Posted on 05/06/2008 6:05:52 AM PDT by .cnI redruM
"We’re going to go right at OPEC," she said. "They can no longer be a cartel, a monopoly that get together once every couple of months in some conference room in some plush place in the world, they decide how much oil they’re going to produce and what price they’re going to put it at," she told a crowd at a firehouse in Merrillville, IN. - Hillary Rodham Clinton (5 May 2008)
From the palace of her delusional Shangri-La, Empress Clinton has decreed that OPEC can no longer exist as a cartel. It’s a good thing that the Sultan of Brunei, like washed-up Rapper, MC Hammer, insures all of his mansions and Bentleys through Nationwide.
Senator Clinton goes on to explain why the Clinton Health Security Plan of the early 1990’s represented such an execration in the domain of public policy. Like William Jennings Bryant decrying the gold standard, Hillary sounds the war-tocsin of economic populism.
“That’s not a market. That’s a monopoly," she said, saying she'd use anti-trust law and the World Trade Organization to take on OPEC.
Hillary tells us that she intends to break out the whipin’ stick against a bunch of oil-rich Middle Eastern despots and make them charge her concept of a fair price. She has yet to flesh out the detailed strategy to make a nation who elects a man who believes the 13th Imam is returning from the hereafter, to make all the infidels burn in lakes of hellfire, abide by The Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The details of this are probably as nebulous and broad as that Middle-Class Tax Cut that Bill Clinton ran for President on in 1992.
Hillary’s calls for OPEC to disband and engage the market the way a small-town farmer running a road-side fruit and vegetable stand would become even more risible in the face of her efforts to dismantle the only countervailing force we have against the JP Morgans and Cornelius Vanderbilts of South West Asia. She openly accused our oil industry of intentionally manipulating the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina for fun and for profit.
"I want to go after the oil companies and the oil speculators and the manipulators of the money, because they're the ones who I think are really behind this," Clinton told an audience in Elmira Heights on Thursday. "You have a hurricane, and all of a sudden you see prices going up like that. That has . . . everything to do with people trying to make money off the backs of this tragedy."- Washington Post (September 3, 2005)
I can assure the Senator who would be Queen that Ghadaffi, Ahmadinejad, and the rest of that region’s oil-rich supporters of international terrorism are rooting for Senator Clinton to take those profits. Racing against an opponent wearing ankle weights is not a daunting proposition. In keeping with Osama Bin Ladin’s admonishment that the people will always back the stronger horse, the ministers of OPEC cheer with glee at the prospect of the horse of American industry being saddled with the authoritarian dead weight of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Her newest bone-headed 1970’s revival involves the idea of slapping a Windfall Profits Tax on Oil companies. She claimed to Bill O’Liely they have failed to adequately perform R&D to her specifications. Apparently, their capital stocks and their industrial processes are as badly out of date as The Democratic Party’s national platform.
But once her tax policies have quenched the desire of any enterprising American to enter the oil and gas industry, she will still have to take on OPEC. Only once she’s demobilized Exxon-Mobil, it will be OPEC on Roger Clemmons Juice. At that point, OPEC would be happy to take their offensive product completely off the market and let America do without. Oh boy, would they be happy!
At that point someone could even be impolitic enough to ask her “Oh yeah, you and what Army?” Given her party’s current views of long-term military entanglements in the Middle East, that’s not a question she could laugh off or take lightly. Her answer could be both telling and apocryphal.
Then-Senator Daschle once denounced George W. Bush for following a short-sighted policy that forced the United States to war against Iraq in 2003. Hillary’s willingness to lay waste to America’s domestic oil producers for the crime of acting like businesses and making profits would put us in similar straights with either Venezuela or Iran. Perhaps the pseudo-sapients at Infowars are right to accuse her of threatening to nuke Iran. Once she’s taken those profits, she’s removed other, more rational options from the table.
People (justifiably) criticize McCain for not being very knowledgable about economics. But it seems pretty clear that he understands more than Hillary about our (in)ability to force OPEC to do our bidding.
This from a person who says the oil companies should pay the tax and not the consumer..........what an idiot......
She’s always been up around the bend, but right now, she’s a populist.......
I am sure that they will pay attention to a woman.
The same way they do all seven of their wives...
Hillary is RIGHT about the use of the Sherman anti trust act of 1933 in combating OPEC.
This law is, and has been, a model for like laws worldwide and is ratified in numerous reciprocal treaties with the US, including the WTO!
It has been used against many US companies, including Microsoft, both here and abroad, and our partners are bound by treaty to uphold it.
Here is the rub:
There is a clause in the treaty/law that can exclude industries that a country deems necessary to National Security.
The real fly in the ointment is that nobody ever envisioned a situation where the country involved would OWN that industry!
These exemption's are agreed upon and can be removed.
We could - if we wanted to - declare the OPEC cartel an illegal combination in restraint of trade.
Which it surely is!!
Why should we be held to legal frameworks that do not apply to a bunch of filthy anti American Arabs and such, who are screwing America as hard as they can?
We should remove OPEC from the National Security excemption status that it currently enjoys!
And if they remove a volume of oil from the market equal to that which they sell to the US each year, what are your suggestions?
I can hear them laughing now.
When Hillary made a speech in Indiana last weekend about how she was going to TAKE that $55 billion in profits away from the oil companies- she looked absolutely reptilian. Like a gila monster flicking her forky tongue at an insect.
shuddderrr at the thought of having to hear and see that raspy arrogant smug socialista in the White House.........
The axiom of the Leftist: “I’m right, and everyone will do what I say if I can just get them to listen to me! I shall declare what shall be, and it shall be!” They don’t have to cooperate with anyone, but everyone will cooperate with them.
Yeah. A bunch of uber-super-rich sheiks will give up their source of fortune and power because some lady on the other side of the planet says they should. Right.
Remove an equivalent volume of money from the international banking institutions that are legally bound to do so.
IOW, equitable seizure of assets as compensatory damages.
Guys, the people who crafted the framework of these laws were not stupid and these arabs are not all powerful beings who live in their own universe.
Hillary does not have a clue. OPEC would be happy to sell plenty of oil to China and turn off the tap to the US. What is she going to do, bomb them?
The quickest way to reduce oil prices is for the US gov. to announce that we are allowing drilling in ANWAR, off the coast, and anywhere on federal land. Leases for $1.
Just the announcement would drop the price of oil. Don’t even have to put a drill bit in the ground.
I can hear them laughing now.
Doing this would provide no laughter for anyone who knows even one thing about this law.
She is an idiot...
or rather, those that fall for her B/S are the idiots
She’s truly delusional and power-mad...
Oh really, we seize their property because they don’t fix their prices to our specifications? Why do they hate us?
Might as well charge them with a violation of Robinson-Patman.
OPEC already is happy to sell plenty of oil to China
Where do you get the notion that they are not selling all of the oil that people will bid on?
There is no "allocation" for different countries!
and turn off the tap to the US.
LOL! Yeah, that will work! LOL! and turn off the tap to the US.
Companies don’t pay taxes, they just collect them.........
first, learn to spell. - and I do not care why they hate us.
Second, these are the financial rules of the world. - Except for OPEC.
In your deluded little (mis)comprehension you actually believe that the international markets are a free for all where there are no rules and everybody does anything that they want?
There are legal frameworks and rules that the entire world plays by - except OPEC
But you all stand there and defend ... OPEC
Sorry, but Robinson-Patman is not international law, ratified and agreed upon by treaty and incorporated into the WTO, so that analogy is meaningless.
The quickest way to reduce oil prices is for the US gov. to announce that we are allowing drilling in ANWAR, off the coast, and anywhere on federal land. Leases for $1. ............... That’s a dream. I guess we will have to wait for China to start pumping from their off shore oil locations. Once they do that, we will be able to buy cheap Chinese refined low octane leaded gas, for our cheap imported Chinese cars. ;o)
And then what?
This from a person who says the oil companies should pay the tax and not the consumer...That she's that stupid is irrelevant, the relevance lies in whether or not there's a plurality of morons in this nation who'll buy it and pull a lever for her. There's a LOT of morons here based on the number of socialists and marxists running around in office...
Funny when I hear ANWAR it sounds like a political slogan. It’s not a solution.
Another thing would be to start a food cartel, OFEC(Organization of Food Exporting Countries)and tie the price of food to oil for these oleogenous jihadistans..
Hillary, no. But, we do have plans and have trained on them back in the 70s to seize the oil fields. Of course, I would like to see the bill presented to the Iraq citizens and paid for in oil.
Oh yes, the DUmmies have fits of orgasmic ecstasy at the thought of taxing oil companies, never stopping to think that it is the consumer that ultimately pays all corporate taxes......on ANY product.............
2) If I were trading with someone who voluntarily called me up and asked to purchase one of my natural resources, I would generally assume I had the right to price that resource to what the market would bear. The Saudis are, in fact, selling us oil excavated from the territories of Saudi Arabia, not the US. They may be obnoxious about it, but they are being obnoxious with property that is, in fact, their's.
3) If you owned a car and someone else wanted to buy it, they would not have the right to go into your bank account and remove a balance equal to what they felt the difference was between a fair price and what you offered them. You either buy at the price offered, or you do without.
4)Unless you also agree with Hillary that a government entity can intervene and confiscate someone else's property and confiscate it because they use it in a way that displeases the Empress, we would be impinging upon their rights.
5)>>>>everybody does anything that they want?
Your angst over people believing that everyone should do what they wants almost believes me to believe you would have debates Mr. Jefferson's belief that human beings were entitled to the pursuit of happiness. Peddle your sneering despotism elsewhere.
Could not have said it better. That and more refineries and more nuclear power plant would drive a stake through OPEC’s heart but fat chance with the Democrats on their knees to the idiot enviro whack jobs.
And that’s exactly it. We could reduce our usage and saturate the international market by getting rid of the stupid ethanol boondoggle and cutting through the red tape involved with domestic exploration and with nuclear power generation.
R-P is used more often in the petroleum trade than Sherman. Do you really think the Saudis and Venz would give a bleep about either one ?
Look in the mirror.
There is no point in arguing this point of Law to you because you do not understand that it is established international law and, beyond your rather quaint arguments to the contrary, have nothing to input on it at all from a legal standpoint.
If you do not like the Sherman Anti Trust act and it's usage in international law, then lobby congress to do away with it.
As I said, no use in posting to you because you obviously do not know thing one about International law, but you, like so many uninformed, are adept at regaling others with how you feel about it.
Have a great day.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is not a company to be sued, but is composed of just what the name says, petroleum exporting countries. You want to use the Sherman antitrust act to get who, exactly? Soverign nations deciding what of their resources they can sell? (Hint, at these prices, no one in OPEC is really holding back. They do not have the ability to produce significantly more oil without damaging the wells and ending up producing less in the long run.)
Not even the Saudis can produce enough surplus to make a serious drop in the price.
What I do see here is a Hugo Chavez/Vladimir Putin style power play designed to thake the myriad oil companies who produce the lifeblood of capitalism and chain them to the State.
Her heinous must be awful jealous of the uberMarxists out there.
If you think it is expensive now, when you can get it, just wait until the Government 'fixes' things, and the shortages start...
Oh great. Maybe Madame President can do the same for the oil companies as she did for our flu shots. If the Beast get elected expect gas lines again!
R-P is used more often in the petroleum trade than Sherman
domestically.
Do you really think the Saudis and Venz would give a bleep about either one ?
If it is never on the table, of course not.
Simply remove it from international law then.
R-P could apply to the Venz and Saudis. Both have operating companies in the US. Both offer favorable pricing to some of their customers, which is at the heart of Robinson-Patman.
China already gets all of the oil it wants. Loss of U.S. purchases would be devastating to OPEC.
Hmm. Not a bad point about Chavez. - I assume that you are speaking to the sweetheart deal that some democrat/socialist governor got on heating oil from him?
I can see how you could legally argue that one.
To do any of these things would take some real balls, and I am surprised that Hillary spoke up about it.
Don't know of any like actions by the House of Saud.
Thank you for the post. - and the idea. 8^) - bill
The Fed is a cartel...but so is the government.
hey Hillary opec just called-they said you have no “gravitas”
hey Hillary opec just called-they said you have no “gravitas”
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