House passes bill to sue OPEC over oil prices

Reuters ^

[Sub-Driver]

House passes bill to sue OPEC over oil prices Tue May 20, 2008 1:53pm EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved legislation on Tuesday allowing the Justice Department to sue OPEC members for limiting oil supplies and working together to set crude prices, but the White House threatened to veto the measure.

The bill would subject OPEC oil producers, including Saudi Arabia, Iran and Venezuela, to the same antitrust laws that U.S. companies must follow.

The measure passed in a 324-84 vote, a big enough margin to override a presidential veto.

The legislation also creates a Justice Department task force to aggressively investigate gasoline price gouging and energy market manipulation.

"This bill guarantees that oil prices will reflect supply and demand economic rules -- instead of wildly speculative and perhaps illegal activities," said Democratic Rep. Steve Kagen of Wisconsin, who sponsored the legislation.

The White House opposed the bill, saying that targeting OPEC investment in the United States as a source for damage awards "would likely spur retaliatory action against American interests in those countries and lead to a reduction in oil available to U.S. refiners."

[Sub-Driver]

I'd like to sue Congress for being stupid.........

[jpl]

Oh, brother. What an embarrassing government we have, I swear.

[kingattax]

this is way beyond stupid. nancy and her winged monkeys outdid themselves on this.

[AngelesCrestHighway]

The sand dunes are alight with the sound of laughing.....

[Sgt_Schultze]

I’d like to sue Wisconsin for electing a bona fide nitwit.

[WarToad]

Oh. Yea. This will help. Idiots.

[WarToad]

Oh. Yea. This will help. Idiots.

[Slapshot68]

Just when you thought our Congress couldn’t act any dumber...

[anoldafvet]

Next up will be a bill to allow us to sue nature for being too hot or too cold. Makes you really proud of our liberal controlled congress dosen’t it?

[WarToad]

Oops. Jpl, that wasn’t addressed to you. That was to the idiots in our Government.

[Abathar]

WTH?? You have got to be s*****g me...

Who on our side of the isle was stupid enough to go along with this?

In retaliation they will close the spicket a little, just for the sheer hell of it and because they can.

[Domandred]

Absolutely brilliant (/s). What happens when those countries say “screw you we ain’t selling to you anymore”?

[ConservaTexan]

The do nothing Congress never ceases to amaze me. They won’t touch ANWR, but they will sue OPEC.

[tobyhill]

Now what will congress do when OPEC refuses to sell to us because of potential legal liabilities? It's a return to Jimmah Carter days.

[fella]

This just proves the fact that the majority of our legilators are lawyers and can only think the way that lawyers think. Is there any wonder that we are in the mess that they have created?

[RightWhale]

We elected these representatives. It’s our fault.

[Smokin' Joe]

Were I an OPEC member, and if this passed, I would just say “What oil?” and sell elsewhere.

[MNJohnnie]

Jimmy Carter 2.0. Same Do Nothing then bitch about it Energy policy from the 1970s!

Want to really see red? Despite record demand for Oil world wide US Oil production is dropping! That Feds, thanks for clinging mindlessly to the trust fund baby Green Lobby pushed dogma of “Conservation not Consumption” Thanks for making us even more dependent on imported Energy Leftists!

http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/dnav/pet/hist/mcrfpus2m.htm

[technically right]

Go ahead you morons, piss ‘em off and when they embargo sales to the U.S. you can explain why gas costs $10 a gallon, if you can find any.

The stupidity of these people is breathtaking.

[CDHart]

Does anyone know who the idiots are that voted for it?

Carolyn

[ICE-FLYER]

Leave it to a bunch of clueless IDIOTS who think you should sue people for FREE MARKET practices.

Face it congress...its because of YOU that we are where we are at.

[Smokin' Joe]

Does anyone have a roll call list on this?

The 'Yeas' should have their names carved in stone for this monumental stupidity!

[Crawdad]

Shades of Andy Kauffman.

“I will SUE you!!”

[DoughtyOne]

What a great plan. I guess we shouldn’t mention that there is an adequate oil supply. The prices are not set by Opec, but by oil speculation. Opec will simply be both offended and induced to laugh their asses off at this pathetic example of Congressional ignorance.

This is grade school stuff Nancy. This makes us look more impotent than just about anything I could imagine.

JPL, you’re right on target. This is embarassing.

[csmusaret]

Tell it to Nancy Pelosi at 202-225-4965, or Harry Ried at 202-224-3542.

[rockthecasbah]

Yeah, trial lawyers will solve all of our problems. Typical democrat thinking - they think they are going to bring OPEC to its knees with a lawsuit. Congress is an embarrassment.

[csmusaret]

Tell it to Nancy Pelosi at 202-225-4965, or Harry Reid at 202-224-3542.

[MrB]

And this gets one more drop of oil into the supply... how?

[b4its2late]

I really didn’t think congress could work that fast.

[litehaus]

"Go ahead you morons, piss ‘em off and when they embargo sales to the U.S. you can explain why gas costs $10 a gallon, if you can find any.The stupidity of these people is breathtaking."

Damn shame most folks bitching so much don't know ANYTHING bout the 70s......Misery index for example.....

[The South Texan]

Better hope OPEC doesn’t say “see ya”. Of course they’ll still blame Bush and the GOP and Bush and the GOP will turn around and take it.

[jjw]

This is fantastic! Can the justice department sue congress for limiting US oil supplies?

[Sub-Driver]

What’s galling is the vote - 324-84. It’s symbolism I guess - they’re worried if they voted against it would be used against them

[tobyhill]

This is a lame attempt to scare down the prices but if they really wanted to do that then they should actually target someone within their jurisdiction. They could pass a law forcing speculators on the exchange to justify their assessments and the Global Warmers to justify their animated computer models of global warming.

[rfp1234]

Next: Congress plans to sue Osama Bin Laden for violating Pakistani goats’ civil rights.

[ltc8k6]

Nicely put...

I couldn’t have said it any better.

It’s depressing.

And then we’ll probably get Obama...

[Sub-Driver]

Go here: http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll332.xml

[chainsaw]

Sent to you by the elected adolescents in Washington, DC.

[Chicos_Bail_Bonds]

Wow, that will show OPEC. This governement is so embarassing it's a joke. T.Boone Pickens had a quote in this month's Fast Company the described them well. About Congress he said "The leadership is absoluely, totally pissy in Congress -- a real conglomeration of fruitcakes. I mean pitiful people."

[metesky]

Talk about style over substance...

[headstamp 2]

These people are certifiable.

The libs always need a boogeyman for their sham agenda. Now it's OPEC and the oil companies. Don't let anybody drill anywhere and then sue when prices rise.

They cry when we send dollars abroad to get “foreign oil”, they don't want us to drill here and then demand foreigners “pump more oil” for us to buy. Which the hell one is it?

F****** Idiots!

[Anonymous Rex]

Very true, it’s the speculators they need to be going after and throwing in jail.

[NaughtiusMaximus]

Don’t sue . . . DRILL. Use the money to subsidize drilling and pipelines. Drill ANWAR, drill the Gulf, drill Bakken, drill the coasts, drill everywhere!

[LowTaxesEqualProsperity]

Idiots.

[Lazamataz]

Come on. This is a joke. Fess up.

[tobyhill]

I don’t know if it is the speculators but I do know that going after OPEC is a joke.

[TheBattman]

Just a reflection of our lawsuit-happy society today....

[AU72]

That vote tells me a lot of brain dead republicans went for the cheap gesture.

[Uncle Miltie]

In other news:

House Sues G-d Over Blue Sky: Says "Give Green A Chance!"

[freeangel]

“I’d like to sue Congress for being stupid”

Me, too. Maybe we can make that a class action suit.