CAMPAIGN ’88 : Hodel Assails Oil Stance

Interior Secretary Donald P. Hodel, whose advocacy of offshore oil drilling has been ridiculed repeatedly recently by Dukakis, on Tuesday issued a stinging response accusing the Massachusetts governor of being blind to the need for a domestic energy program.

Dukakis, who pronounces himself “very tough” on offshore drilling, has labeled as “absurd” Hodel’s plan to make offshore drilling a centerpiece of the nation’s energy future, pledging that his Administration would look critically at any proposal for further drilling.

“Gov. Dukakis once again has displayed his lack of knowledge on the importance of a domestic energy supply for America,” Hodel said in the statement, noting that offshore production provides the nation with 25% of its natural gas supply and one in eight barrels of domestically produced oil.

“Gov. Dukakis’ opposition to domestic energy development from domestic sources . . . simply plays into the hands of those who want to hold America hostage for its energy supply.

“Someone with an adequate awareness of the foreign policy implications would know what a threat that approach is to our economy and our national security.”