NEW RECORD FOR OIL PRICES -- $88 A BARREL
STATEMENT OF REPRESENTATIVE EDWARD J. MARKEY (D-MA)
ON NEW RECORD FOR OIL PRICES OF $88 A BARREL
OCT 16, 2007
This morning, we woke up to reports of another new record high oil price -- $88 per barrel and climbing.
At the same time, the Bush Administration sent a letter to congress yesterday complaining that the pending Energy Bill might hurt the oil companies.
The Administration’s complaints could not be more misplaced or more poorly timed.
The American economy is already shaky from the mortgage crisis –
Some analysts believe a prolonged oil spike could tip the economy over into a recession as the rest of America reels from oil speculators, OPEC and oil addiction.
This is precisely why the New Direction Democratic Congress has put together an Energy Bill which no longer looks to oil as the favored fuel, but rather leads in a new direction – towards renewable energy, energy efficiency and biofuels.
In fact, this energy bill has the potential to reduce our dependence on foreign oil by nearly twice the amount we currently import from the Persian Gulf, and to take national energy policy in a new direction – away from oil and towards efficiency, new fuels and renewable sources of electricity.
So what does the Administration have to say about this New Direction Energy Bill?
IT’S TOO TOUGH ON THE OIL INDUSTRY!
In a letter sent to Congress last night, the Administration is actually threatening to veto this legislation if it includes anything that hints at reducing incentives for the oil industry.
There the Bush Administration goes again – coddling Big Oil instead of developing alternative energy resources that will lower oil prices and save our planet from the worst impacts of global warming.
The Bush Administration just doesn’t get it. Ever since the Cheney Energy plan set America on a foolish course to try to drill our way to energy independence, we have been learning the hard way that no matter how much money you heap on the oil industry, and no matter how much the oil cartel drives up prices, and no matter how many new oil wells get drilled, we are no closer to energy independence than when this Administration took over.
This Administration claims to adhere to strict market economics, but even they should realize:
You can’t squeeze blood out of a turnip – we consume 25 percent of the worlds oil each day but we have only 3 percent of the world’s oil reserves.
Sticking with oil is a sure-fire prescription for rising oil prices and dependence on unstable regimes in the Middle East and elsewhere that have the oil that we don’t.
So we are here today to say stop the oil madness, break the oil addiction, and pass a modern Energy Bill that looks to a future where we are no longer forced to hold hands with oil potentates overseas to keep our country safe and secure.
The Select Committee was active during the 110th and 111th Congresses. This is an archived version of the website, to ensure that the public has ongoing access to the Select Committee record. This website, including external links, will not be updated after Jan. 3rd, 2010.
del.icio.us
Digg this
Reddit
Stumbleupon
Print This Page