In the
Contra Costa Times today, they report that our trusty villain -- the infamous Rep. Richard Pombo (chair of the powerful House Resources Committee) -- is once again trying to bribe fellow representatives to allow states to open up our shores to offshore oil and gas drilling.
On Thursday, the House will likely vote on Pombo's Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act (notice his use of the word "DEEP" -- he's trying to make you think the drilling will only be way out where the whales live).
In order to bribe his fellow reps to end the offshore drilling moratorium, Pombo is offering...
... incentives to states in shared royalties. It would fund vocational training in minerals and petrochemical jobs and renewable fuels research. It also would fill the rural schools funding shortfall, which the administration had proposed paying for with the sale of public lands.
The incentives would cost the federal treasury an estimated $69 billion over 15 years, but the money would come from royalties generated by new drilling.
Notice that he's now trying to use his bribes to save the forest land Bush wants to sell. Think Bush knew about and approved this. Well, of course!
The bill would allow drilling 50-100 miles offshore, with no limits on drilling beyond 100 miles.
Pombo asked Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for his support on the bill, but Arnie rejected him. Pombo then taunted him by saying that since Jeb Bush is on board, that Arnie should be too.
What Pombo didn't point out is that Jeb can't run for reelection since he's done as governor, so Jeb has nothing to lose (but remember this when he runs for president). Arnie on the other hand, has to consider the voters' wishes because he is up for reelection. Pombo, as usual, is never bothered by what his constituents think or want; that's irrelevant to him.
Defenders of Wildlife (which has opened a field office in Pombo's district and is running their Pombo In Their Pocket campaign), is planning rallies at local gas stations in CA-11 to point out to voters just what Pombo is up to. MoveOn is also planning protests around the country to highlight the massive oil industry contributions to Congress.
According to the Contra Costa Times:
Since 1999, Pombo's campaign and leadership committees have received $425,289 in contributions from energy and mining companies, according to data compiled for the Times by Dwight Morris & Associates. The industry has been his second-highest source of money since 2003, when he became Resources Committee chairman.
So what can we do? Pombo is all powerful in the House, where his mentor Tom DeLay helped Pombo gain the Resources chair job and where Pombo is preparing to take over the Agriculture committee chair job as well. Can he ever be stopped? Will his war on America's environment never end?
We have a hero, folks. Jerry McNerney is on the job and running a strong campaign against Pombo in CA-11. Jerry has won the Russ Feingold's "Pick a Progressive Patriot: YearlyKos" contest and has just won the Democracy for Action's Grassroots All-Stars contest. And if you hadn't noticed, the Daily Kos now has McNerney as an ActBlue Netroots-Endorsed candidate.
Jerry McNerney is the answer to our prayers because he can put an end to the Pombo torture once and for all. And remember -- thanks to Pombo's war on the environment, we all live in CA-11. Every voter in America is affected by Pombo's anti-environmental extremism.
There are a couple ways you can help out Jerry today. He is currently competing in the Mark Warner MapChangers competition, so be sure to head over there and vote for McNerney. Also, Jerry McNerney has a fundraising goal that he is trying to meet by the FEC deadline on June 30, so if you have some extra cash, hop on over to his excellent website, and contribute. Your money can help bring an end to Pombo's war on the environment once and for all.