“Democratic leaders know that [their] counterproductive proposals will not become law. Yet they seem ready to push this legislation as a way to block offshore drilling while appearing to be in favor of it. They need to stop standing in the way of expanding domestic production and take meaningful steps now to address the pain caused by high energy prices.”—President Bush’s Weekly Radio Address, August 23rd, 2008.
If House Democrats do not join with their Republican counterparts in supporting the American Energy Act—the Republicans’ “all-of-the-above” solution to the energy crisis—Congress will not accomplish anything this year regarding energy production. And like lemmings, they will hastily march off a cliff that will blemish an already-tarnished image that the American people have of Congress.
According to President Bush, Democrats plan to hold a vote on an energy bill that they know Republicans cannot and will not support:
“News reports indicate that Democratic leaders in Congress may plan to hold a vote on a bill that would make us more dependent on foreign oil and would likely make energy costs go up, not down. This bill would raise taxes on energy companies — which would reduce domestic production. This bill would make the Nation more vulnerable to supply shocks by tapping into our emergency supply of oil — the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. And it would impose a rigid national mandate that would increase electricity costs in states where there are few renewable resources.”
In other words, the Democrats plan on holding the American people hostage to their left-wing agenda that has nothing to do with increasing domestic energy production and reducing prices.
Their message? If Republicans want more drilling, then the American people have to “pay” for it with more taxes on domestic oil producers, more Big Government mandates, and other poison pills. The Democrat leadership does so knowing full well that these efforts will be blocked by the GOP minority because their plans have the contrary effect of making energy more expensive.
And who will get the blame if Congress gets nothing done this year? Ultimately, that will be for the American people to decide as their home heating costs skyrocket this winter and they have to choose between eating and staying warm.
For the record, if nothing gets done, Americans for Limited Government will put the blame on 29 House Democrats. ALG has given these politicians fair warning to join with their Republican colleagues in supporting the only comprehensive energy legislation in the House, the American Energy Act, that would increase on-shore and off-shore oil and natural gas drilling, allow oil shale exploration, promote coal-to-liquid, and streamline regulations for building new refineries and nuclear power plants.
Those House members have a choice: They can either stand with their Republican colleagues by increasing energy production across-the-board. Or, they can be ill-fated lemmings who charge off a cliff by pretending that they want more energy and stand with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who recently responded to protesters at the Denver convention who were shouting, “Drill here! Drill now!” by mocking, “Can we drill your brains?”
Those 29 House Democrats must choose carefully. Are they leaders who act above ideology, or mere lemmings who will blindly march off a cliff to their certain political doom?
