Day 47: Not Even the Senate Will Support Pelosi
“I believe there is widespread support among Democrats and Republicans in the House and the Senate for some version of revenue sharing for the coastal states. Because they do not have it in the House bill, I think it will be very difficult to pass it in the House and it most certainly won’t see the light of day in the Senate.”—Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA).
Democrats are getting completely creamed on the energy issue by Republicans. And they know it. To make matters worse, Senate Democrats are throwing their House counterparts under the bus.
The word on the Hill is that Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s latest “energy” sham is dead on arrival in the Senate. And it might not even pass the House. Why? It requires states to opt-in to more off-shore drilling, and yet does not provide for revenue sharing with the states, thus eliminating incentives for drilling by the states.
Of course, as ALG News reported yesterday, that’s by design. Madame No does not want new drilling, and her proposal is a testament to that.
In contrast, both the House Republican proposal—the American Energy Act—and a bipartisan Senate proposal—the so-called Gang of 10 bill—provide for revenue sharing. But the lack of the same is just the tip of the iceberg in the litany of problems with the House Democrat proposal. As noted by GOPLeader.gov:
“The Democrats’ bogus “drilling” scheme is just one way their latest “no energy” bill fails the American people at a time when real leadership on this issue is needed most. Take a look at just 10 ways this bill fails to provide the American people an “all of the above” approach to lower gas prices – which is at the heart of the House GOP’s American Energy Act (H.R. 6566):
1. “By leaving out critical revenue-sharing with coastal states and banning environmentally-safe drilling up to 50 miles offshore, Speaker Pelosi’s latest proposal permanently locks away some 88 percent of the best American oil resources on the Outer Continental Shelf.
2. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill permanently locks up more than 1 trillion barrels of oil from oil shale in the Inter-Mountain West.
3. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill permanently locks up more than 10 billion barrels of oil on Alaska’s remote North Slope – an area where energy production and wildlife have been safely coexisting for decades.
4. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill blocks more nuclear power production – clean, efficient, and less costly production that nations such as France have been safely using for years while the United States continues to fall behind.
5. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill does nothing to construct new clean coal energy production facilities – facilities that are a win-win, with benefits both to consumers and for the environment.
6. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill raises taxes – a new burden for overstressed consumers already paying high prices at the pump and preparing to pay higher home heating costs this winter.
7. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill permanently prevents federal agencies from using unconventional and alternative sources of fuel at exactly the time when Congress should be encouraging the use of these fuels.
8. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill increases electricity costs on families, seniors, and small businesses by creating a new, heavy-handed electricity mandate.
9. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill includes plans for exactly zero new refineries to be built on American soil. Is this the way to show our competitors around the globe that we are finally serious about achieving energy independence?
10. “The Democrats’ “no energy” bill defies the will of a solid majority of Americans who support the House GOP’s “all of the above” plan to increase American energy production, promote the use of alternative and renewable fuels, and encourage more conservation and efficiency.”
In other words, there is a superior energy proposal for consideration in the House: H.R. 6566. And House Democrats that actually want to get credit for doing something to increase energy production should simply support it—and throw the “drill-nothing” House leadership under the bus, just as Mary Landrieu and her fellow Senators have already done.
