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Posted on 06/16/2005 2:43:59 PM PDT by newgeezer
WASHINGTON — President Bush argued today that consumers paying high gas prices won't stand for inaction on energy legislation, even though some lawmakers say nothing they can do would immediately ease the problem.
"My advice is, they ought to keep this in mind: Summer's here, temperatures are rising and tempers will really rise if Congress doesn't pass an energy bill," said Bush, who pressured lawmakers to get an energy bill to his desk before the August recess.
"The American people know that an energy bill will not change the price of gas immediately," he said, "but they're not going to tolerate inaction in Washington as they watch the underlying problems grow worse."
The president outlined his four-point plan to reduce high energy prices: Promote conservation; produce and refine more crude oil in the United States; develop alternative sources of energy, such as renewable ethanol or biodiesel; and help other nations, such as China, to become more energy-efficient to reduce global demand for energy. He said it was time for the United States to expand its nuclear power capacity.
"Today, millions of American families and small businesses are hurting because of high gas prices," Bush said at a forum on energy efficiency. "If you're trying to meet a payroll or trying to meet a family budget, even small increases at the pump have a big impact on your bottom line."
He said the nation must take action now to address the root causes of rising gasoline prices.
"The primary cause of rising gasoline prices is that the global demand for oil is growing faster than global supply," Bush said. "Here in America we've become too dependent — too dependent — on the increasingly limited supply of foreign oil for our energy needs."
Last year net oil imports averaged nearly 11.9 million barrels a day or 58 percent of the crude oil consumed, according to the Energy Information Administration, which projects imports to total 68 percent of consumption by 2025 under current conditions.
The Senate is immersed in what likely will be at least two weeks of debate over energy policy, with much of the rhetoric focused on the need to reduce the country's dependence on imported oil.
Lawmakers have acknowledged that the bill would do little to ensure reductions in oil imports, which accounted for nearly 58 percent of the crude oil used during the first three months of this year.
LOL. Maybe if those fed-up buyers would quit chugging it like a Massachusetts Senator, ...
The president outlined his four-point plan to reduce high energy prices: Promote conservation;
Good, very good.
produce and refine more crude oil in the United States;
Good, good...
develop alternative sources of energy, such as renewable ethanol or biodiesel;
Isn't it about time the ethanol industry unlatched itself from the public teat?
and help other nations, such as China, to become more energy-efficient to reduce global demand for energy.
ARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH! Help China?! What is it with this guy sometimes?
Can't wait until Jan, 2009.
Congress can always drop the gas tax. That'd help. Bwhahahahahahahahaha...(laughing at my own humor)
Let hippy libs conserve, I'm saving up for a Hummer. Now that we've got Iraq we shouldn't have to worry about oil for a good, long time.
Well, it makes sense... China is hording lots of the supply. If we could somehow make them more effecient. Why not? It would make Oil cheaper, thus gas cheaper
>>and help other nations, such as China, to become more energy-efficient to reduce global demand for energy.>>
China? You mean that nation that has been building dozens of new warships to challenge us in the Pacific? Yes, I'm sure they would appreciate our help.
Isn't it time to rejuvenate the almost infinite resource for electricity...nuclear power? I don't know how much oil is used when nuclear power would be a nice clean substitute. Certainly some is.
It could certainly drop the part of the gas tax that doesn't pay for constructing and maintaining Federal highways.
But, yes, the thought of it doing so is laughable. I mean, what then could it use to blackmail the states into enforcing seatbelt laws, lowering the legal blood alcohol content, etc.?
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Well, I like two of the suggestions.
Speaking of the infinite source of electricity, if we had a 21st-century electric grid, we could put enough windmills up and down the Great Plains to put an end to those insane gas-fired plants.
Er, the actual URL for Iowa gas prices is:
http://www.iowaSTATEgasprices.com
During the 20s, alot of moonshiners actually ran their cars on their production.
If it worked then, it could certainly work now. All you have to do is find the right combination of alcohol and some other fuel worthy liquids, and you could create a fuel that would be in endless supply and compatible with older engines as well.
If it's private enterprise and voluntarily purchased by consumers, I love it. If it's a government-funded and mandated in any way, I hate it.
I saw an article recently on some soybean byproduct that can be a petroleum substitute, but it costs a lot more than gasoline right now.
Yep they're (China) buying it all up in Canada...they are crawling all over the tar sands in Alberta and elswhere, they are even talking joint pipeline project from Alberta to the BC coast then tanker it across the Pacific...
We used to be able to say that about ethanol, too. Sooner or later, ethanol will be a lot cheaper than gasoline.
I'm just saying if it's an easy fix to make them more, efficient why not? it would help US to help them.
Straight alchohol has a corrosive effect on the rubber and plastic used in engines and fuel systems. I'm not knocking your suggestion... I'm all for alternative sources of fuel.
I was mad as hell when the Democrats in Congress voted down Bush's first energy bill, with their weak excuses and blubbering half-truths about "Bush's oil friends". We have the technology in this coutnry to change our entire energy infrastructure and I think somebody who can market it stands to make a fortune by doing so. I'm not a proponent of alternative fuels because of some mystical reverence for the environment that you usually hear from a bunch of stoned hippies on the Left Coast... I think we should do it to stick it to those tyrants and playground bullies in the Middle East. Let the market drive the changes and the ME will fall into obscurity.
And when it is, people will buy it and use it.
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