The Oklahoman- Pump politics: Gas prices stay high as Senate fiddles-July 28, 2008

Excerpt: The Senate should be talking about big solutions to the big problem. One we like is Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe's proposal to help make compressed natural gas more readily available as a transportation fuel.

But that's not on the Senate leadership's agenda. Neither is drilling offshore or in Alaska. Most Democrats are against adding new supply, but their excuses are having a harder time with the gasoline-buying public.

Maybe some time at home next month with angry voters will open their ears.[…] Corker called it legislation that "majors in the minors," a confusing array of rules, committees and review boards tasked with trying to foolproof a system founded on hunches and risk-taking. Even New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, no cheerleader for the oil business, was dubious, writing last month that "hyperventilation over oil-market speculation is distracting us from the real issues." The real issue is supply and demand. It makes no sense to keep American oil, offshore and in Alaska, unavailable for the present and as a bridge to the next generation of energy technologies.

National Review- How Low Would They Go?- July 28, 2008

Excerpt: This ploy is made necessary by the Democratic leadership's refusal to allow an up-or-down vote on drilling, because they know it would pass. As noted previously, they are even holding up the relevant spending legislation because of this majority support for drilling. Now, of course, they are looking for backdoors or kitchen windows through which to quietly sneak a brand new prohibition, as the voters sharpen their pitchforks over $4 gasoline.

The Oklahoman- Inhofe backing natural gas bill- July 22, 2008

Excerpt: Sen. Jim Inhofe introduced a bill that he says would promote the use of vehicles fueled by compressed and liquefied natural gas. The bill would: •Expand federal renewable fuel standards to allow compressed and liquefied natural gas to be classified that way. •Broaden a federal tax credit to include vehicles that run on both regular and renewable fuels, instead of just vehicles that run on renewable fuels only. •Establish a natural gas vehicle research, development and demonstration program. •Streamline regulations covering the conversion of conventional fuel vehicles to ones that could operate on natural gas.

Roll Call- Republicans Push for Showdown on Drilling – July 22, 2008

Excerpt: In the face of soaring gas prices and growing support among the public for expanded oil drilling, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) have strenuously avoided votes on opening more land and sea for exploration. But Congress would have to vote affirmatively to keep the offshore drilling ban in place, with the provision likely to be included in a continuing resolution to keep the government running through the elections and into next year.

National Review – Domestic Drilling and the Do-Nothing Dems – July 24, 2008
Excerpt: Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and other liberal leaders on Capitol Hill are gripped by cold-sweat terror. If they permit a vote on offshore drilling, they know they will lose when Blue Dogs and oil-patch Democrats defect to the GOP position of increasing domestic energy production. So the last failsafe is to shut down Congress. Majority Leader Reid has decided that deliberation is too taxing for "the world's greatest deliberative body."

Excerpt: Republicans are upping the ante on their bet that energy issues -- especially increased domestic oil production -- will be key to closing Democrats' imposing advantage with voters on the economy. This week, President George W. Bush heads to two election battleground states, Ohio and West Virginia, to draw attention to congressional inaction.

Roll Call- Gasoline Prices Energize GOP-July 28, 2008

Excerpt: High gas prices might be decimating the economy, but they are proving to be just the tonic for House Republicans. The Republican Conference’s singular focus on energy — and expanding oil and gas drilling in particular — has shoved a simmering family feud over earmarks and talk of leadership races deep into the background, and it has brought a new spring to the step of rank-and-file Members.

CQ- New Techniques Reduce Drilling Spills- July 28, 2008

Excerpt: In trying to persuade Congress to allow more oil exploration and drilling in coastal waters, the Bush administration argues that the process is safer than it used to be, that new technology has reduced the chance of a disastrous oil spill like the one that coated the California coast near Santa Barbara in 1969 and led to drilling bans. "Technology," President Bush said at a news conference July 11, "has changed dramatically to enable the exploitation of oil in a way that protects the environment."

CQ-Senator Says Drilling Showdown Will Come in September-July 26, 2008

Excerpt: Republicans anticipate turning this year’s stopgap spending bill — a normally routine bit of end-of-fiscal-year business — into a continuation of the debate over oil exploration in the Outer Continental Shelf, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said Saturday.

Roll Call- High Gas Prices Produce More Games Than Gains- July 28, 2008

Excerpt: The political equivalent of an internal-combustion engine’s chain reaction is this: High gas prices ignite consumer anger, which powers accelerated PR efforts geared toward diverting blame and alleviating pain (at the pump).

NY Times- Fuel Subsidies Overseas Take a Toll on U.S- July 28, 2008

Excerpt: From Mexico to India to China, governments fearful of inflation and street protests are heavily subsidizing energy prices, particularly for diesel fuel. But the subsidies — estimated at $40 billion this year in China alone — are also removing much of the incentive to conserve fuel.

Wall Street Journal- Funds for Highways Plummet As Drivers Cut Gasoline Use- July 28, 2008

Excerpt: A report to be released Monday by the Transportation Department shows that over the past seven months, Americans have reduced their driving by more than 40 billion miles. Because of high gasoline prices, they drove 3.7% fewer miles in May than they did a year earlier, the report says, more than double the 1.8% drop-off seen in April.

Washington Post- China's Cars, Accelerating A Global Demand for Fuel- July 28, 2008

Excerpt: Car ownership in China is exploding, and it's not only cars but also sport-utility vehicles, pickup trucks and other gas-guzzling rides. Elsewhere in the world, the popularity of these vehicles has tumbled as the cost of oil has soared. But in China, the number of SUVs sold rose 43 percent in May compared with the previous year, and full-size sedans were up 15 percent. Indeed, China's demand for gas is much of the reason for the dramatic run-up in global oil prices.

The Foundry- More, Not Less, Speculation Please- July 28, 2008

Excerpt: This week Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) will try to close out her "summer energy agenda" with a bill claiming to end "excessive" speculation in oil markets. Instead of allowing the House to vote on any bill that would actually increase our supply of oil (like bills that would end bans on exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge or the Outer Continental Shelf), Pelosi claims she can lower gas prices tightening government control of oil futures markets.

National Review – Gore's Great Leap Backward – July 22, 2008
Excerpt: Less understandable is why an idea so irresponsible - in economic terms, in fact, just this side of deranged - attracted so little ridicule. Gore proposed last week that the United States "commit to producing 100 percent of our electricity from renewable energy and truly clean carbon-free sources within 10 years." Not just all new electricity, mind you, which would be challenging enough.

LA Times – Pickens sees answer to energy crisis in the wind – July 23, 2008

Excerpt: He spent much of his life drilling for oil, taking over other companies and using his vast wealth to fund Republicans. Now, T. Boone Pickens champions wind energy, has a Facebook profile and passes the time with grateful Democrats. On Tuesday, the legendary oil tycoon made his Capitol Hill debut to promote his new cause: using American wind to alleviate the nation's energy crisis and wean itself from dependency on foreign oil.

Politico – Gang of 10' fights for increased drilling – July 23, 2008

Excerpt: Democratic leaders, caught off guard by a swing in public opinion and undermined by some of their own members, are scrambling to run down the clock on calls to lift the ban on offshore oil drilling. Tuesday evening, five Democratic senators met with five of their Republican colleagues to hash out a plan that would include far more drilling — from the land and from the sea — than would be allowed under any current Democratic proposal.

The Foundry – Clearing the Air on EPA’s Phony Global Warming Smog Scare – July 21, 2008
Excerpt: Of all the overblown predictions of a future global warming apocalypse in the Environmental Protection Agency’s "Analyses of the Effects of Global Change on Human Health and Welfare and Human Systems," the one the agency should be most ashamed of is its claim that warming will exacerbate ozone, otherwise known as smog. The others, like increased hurricane and flood damage, are also at odds with the actual trends and scientific evidence.

The Foundry – The American Energy Act: Supply Side Solutions – July 23, 2008
Excerpt: Congressman John Boehner of Ohio is set to introduce The American Energy Act, which will most importantly increase America’s energy supplies. The bill calls for leasing regulations for offshore natural gas by 2010, removing restrictions for outer continental shelf drilling, and opening up sections of ANWR for drilling.

The Foundry – Nuclear Energy: Learning from the French – July 22, 2008
Excerpt: Skyrocketing gas prices and rising energy demands have policymakers considering some of the same bad policies of the 1970s. Chief among these are windfall profits taxes, setting price controls on oil and using subsidies to pick winners and losers. The French, on the other hand, took a different approach in the 1970s—sort of. They decided turn to nuclear energy to reduced its dependence on foreign oil.

The Hill – Senate GOP issues ultimatum to expand oil drilling – June 23, 2008

Excerpt: Senate Republicans have threatened to block nearly all other bills pending before the August recess if Democrats refuse to vote with them on expanding offshore drilling. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said bills that do not pertain to energy can wait until after the August recess, with gas prices now surpassing $4 per gallon.

The Foundry – The Push for a Peaceful Nuclear Deal with India – July 23, 2008
Excerpt: With the Singh government surviving yesterday’s no-confidence motion in the Indian Parliament, India is one step closer to gaining access to civilian nuclear reactors and fuel that would allow it to embark on its own nuclear renaissance.

The Foundry – Morning Bell: The World Is Powering Up While America Powers Down – July 24, 2008
Excerpt: The economy is by far the No. 1 issue on most Americans’ minds. Gas prices are a close second. The two issues are intimately related. But the spike in oil prices this year is just the tip of the iceberg. Due to similar developments in supply and demand, electricity prices are set to skyrocket next year. The rest of the world knows that green sources of energy are inadequate to keep their people out of poverty.

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