Last Tuesday night the liberal-run U.S. House of Representatives attempted to hoodwink the American people struggling under the weight of oppressive gas prices. Rather than heeding the public's cries for an "all-of-the-above" national energy strategy that taps into more domestic energy sources as well as alternative energy, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi cynically pushed through a sham bill designed to give her political cover. She should be ashamed.

It is mindboggling to think that as the nation continues to languish from the job-killing effects of skyrocketing energy costs, the Democrat Congress is deliberately ignoring the pleas of the people for decisive action on domestic energy. One would have to conclude that Speaker Pelosi doesn't care if Americans suffer.

That is a strong statement, but why else would she recess the U.S. House for five straight weeks as the country is reeling from high fuel costs? Why would she and her House leadership refuse to consider any legitimate legislation to allow new domestic oil drilling? Why would she and her House leadership block consideration of practically every annual spending bill this year for fear that Republicans would try to attach an amendment calling for new U.S. oil drilling? Why would Speaker Pelosi block a bipartisan "all-of-the-above" alternative energy bill from being voted on last week?

Whatever her motivation for turning deaf ears on the public, the American people are not buying it. Their angry reactions toward her ‘do-nothing', ‘drill-nothing' Congress, put enough pressure on her to try and craft a way out of her dilemma. However, the bill she forced down the throats of the people was anything but honest. The so-called Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Act that she cobbled together in the middle of the night last Tuesday was an attempt to be clever, offering the appearance of promoting more domestic drilling, but at the same time limiting it to the point of making it unfeasible.

The Pelosi energy bill, which passed on the strength of Democrat votes, allows offshore drilling where states also approve it. But, the drilling cannot be done closer than 50 miles off shore - beyond the reach of 90 percent of offshore oil. Furthermore, her legislation prohibits revenue sharing of new oil and gas proceeds with the states, thus making it unattractive to states to allow such new drilling. I've got to give Speaker Pelosi credit. This was a clever attempt to have it both ways.

Interestingly enough, Democrats in the Senate aren't buying the Pelosi sham energy bill. Last week, Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La, said the Pelosi bill was "dead on arrival." And that is just as well. I voted against the Pelosi phony energy bill. I am a strong supporter and cosponsor of the American Energy Act (HR 6566), the "all-of-the-above" approach to increasing American energy access. Our legislation would open up all of America's oil and natural gas reserves. It would promote new refineries and encourage safe nuclear power. It allows the extraction and development of oil shale and clean coal, and encourages other alternative fuels.

Just because Democrat Speaker Pelosi refuses to address Americans' dire energy problems, it does not mean that House Republicans have given up the fight. We intend to continue pushing for a vote on the American Energy Act until the will of the people is heard in Speaker Pelosi's Capitol Hill office.