Yesterday, House Republicans including Nevada Representative Dean Heller and Nevada Representative Joe Heck voted against an amendment to H.R. 1230, a Republican bill that increases drilling in the United States, but fails to bring down gas prices. All but one Republican voted against the Amendment.
The amendment which was offered by New Mexico Rep. Ben Ray Lujan, a Democrat, would have made it mandatory that the “Oil Drilled in the United States, Stay’s in the United States” for US consumers and not shipped to other countries.
Excerpt of Lujan’s floor speech (video below)
“All day today, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have suggested that drilling more is the solution to high gas prices. And if my Republican colleagues really believe that increasing drilling in the U.S. will lower gas prices then we should all be able to agree that oil produced in America should stay in America to help American families and American businesses.”
“And that’s why I am offering this final amendment today to ensure that oil resources that are produced through leasing under this act are kept here and sold here in the United States. Simply put, this means if we produce it here we should keep it here for the American people.”
The Republican mantra “Drill, Baby Drill” which was used during the 2008 Presidential campaign while US consumers were seeing escalating prices of crude oil and gas prices at the pump, is nothing but misdirection, because the oil would not be used in the United States, it would be sold onto the world market.
The Republicans have voted several times to keep US oil out of the cars of US consumers.
The right wing wants you to believe that if we drill for more oil on US lands and US seas, consumers in the United States would see prices drop at the pump. Well, that is a fallacy, and the Republicans know that.
In 2005, former President George W. Bush and the Republican controlled congress were pushing for oil drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), the Democrats back then offered Bush and the Republicans no opposition to drilling if they would guarantee that the oil drilled in Alaska would stay in the United States for US consumers.And of course the Republicans said no. No to US consumers, and yes to foreign consumers.
The Republicans want US oil corporations to be able to sell crude oil on the World market where they will see higher profits on US crude, while also maintaining higher prices at the pumps in the United States, because Oil billionaire’s such as the Koch brothers contribute millions to republican campaign’s.
Oil corporation such as Exxon, which makes more money than any other corporation on the planet, will also continue to receive billions of US tax dollars in subsidies because Republicans also voted down an amendment to end tax payer subsidies to oil corporations a few days ago.
New Mexico Rep. Ben Ray Lujan also said in his speech, “At a time when gas prices are at historic highs, if we’re going to produce more from American drilling we should keep it in America to help Americans.”
But sadly, Republican’s don’t see it that way.
Luján Offers Amendment to Keep Oil Produced Domestically Here in America to Help American
Credit: Repbenraylujan