I received word from the Cantwell campaign that she is appearing on Scarborough tonight.
Today, Thursday, February 9th at 7:00 p.m. PT Senator Cantwell will be on MSNBC's Scarborough Country.
As the Senate Democrats' point person on energy issues, Cantwell will discuss her efforts to make America energy independent by 2020.
Before her appearance, Senator Cantwell will have asked the Bush Administration's Energy Secretary about the cuts in key renewable energy programs in his budget that he released on Monday. She will also discuss her efforts to pass gas anti-price gouging bills.
More below the dots.
BPA service area
Regardless of what you may think of Cantwell, she is certainly an outpsoken critic of the new budget. The Bush budget proposal contains plenty to irritate northwest voters and their politicians, starting with a raid on the Bonneville Power Administration's revenues from the sale of surplus power. That money is currently used to keep rates low for regular customers, in keeping with the BPA's practice since 1937 of providing at-cost energy. Bush, like others before him, sees these funds as a piggy bank to be raided for whatever purpose, never mind that the ratepayers are paying off their debt to the federal government on schedule. GOP politicos, including Conrad Burns, Doc Hastings (WA-04), and Cathy McMorris (WA-05) are running from Bush's BPA raid as fast as they can. As one local paper put it, this pig isn't going to fly. Does that mean there's no political hay to be made from it? (Hay from a pig? - This is a rush job.) I certainly don't know.
For once I will watch this godawful show. Cantwell's appearance should give us a foretaste of her campaign, as do recent statements::
Energy Rates: Energy prices are already through the roof. By trying to squeeze extra dollars out of the Northwest, the Bush Administration is turning its back on families and businesses just when our economy can least afford it. This is nothing more than a billion dollar tax hike on the Northwest economy. As far as I'm concerned, this plan is dead on arrival.
ANWR: Less than a week after admitting that our country is addicted to oil, President Bush is pushing an outdated fix that will destroy Alaska's last wild frontier and do nothing to address our country's long-term energy needs.
Homeland Security: The president's budget would cut vital funding for first responders by slashing funding for the FIRE Act program and eliminating the Law Enforcement Terrorism Prevention Program. Cutting important first responder programs not only ignores the needs of those men and women working hard to keep our communities safe, it also puts our entire nation at risk.
Rural Health Care: Washington's rural communities deserve nothing less that first-rate health care. This budget doesn't come close. We need to support and enhance rural health care initiatives so we can get more qualified doctors to rural areas and retain the many dedicated health care professionals currently serving rural Washington.
Our nation's poorest seniors are already trying to deal with a complicated, confusing drug program that's left many without the life-saving medications they need. Now the administration wants to cut even more of the programs they seniors rely on. I'll continue fighting to make sure seniors get the care they were promised.
Senator Cantwell's website goes into considerable detail on budget matters.
