WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (CO-1) today issued the following statement regarding President Obama’s announcement of new tools to strengthen oversight of energy markets and crack down on excessive and illegal speculation.  According to some estimates, excessive speculation adds up to 50 cents to the cost of a gallon of gasoline. 

“As families across the country continue to feel pain at the pump, it is critical to ensure the price of gas is not the result of excessive or illegal Wall Street speculation.  I applaud the President for laying out a responsible path forward to protect consumers from the illegal market manipulations that contribute to high gas prices. Now it is indeed the time for Congress to crack down on Wall Street profiteers, and offer middle class Americans confidence that high oil prices are driven by market forces, not illegal manipulation, fraud, and market rigging. 

“So far in the 112th Congress, Republicans have consistently voted to weaken the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and roll back protections on excessive and illegal oil speculation.  As a senior Member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, I urge my Republican colleagues to join President Obama and Congressional Democrats in getting to the bottom of illegal market manipulation, arming the CFTC, and taking sensible steps to relieve consumers’ pain at the pump.” 

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