US Presidency
1977

It costs us business investments. Vast amounts of American wealth no longer stay in the United States to build our factories and to give us a better life. It makes it harder for us to balance our Federal budget and to finance needed programs for our people. It unbalances our Nation's trade with other countries. This year, primarily because of oil, our imports will be at least $ 25 billion more than all the American goods the we sell overseas. It pushes up international energy prices because excessive importing of oil by the United States makes it easier for foreign producers to raise their prices. It feeds serious inflationary pressures in our own economy. If this trend continues, the excessive reliance on foreign oil could make the very security of our Nation increasingly dependent on uncertain energy supplies.