Record gas prices and record oil-company profits don't seem like a good mix to me.
The far-reaching consequences of short-sighted policymakers, like my opponent, Jim Inhofe, are becoming all too apparent. From $3.60 a gallon gas to soaring prices at the grocery store, from farmers and ranchers who can't cover their costs to small business owners who have to raise their prices or lay off employees, the dominoes from years of denial are falling - with serious effects for most Americans.
There are a few folks who don't seem to mind the consequences of higher gas prices. Oil companies are announcing near-record profits - billions more than even most analysts expected. Jim Inhofe is profiting too - by taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the oil and coal industry, he's managed to stay in Congress for more than 20 years.
(more below)
Jim Inhofe is trying to seem sympathetic with people struggling to afford higher gas prices and weather the related economic effects. His campaign talks about how he introduced unsuccessful legislation to increase domestic drilling for oil. Today he blamed attempts to promote biofuel advances for localized food shortages in an effort to distract from the overarching issue - that the long-term problems with fossil fuel dependence won't be solved by a single-pronged fix, and especially not by drilling for more oil at home.
The real solutions are right under Jim Inhofe's nose, but he's refusing to see them. Sustaining our dependence on fossil fuels is an untenable fix; the environmental, economic, and national security issues related to our oil dependence are too great for us to continue down that path.
The opportunity to position Oklahoma as a leader in new sources of energy - such as wind, solar, and biofuels from switchgrass and animal products - has been there for a long time. We need a change in Washington so we can take advantage of these opportunities now and plan for the long-term energy needs of our country, as well as head off food, economic, and environmental crises.
Inhofe and the oil companies are profiting; meanwhile, the minimum wage increase that began phasing in last July (Inhofe voted against increasing it 20 times) has been virtually erased by the increased cost each worker endures to drive to work and back. Meanwhile, the world we leave our children is in greater danger of serious environmental and economic affects.
The people I talk to in Oklahoma have been sharing their concerns about gas prices with me since I first started running for state senate in 2005. I've taken action by authoring legislation to convert our state's vehicle fleet to natural gas and other more efficient fuels and a bill to singificantly reduce school districts' energy costs over the next five years.
I'll take action for all of us when I get to the U.S. Senate - but for now, I'll just take your questions.