The View from the Meadow

Energy Hold-Up Held Up in Congress
Filibuster Forces Discussion on Republican Bill

There is hope in Congress after all --- The new energy bill designed behind closed doors by Republicans and quickly rubber-stamped by the House Of Representatives has stalled in the Senate.

The Regime quietly introduced the bill on Saturday afternoon, November 15th, apparently slipping it under the doors of Congress during the weekend in hopes it would attract little attention. The bill appeared headed for rapid approval until it ran into a bipartisan effort by Democrats and Republicans who are concerned over the bill’s tax breaks for energy and petrochemical companies. Estimates on the size of these tax breaks and subsidies range from $24 billion to $96 billion.

A bipartisan filibuster, unheard of in the current atmosphere in Washington where Republicans are expected to vote the party line and anyone questioning the Regime is accused of a lack of patriotism, already stood up to a vote to end debate on the issue. Six Republicans crossed the line and voted to sustain the debate.

Conservation groups, unions and consumer organizations contend the energy bill would give billions of taxpayer dollars to polluting industries and do nothing to improve the US energy grid. The bill would not reduce US dependence on foreign oil and does not provide for investments in the development of clean, renewable energy sources.

A measure protecting petrochemical companies from lawsuits related to the pollution of underground water by MTBE gasoline additives is under pressure from the Democrats.

Democrats are concerned that they were left out of the development of this energy policy. The Regime has apparently adopted a policy of secrecy regarding its energy activities, a policy that began several years ago when Vice President Cheney’s energy task force first met behind closed doors. This controversial practice defies tradition and its legality is being debated in the courts.

Other points of contention in the bill include the following:

It would promote the identification of all offshore drilling sites from Florida to California.

Huge natural-gas reserves on Alaska's North Slope would be opened to development.

The bill seeks to revive the nuclear power industry by funding the development of new nuclear plants. This, if one looks to places like France and many other areas that have successfully and safely employed nuclear power, could be a good thing.