering companies and Louisiana-based suppliers.

Given that all 33 rigs recently passed inspections, John suggested that the moratorium is unnecessary.

Yes, it IS unnecessary from the pragmatism of actually producing something, but from the pragmatism of the politician, it IS necessary. Obama can’t afford to appear indecisive. He needs to pander to the panicky masses who can’t figure out how much oil impacts their lives. And this moratorium is perfect in that he “Does Something”, he takes on “Evil Big Oil”, he gets to talk about green energy, that mythological combination of rainbows and unicorn farts that is the prop to the leftist envirowhacko faction of the coalition of professional whackjobs that swept him into office.

And when you look at the price you pay at the pump as it climbs ever higher, you can thank Obama.