Yet Another Ploy by Democratic Leaders to Run Out the Clock

The latest bill, laughingly called the Consumer Energy Supply Act (H.R. 6578), would take 70 million barrels of light, sweet crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and replace it with heavy, sour crude oil that is more difficult to refine into gasoline.

Republican Leader, my Congressman and a Great American -- John Boehner:

“With just days remaining before a five-week August recess, Democratic leaders are irresponsibly putting another bill on the House floor masquerading as a real energy plan. The American people know better. They support new American-made energy to help lower gas prices, but this bill does not offer a single drop of new American oil or gas. It’s little more than a three-and-a-half day ‘solution’ to a year-round problem for American families and small businesses – not to mention another ploy by Democratic leaders to run out the clock and avoid a real vote on more American energy and lower gas prices.

“Yesterday, House Republicans introduced the American Energy Act to increase American-made energy and help lower gas prices, and a solid majority of the American people and a bipartisan majority in Congress will support it. The measure encourages more conservation and efficiency, promotes the use of alternative fuels, and increases environmentally-responsible production of American energy – all to help bring down the price at the pump for families and small businesses. It is time for Speaker Pelosi and Senators Reid and Obama to stop blocking an up-or-down vote to help lower gas prices. Congress should not leave for the August recess without giving the American Energy Act the vote it deserves.”

Our friends from the Institute for Energy Research:

“Swapping oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. It looks like a constructive activity, but it completely ignores the crisis at hand. The United States must obey the law of supply and demand, drop its no-new-production stance, and join nations like Brazil, Canada, the UK, and Denmark, whose governments are trying to increase energy supplies by expanding access to onshore and offshore lands.”

UPDATE: Congressman Bob Latta:

“This bill is yet another indicator of how out of touch the Democrat Leadership of Congress is with the American public. H.R. 6578 does nothing more than take away valuable oil from our strategic reserve to provide cover for the Democrat Leadership’s failure to enact comprehensive energy reform, in addition to creating a national security threat. With this bill, the Congressional Democrat Leadership has truly given the American people the preverbal ‘drop in the bucket’ approach to solving our nation’s energy needs,” Latta said after today’s vote.

“The American public has demanded and deserves comprehensive energy reform that promotes renewable and alternative energy, in addition to the exploration and recovery of our domestic natural resources. Any bill that does not include those provisions will not bring energy prices down or reduce our dependency on Middle Eastern oil. House Republicans have introduced meaningful, comprehensive energy reform in H.R 6578, the American Energy Act of which I am a proud co-sponsor. This legislation lays out a clear plan to lower energy prices in the short and long term, in addition to providing the meaningful reform needed as energy prices continue to rise,” Latta added.