Amid soaring gas prices, President Bush rightly announced on Monday that he would lift a long-standing executive order banning offshore oil drilling in an effort to increase domestic production.
And, he essentially dared Congress to do the same!
But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid responded by telling President Bush, and the American people for that matter, to DROP DEAD!
Here's what President Bush said:
"When Congress lifts the legislative ban, I will lift the executive prohibition... The only thing standing between the American people and these vast oil resources is action from the U.S. Congress. Now the ball is squarely in Congress' court... For years, my administration has been calling on Congress to expand domestic oil production. Unfortunately, Democrats on Capitol Hill have rejected virtually every proposal. And now Americans are paying at the pump." [Emphasis Mine]
But according to media reports, Reid came right out and said he would BLOCK any amendments to lift the ban on off-shore drilling. Rather, Reid is vowing to ram through legislation that could ADD 30 PERCENT TO THE COST OF CRUDE OIL!
According to CQ Politics:
"House and Senate Democratic leaders plan to bring energy legislation to the floor this week, using procedural tactics designed to block Republicans from offering amendments that would lift the drilling ban." [Emphasis Mine]
"In the Senate, Democrats hope to take up as early as Wednesday a still-un-drafted bill that would tighten regulation of speculation in energy futures, which some lawmakers contend adds as much as 30 percent to the price of crude oil. [Emphasis Mine]
"Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev., said he would block any effort to propose amendments to the bill that did not deal directly with the speculation issue."
You read that right!
Harry Reid is essentially saying that he will BLOCK any legislation to drill for oil unless conservatives agree to pass legislation that would potentially DRIVE UP the price of gas at the pump.
And he may be BLOCKING this legislation as you read this letter!
But guess what? You are making a HUGE difference!
According to the same article:
"With gasoline prices continuing a steady rise, Republicans have intensified their calls for more offshore drilling in the face of polls that show growing public support. Republicans claim Democratic leaders are trying to hold off votes on drilling out of fears that some members are shifting positions." [Emphasis Mine]
The credit for that shift is YOURS! Your calls and Blast Faxes have had a tremendous effect!
Now let's FINISH the job! Let's deluge these congressional leaders RIGHT HERE AND RIGHT NOW!
Use the hyperlink below to send your urgent and personal Blast Fax messages to President George W. Bush and EACH and EVERY Member of the Leadership of both house of Congress.
Tell them to stop their evasions. Tell them to stop ducking the issue. Tell them there is absolutely NO EXCUSE NOT to lift the ban on off-shore drilling. The American people do NOT need to pay high gas prices at the pump or freeze this winter or pay outrageous prices for food at the grocery store simply because liberal politicians want to pass their failed left-wing agenda on the backs of the American people.
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Did Domenici Actually Call Harry Reid A Chicken?
At a press conference, Senator Lamar Alexander said:
"After today's announcement by the president, the only hurdle left to beginning offshore exploration is congressional action, and it's time for the Democratic leadership to listen to the millions of Americans who are demanding we begin today."
Then, Senator Pete Dominici turned to Alexander and said:
"Does it seem to you like it does to me like Harry Reid is either scared chicken to have a vote, or has decided that he's going to dictate to the United States Senate? I don't know if you'll use the word 'chicken,' but I will because that's what he's saying: He's saying, 'I'm frightened by the idea that we're going to actually have a vote on a new plan for this huge, huge, reserve of gas and oil that belongs to none other than the people of the United States.' "
If Domenici is right and Reid is "chicken," maybe it's because he's looking at the polls.
Rasmussen, June 17: 67% Favor, 18% Oppose ("67% Support Offshore Drilling, 64% Believe It Will Lower Prices")
Reuters/Zogby, June 18: 60% Favor, 40% Oppose ("Most Americans support more oil drilling")
Gallup Poll, June 19: 57% Favor, 41% Oppose ("Majority of Americans Support Drilling Off-Limits Areas")
Pew Research Center, July 2: 57% Favor, 41% Oppose ("As Gas Prices Pinch, Support for Energy Exploration Rises")
And it's not just conservatives... If you look closely at the data from the liberal Pew Research Center poll, you'll notice that even liberals are fed-up!
The numbers are up for Democrats by 16 points, from 30 to 46%. The numbers for Liberals are up by 23 points (more than double), from 22 to 45%. Independents up 19 points, from 31 to 50%. Women up 18 points, from 28 to 46%. Young (18-29) up 25 points, from 26 to 51% -- most of any age group. College grads up 17 points, from 30 to 47%
Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid strut in front of TV cameras, proclaiming they are "for the people."
Yet, their actions proclaim otherwise!
If liberals in Congress want to commit political suicide, that's one thing. But we can't let them take down the entire nation as well.
Let's send them that message. Let's drive it home RIGHT NOW!
Use the hyperlink below to send your urgent and personal Blast Fax messages to President George W. Bush and EACH and EVERY Member of the Leadership of both house of Congress.
Tell them to stop their evasions. Tell them to stop ducking the issue. Tell them there is absolutely NO EXCUSE NOT to lift the ban on off-shore drilling. The American people do NOT need to pay high gas prices at the pump or freeze this winter or pay outrageous prices for food at the grocery store simply because liberal politicians want to pass their failed left-wing agenda on the backs of the American people.
Send your blast faxes now
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A Little Recent History Is In Order...
Here's what our liberal legislators have done over the past several weeks.
First, liberals attempted unsuccessfully to pass the so-called Boxer Climate Bill.
But it wasn't a "Climate Bill" at all. In actuality, it was really just a huge liberal plot to increase taxes. Here's how Sen. Mitch McConnell described it:
"It is, at its heart, a stealth and giant tax on virtually every aspect of industrial and consumer life. It would result in massive job losses. And it seeks to radically alter consumer behavior, without any measurable benefit to the environment in return."
"And that's why it's so hard to comprehend the Majority's decision to move to a bill, at the start of the summer driving season, that would raise the price of gas by as much as $1.40 a gallon, home electricity bills by about 44 percent, and natural gas prices by about 20 percent."
"Overall, it's expected to result in GDP losses totaling as much as $2.9 trillion by 2050."
Yup, leave it to Barbara Boxer and other liberals in Congress to increase taxes when the price of gasoline at the pump is almost beyond the ability of most Americans to afford it!
But fortunately, because patriotic Americans like you made your voices heard, that bill died an unceremonious death!
But then -- without missing a beat -- several days later, Senate liberals tried to slip through ANOTHER TAX BILL-- masquerading as energy policy.
What were they thinking: Did they wink and chuckle at each other and say:
"Now that the Boxer Bill has failed, they won't be expecting another attempt so soon?"
Fortunately, that measure failed as well!
Use the hyperlink below to send your urgent and personal Blast Fax messages to President George W. Bush and EACH and EVERY Member of the Leadership of both house of Congress.
Tell them to stop their evasions. Tell them to stop ducking the issue. Tell them there is absolutely NO EXCUSE NOT to lift the ban on off-shore drilling. The American people do NOT need to pay high gas prices at the pump or freeze this winter or pay outrageous prices for food at the grocery store simply because liberal politicians want to pass their failed left-wing agenda on the backs of the American people.
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Meanwhile... In the House of Representatives...
On the House side, Congressman John Peterson introduced an amendment that would have extended the limits of offshore drilling.
Surely, Peterson thought, liberals had gotten the message. The crisis facing our nation was too grave, too painful for "politics as usual." This time he was certain his amendment would pass.
It didn't.
After the defeat of his amendment, Peterson said:
"I was stunned today. I didn't expect this to happen. A lot of Democrats who supported us voted against the amendment. All six Republicans voted 'aye' and all nine Democrats voted 'nay.' I think 'Pelosi Power' was lurking. They were strong-armed from above."
These days, Pelosi Power rules Capitol Hill. San Francisco values are the values of today. It's DOWN with people and UP with the snail darter, the Wyoming toad, and the Colorado squawfish.
Left-wing fanatics and environmental whackos are thumbing their noses at their fellow citizens -- a growing number of whom can barely afford to drive to work.
And, as analyst Stephen Schork recently predicted,
"If you think your gasoline bills are expensive now, wait till you get your home heating bill this winter."
As a consequence of Pelosi-Reid-inspired policies, the time has come to put middle-and lower-income Americans on the Endangered Species list.
Use the hyperlink below to send your urgent and personal Blast Fax messages to President George W. Bush and EACH and EVERY Member of the Leadership of both house of Congress.
Tell them to stop their evasions. Tell them to stop ducking the issue. Tell them there is absolutely NO EXCUSE NOT to lift the ban on off-shore drilling. The American people do NOT need to pay high gas prices at the pump or freeze this winter or pay outrageous prices for food at the grocery store simply because liberal politicians want to pass their failed left-wing agenda on the backs of the American people.
Send your blast faxes now
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But Here's The Icing On The Cake&
Senator Obama and a gaggle of liberal legislators started stumping for a windfall tax on oil... a strategy guaranteed to do only one thing... raise the price of gasoline.
A generation ago, the Carter Administration imposed just such a tax and the results were disastrous: a reduced incentive to drill for oil, a drop in domestic production, severe shortages, and long lines at the pump.
Obama was a teenager at the time, but you'd think he'd remember.
These actions raise a chilling question: "Are liberals actually TRYING to drive up gas prices?"
For years the Greenies have been down on their knees, begging for higher gasoline prices. In the Energy Bulletin, Hamish McRae published an article with a title that says it all:
"Oil at $100 a barrel will do more to save the planet than all the wind farms in the world."
With the price of oil hovering around $140 per barrel, is the earth safe yet?
Conservative columnist Ann Coulter wrote:
"Democrats couldn't care less about high gas prices. The consistent policy of the Democratic Party, going back at least to Jimmy Carter, has been to jack up gas prices so we can all start pedaling around on tricycles."
"Environmentalists are constantly clamoring for higher gas taxes as the cure-all to their insane global warming theory. Clinton proposed a 26-cent tax on gas. John Kerry said it should be 50 cents. Gore endorsed the Malthusian proposal of Paul and Anne Ehrlich in 'The Population Explosion' that gas taxes be raised gradually to match prices in Europe and Japan."
Coulter continued:
"Democrats have worked hard to ensure that Americans pay as much for gas as Europeans do. After a quarter-century of gas tax hikes, a ban on drilling for oil and a complete destruction of the nuclear power industry in America, I guess liberals can declare: Mission accomplished! "
"In response to skyrocketing gas prices, liberals say, practically in unison, 'We can't drill our way out of this crisis.'
"What does that mean? This is like telling a starving man, 'You can't eat your way out of being hungry!' 'You can't water your way out of drought!' 'You can't sleep your way out of tiredness!' 'You can't drink yourself out of dehydration!'
"Seriously, what does it mean? Finding more oil isn't going to increase the supply of oil?
"It is the typical Democratic strategy to babble meaningless slogans, as if they have a plan."
In other words, the higher the price at the pump. the fewer the drivers on the road.
Of course, those who can no longer afford gasoline will inevitably be the poor.
But, as Al Gore would say, "Let them ride buses."
Use the hyperlink below to send your urgent and personal Blast Fax messages to President George W. Bush and EACH and EVERY Member of the Leadership of both house of Congress.
Tell them to stop their evasions. Tell them to stop ducking the issue. Tell them there is absolutely NO EXCUSE NOT to lift the ban on off-shore drilling. The American people do NOT need to pay high gas prices at the pump or freeze this winter or pay outrageous prices for food at the grocery store simply because liberal politicians want to pass their failed left-wing agenda on the backs of the American people.
Send your blast faxes now
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If the above hyperlinks do not appear to function, copy and paste the first hyperlink into the address bar of your browser.
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