Free Republic

Next time you step on a glob of tar on a beach in Santa Barbara County, you can thank the oil companies that it isn't a bigger glob.

WASHINGTON — The political vision of a summer gas tax holiday died a quick death in Congress, losing to a view that federal excise taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel — far from dropping — will have to go up if they go anywhere

NOTWITHSTANDING a shift by big business to become more socially responsible, Big Oil prides itself in being an island of bullheadedness and smugness. In a capitalist system, rewards of success go to shareholders. But Big Oil has virtually ignored an equally important constituency - the citizens of the United States - who have granted Big Oil the right to extract the nation's most strategic natural resources. In return, they expect them to act as responsible fiduciaries. ... Read the rest of this drivel at the link...

We are entering the next stage of personalized news. Rather than waiting for your congressman to be chosen for an interview by Fox News or the New York Times, you can interview your own congressman in "real time." Watch this video from John Culberson (R-TX), who uses an internet-connected video camera and a Blackberry to "broadcast" his side of a news interview. Imagine the possibilities, and the accountability! What are the ramifications of this new technology? The first major benefit is that we no longer have to wait until the MSM decides to interview our congressman. Real time technology allows...

John McCain couldn’t convince Congress to adopt his gas-tax holiday, but Congress does plan on making some changes to the rate. Unfortunately, the change will go in the opposite direction, if Democrats get their wish. With Americans driving less, the highway fund faces even more severe shortfalls than expected from lost gas-tax revenue — and so the Democrats plan to hike it up by ten cents a gallon.

MY 'EXTREMIST' SUGGESTION TO CHANGE CONGRESS There was a time when I was generally and proudly optimistic about the prospects for our country. But the growth of an irresponsible, liberally biased media, the incompetent ever-growing leviathan of government, and the essentially permanent self-serving Congress, has turned me into a desperate ‘extremist’, calling for all voters to ‘Never Reelect’ anyone in Congress, lest we continue our descent into a ‘Dictatorship of the Congress’. It makes little difference who wins the Presidency. It is in Congress where the problems lie! I can think of no rational alternative to ‘Never Reelect’ any congressperson,...

Congressional Democrats want the United States to tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help bring down oil prices, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray said Saturday. Murray said during the Democrats' weekly radio address that with gasoline prices reaching new highs, it is time to use the emergency reserves and urge oil companies to drill on leased federal lands. We believe it's time for the oil companies to use that land and to make sure that it stays in America instead of shipping it to the highest bidder overseas, Murray said. Democrats also think it is time to tap into the...

WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid declared Thursday that negotiating with Sen. Tom Coburn was a waste of time as he laid out an unusual effort to pass a number of bills held up by the Oklahoma Republican. Reid, D-Nev., told reporters that senators were assembling a package of bills, from a number of committees, that Coburn has blocked. He did not identify any specific measure but said the bills had wide support from both Republicans and Democrats. "It is going to be an omnibus bill,'' Reid said. The package would include about 40 bills, he said, adding that...

Link only. Gas tax holiday talk dies; Congress eyes increase instead

WASHINGTON — A plan to lift the ban on coastal drilling is stalled on Capitol Hill, for one simple reason: A Californian who opposes President Bush's proposal is calling the shots in the House of Representatives. Despite growing public support for ending the ban, even in California, Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she won't allow a vote. "I have no plans to do so," Pelosi said Thursday. It's an example of the vast power placed in the office of the speaker, who sets the agenda for the 435-member House. Members can force a vote if enough of them sign...

Congress must confront offshore-drilling banThe yearly renewal process means vote will be hard to avoid Thursday, July 17, 2008 9:02 PM By Jack Torry THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH WASHINGTON — With the issues of oil exploration and high gasoline prices heating up in an election year, the House and Senate likely will be forced to vote on whether to continue a ban on oil exploration off U.S. coasts. Although House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., have blocked Republican efforts to end the 27-year moratorium on offshore drilling, few people realize that Congress is required to...

Bonner, Jo Alabama, 1st Everett, Terry Alabama, 2nd Rogers, Mike Alabama, 3rd Aderholt, Robert Alabama, 4th Cramer, Robert E. "Bud" Alabama, 5th Bachus, Spencer Alabama, 6th Davis, Artur Alabama, 7th Young, Don Alaska, At Large Faleomavaega, Eni F. H. American Samoa Renzi, Rick Arizona, 1st Franks, Trent Arizona, 2nd Shadegg, John Arizona, 3rd Pastor, Ed Arizona, 4th Mitchell, Harry E. Arizona, 5th Flake, Jeff Arizona, 6th Grijalva, Raul Arizona, 7th Giffords, Gabrielle Arizona, 8th Berry, Marion Arkansas, 1st Snyder, Vic Arkansas, 2nd Boozman, John Arkansas, 3rd Ross, Mike Arkansas, 4th Tauscher, Ellen California, 10th McNerney, Jerry California, 11th Speier,...

The House for a second time defeated a Democratic bill to require energy companies to explore their existing oil and gas leases or lose them. The “use-it-or-lose-it” bill (HR 6515) was the Democratic leadership’s response to a drumbeat of Republican calls for legislation to open up new public lands and offshore areas to oil and gas drilling. It was a retread of a measure (HR 6251) that Democrats rushed to the floor ahead of the July 4 recess under suspension of the rules, an expedited procedure requiring a two-thirds vote for passage. The 223-195 vote on that bill June 26...

Speaker Pelosi in R.I.: ‘Things can be different’01:00 AM EDT on Saturday, July 19, 2008 By Felice J. Freyer Journal Staff Writer PROVIDENCE –– Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the U.S. House, appeared before a cheering crowd of nearly 100 people in a steamy union hall yesterday to denounce the “record of failure” of the Bush administration and promise a better America under Barack Obama. “We absolutely must win,” she said, urging everyone to work for the election of the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Pelosi said she was “counting every minute of every hour of every day” until President Bush leaves...

Energy: A day after House Democrats pretend to be in favor of drilling, Sen. Diane Feinstein calls offshore drilling a "distraction." Mark Sept. 30 on your calendar. It's the day Democrats have to put up or shut up.When President Bush lifted the executive order banning exploration and drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf, two things happened almost immediately: The world price for oil started to drop and the Democrats panicked. They could no longer hide under the umbrella the order provided. On Sept. 30, when the Interior Department's 2008 appropriations expire, the Democrats will have to reauthorize the congressional ban...

Congress: Unwilling to allow any expansion of drilling in American territory, Democrats are instead focused on changing American lifestyles. It's consistent with the goals of the party that wants to run everyone's lives. Sponsored in the House by Oregon Rep. Earl Blumenauer and co-sponsored by four other Democrats and one Republican,Connecticut's Chris Shays, the Transportation and Housing Options for Gas Price Relief Act of 2008 is, like much of the nonsense dreamed up in Washington, misnamed. It should be called the Central Planning and Potomac Manipulation Act of 2008. Rather than dealing with the supply side by increasing domestic production...

On May 6, Democratic Sen. Barack Obama won the North Carolina Democratic primary almost as decisively as he had won South Carolina nearly four months earlier. Tim Russert of NBC News immediately declared the race over and Obama the winner. A week later, Obama lost West Virginia by more than 40 points as he began a stumble to the actual finish line that showed him to be the hare, Hillary Clinton the tortoise. Actually, he's a one-trick pony, whose opposition to the war in Iraq seems about as relevant today as a sequel to the movie "The Adventures of Pluto...

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called President Bush "a total failure" on Thursday, among the California Democrat's harshest assessments to date of the president."God bless him, bless his heart, president of the United States -- a total failure, losing all credibility with the American people on the economy, on the war, on energy, you name the subject," Pelosi told CNN's Wolf Blitzer in an exclusive interview. The comments came two days after the president sharply criticized Congress over what he described as relative inaction over the course of the legislative term. At the White House on Wednesday, Bush noted that there...

TEHRAN (FNA) - Iran's Air Force chief announced that the Islamic Republic has successfully launched the production line of radar-evading "stealth" fighter jets. Brigadier General Ahmad Mighani was quoted by press tv as saying Tuesday that the new jets would significantly enhance the Air Force's combat and defensive capabilities. Iran has recently started manufacturing superior "Quick Reaction" tanks to increase its defense self-sufficiency. Iran has also developed an electro-optical surveillance system that acts as a viable alternative when radars fail to cover a particular range. "We have upgraded our air force fleet, radar-systems, and missile systems over the past few...

Demand, Supply, and Prices It's clear enough that even if the US economy comes to a halt -- and the Democrats seem determined to make that happen -- the demand for oil by China, India, and other growing nations will go up exponentially; and that greater demand without increased supply will keep the price of oil high and even drive it higher.Speculators already believe that and are bidding up the price of oil futures. I have seen estimates that the supply/demand price of oil is under $100/ bbl but that speculators have driven it to the present levels. I don't...

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer wants people to know that Democrats like oil drilling. A lot. They're just very picky about where. "Democrats are saying let's drill. Let's explore. Let's get energy for Americans from America and have it for Americans," Hoyer told reporters Tuesday. He was announcing that Democrats will unveil an energy production bill Thursday. Asked a minute later if the proposed bill would allow new offshore drilling, Hoyer told IBD no. ... "We want oil and gas companies to drill on the leases they've been given," Reid said.

One day Americans are moaning about the harmful impact of cheap oil and the next they're grousing about the harmful impact of expensive oil. Which one is it? As a disreputable sort, I freely confess to having a fondness for oil. Actually, I have a mild crush on all carbon-emitting fuels that feed our prosperity. But I'm especially fond of cheap oil. For many years, those who spread apocalyptic global-warming scenarios have warned me that a collective national sacrifice was needed to save the world. One option, we were told, was to make gas artificially expensive, forcing our ignorant, energy-gobbling...

PDOP Guest Post: ...Tom Daschle said, on June 22nd, on Fox News Sunday that we would have no oil until 2030. Is he is actually stating that it would take 22 years to find oil and drill for it? Just last week I was hearing ten years to bring oil to the pumps as gasoline....These sides all seem to feel that energy from renewable or from depleting resources is an all or nothing proposition.Here are some basics to consider to ease the frustration:

WASHINGTON, DC - Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, today introduced the Drive America on Natural Gas Act to promote the use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) vehicles. Inhofe also introduced the American Affordable Fuels Act to relieve pain at the pump. "As Americans continue to suffer from high gas prices, we need to take advantage of our abundant domestic supply of natural gas for use as a transportation fuel," Senator Inhofe said. "The Drive America on Natural Gas Act adds flexibility to the current Renewable Fuels Standard...

The phrase, “Let them eat cake,” is often attributed to Marie Antoinette, but some believe that Jean-Jacques Rousseau also used the phrase when writing about a French Aristocrat insensitive towards peasants who could not afford bread at the time. Whoever quoted the line is for history to figure out, but it would seem that this is the same bit of advice that Americans are getting from Congressional Democrats daily. While Americans struggle daily with the high price of gasoline and demand that Congressional Leaders and the President do something long lasting to address the problem in poll after poll. Congressional...

Oilman T. Boone Pickens: Dems' new best friend Time to roll out the odd bedfellows clichés. T. Boone Pickens, an oil baron, Bush "Pioneer" and major contributor to the 2004 Swift Boat ads, is speaking before the House Democratic Caucus next Tuesday. At the invitation of Nancy Pelosi. This announcement comes a day after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) talked about how Pickens was his "mortal enemy" for years due to his support for Republicans. Yet Reid says Pickens is "now his pal" after sitting next to him at a Senate energy hearing this week. So what's this all...

(The Politico) Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid isn't even up for re-election, but conservatives believe they've found a target for their ire over the energy debate. The American Future Fund, which describes itself as a promoter of free market conservative ideals, has created a fairly rudimentary advertisement that mocks Reid's recent comments that "oil makes us sick" _ comments that shot Reid to the top of YouTube for a day.

One day Americans are moaning about the harmful impact of cheap oil and the next they're grousing about the harmful impact of expensive oil. Which one is it? As a disreputable sort, I freely confess to having a fondness for oil. Actually, I have a mild crush on all carbon-emitting fuels that feed our prosperity. But I'm especially fond of cheap oil. For many years, those who spread apocalyptic global-warming scenarios have warned me that a collective national sacrifice was needed to save the world. One option, we were told, was to make gas artificially expensive, forcing our ignorant, energy-gobbling...

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she will push for another economic stimulus package of approximately $50 billion. The California Democrat told CNN she favors that amount as a compromise between spurring the stagnating U.S. economy without forcing the nation deeply into more debt. I would hope we could have about a $50 billion -- there are others who want more, she said in a partial transcript released by the Speaker's office. But I think in the stimulus packages, you have to look at what helps stimulate the economy without spending more money than you should because you weight the...

President Bush continues to turn up the heat on Congress over its refusal, so far, to lift a ban on offshore drilling that covers much of the nation's coasts. The president's latest salvo came Monday when he rescinded an executive ban on oil and gas drilling, signed by his father in 1990. "This means that the only thing standing between the American people and these vast oil resources is action from the U.S. Congress," President Bush said during a Rose Garden appearance. The executive ban was one of two roadblocks that have for decades protected our fragile beaches from possible...

Poll: Congress got mad hate for ya votahs.Americans have one more thing to whine about. According to a recent Zigby poll, members of Congress have never had a lower opinion of the American people. The poll indicates that for the first time congressional opinion on the people they serve has fallen to single digits. A total of eight percent of Congress members say they have a "good opinion" of the American people. Only six percent of the members surveyed said they had a "great opinion" of their constituents. "This is historic," said Raymond Zigby, who runs Zigby polls and still...

The rhetoric over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is heating up as gas prices rise, with pro-drilling members of Congress and congressional hopefuls making visits to the refuge to hammer home their point. A group of House Republicans led by minority leader Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, are headed to Alaska this weekend for a tour of ANWR. Seven Republican U.S. House candidates from around the country also flew to the refuge this week and told reporters in Anchorage Thursday that it strengthened their pro-drilling stance. "I will go back to the people of Utah and confirm to the...

WASHINGTON: Upon entering Congress in 1987, Representative Nancy Pelosi quickly became part of the solid California front against oil drilling along much of the nation's coast. The 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill and the steady push to tap the potential reserves off the state's rugged coast had galvanized Californians and made opposition to offshore drilling part of the political DNA of up-and-coming figures like Pelosi.

Pelosi to lead group to assess storm recovery WASHINGTON -- A U.S. House delegation, led by its three top Democratic leaders, plans to view levees and tour communities in the 9th Ward, Lakeview and St. Bernard Parish as part of a fact-finding visit this weekend to evaluate progress as the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina nears. The delegation, led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Majority Whip James Clyburn, is expected to arrive Saturday in New Orleans and participate in a bus tour. Afterward, the representatives will travel to Baton Rouge for a meeting with some...

On Wednesday we initiated a Drill Now Email Initiative designed to work in conjunction with the Drill Here, Drill Now Petition. The effort is to force a handful of Democratic Congressional Leaders, along with some Republicans, to stop their attempts to block the "Gas Price Reduction Act of 2008" a bill that would remove the moratorium on offshore drilling, remove the moratorium placed on Oil Shale Exploration by congress last year, Offers incentives and investment in electric vehicle and alternative energy development, and increases funding and oversight provisions within the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the group that monitors commodities activities...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Thursday threatened to veto legislation being considered by the U.S. House of Representatives that would force oil companies to give up undrilled federal leases and ban the export of crude drilled in Alaska...

Now that an executive branch ban on offshore oil exploration has been lifted, the time has come for Democrats in Washington to lift their own ban on increased domestic supply. Americans are demanding that Congress do something about record-high gas prices. They recognize that prices will not go down unless supplies go up. And they also know that the only thing now standing in the way of more domestic supply is the Democratic refusal to allow it...

<p>WARREN, Michigan (CNN) – John McCain on Thursday described Barack Obama’s Senate record as “more to the left” than Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont — an independent who caucuses with Democrats but has described himself as an “independent Democratic socialist.”</p>

WASHINGTON -- Gasoline prices are flattening consumer wallets and hobbling our economy, while the Democrats sit back and play politics with the issue. Voter surveys show that the economy and gas prices top the list of the most critical issues facing our country. A Washington Post/ABC News poll reported last week that 85 percent of voters polled said gas prices will be either extremely or very important to their vote in this year's elections. And with good reason: Americans are getting walloped with huge gas bills, while utilities, buckling under ever-higher energy prices, are raising electricity rates to historic levels....

As Price of Grain Rises, Catfish Farms Dry Up By DAVID STREITFELD LELAND, Miss. — Catfish farmers across the South, unable to cope with the soaring cost of corn and soybean feed, are draining their ponds. “It’s a dead business,” said John Dillard, who pioneered the commercial farming of catfish in the late 1960s. Last year Dillard & Company raised 11 million fish. Next year it will raise none. People can eat imported fish, Mr. Dillard said, just as they use imported oil. As for his 55 employees? “Those jobs are gone.” Corn and soybeans have nearly tripled in price...

Pelosi: Let Them WalkNancy Pelosi is an unlikely choice for Speaker Of The House of the United States. She is stupid, greedy, ignorant, vengeful, and stubborn. All poor qualities for someone in leadership, particularly someone that is third in the line of succession to be President. While these apparent political attributes have served her well, they have made the country less secure. Pelosi stands firm against offshore drilling The 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill and the steady push to tap the potential reserves off the state's rugged coast had galvanized Californians and made opposition to offshore drilling part of the...

There is no quick fix to $4.50-a-gallon gas, no way to provide instant relief to consumers we know are hurting. Yet President Bush and others continue to push the false promise of offshore oil drilling. Just this week, the president lifted the executive order banning drilling that George H.W. Bush put in place in 1990. And he's asked Congress to lift its own moratorium on oil exploration on the outer continental shelf -- which includes coastal waters as close as three miles from shore. This would be a terrible mistake. It would put our nation's precious coastlines in jeopardy and...

Two days after telling an online town hall meeting that NASA had "failed us miserably" and "wastes a vast amount of money," Houston Rep. John Culberson said Thursday he was weighing legislation to overhaul the structure of the space agency responsible for about 20,000 Houston-area jobs. (snip) "We need revolutionary change, a complete restructuring," Culberson told the Houston Chronicle. "NASA needs complete freedom to hire and fire based on performance, it needs to be driven by the scientists and the engineers, and it needs to be free of politics as much as possible." The fourth-term lawmaker said he was "kicking...

WASHINGTON — House Republicans on Thursday blocked a Democratic effort to pressure energy companies into drilling for oil on lands they already leased from the federal government, calling the legislation a sham.As the fight over gasoline prices reached the floors of both the House and Senate, the Democratic initiative to spur exploration in areas where drilling has been sanctioned fell short of the margin needed under rules used to bring the measure to the floor even though it drew majority support.The vote was 244 to 173, more than 30 votes less than required. Rejecting the measure were 162 Republicans and...

When you're the subject of congressional questioning, no matter how much you may protest about it being a witch hunt, they'll insist it's not! Check out the latest "Geeks On Caffeine" cartoon and see just what huge liars these congressional reps are when faced with this "witch hunt" accusation! NOTE: The author has requested that you visit his web site and refrain from copying and pasting the cartoon within the thread. Thanks!

On the issue of gasoline prices, Republicans think they have a winner in their call for new drilling and Democrats are playing defense. Democrats need — this is a technical term — a lot more oomph. Al Gore wants to help them. In a speech in Washington on Thursday and in an interview, Gore played his usual role as unpaid party visionary by arguing that we can ease the climate crisis, the economic crisis and the crisis of dependence on foreign energy all at once. "We're borrowing money from China to buy oil from the Persian Gulf to burn it...

I think it's time to let Congress feel our election fury this November. As reflected in the latest Rasmussen Reports, "Just 9 percent (of Americans) say Congress is doing a good or excellent job." It is the first single-digit approval rating for Congress in Rasmussen's history, and it makes Bush's 30 percent approval rating seem like a stat to boast. The study went on to explain: "Just 12 percent of voters think Congress has passed any legislation to improve life in this country over the past six months. That number has ranged from 11 percent to 13 percent throughout 2008."...

Energy Policy: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is pushing the "Drill Responsibly in Leased Lands Act" to block offshore drilling. The fact is, these offshore rigs may be the ticket to saving both our coasts and our economy.The act would deny oil companies any new leases unless they can show that they're diligently exploring and drilling in existing holdings. It's designed to con the public into thinking the Democrats actually support drilling and the oil companies are restricting supply to drive up prices and profits. Democrats keep talking about "use it or lose it," referring to 68 million acres of existing...

Hearing set on "imperial Bush presidency" Thu Jul 17, 2008 5:52pm EDT By Thomas Ferraro WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Impeachment is out for President George W. Bush, but a top U.S. lawmaker said on Thursday he wants to take a look at his "imperial presidency." House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers announced his panel would examine possible administration wrongdoing, which has included complaints that Bush misled the United States into the Iraq war in 2003. "Over the last seven plus years, there have been numerous credible allegations of serious misconduct by officials in the Bush administration," said Conyers, a Michigan Democrat....

Thursday, July 17, 2008 The Real Reasons: Things are not always what they appear to be.....particularly in Washington. Sometimes, the real reason that a bill is changed, or shelved, or amended is not what the spin and press reports say. Two such instances have occurred here recently. The first has to do with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) which was finally passed by the Senate and was signed into law by President Bush last week. This bill has been held up in negotiations and partisan fighting all year. Most people believe that the hold up was because civil libertarians...