[an amused spectator]

I'm speechless.

So many lies, so little room to rebut...

[rightwingextremist1776]

These guys are only going to last 2 years. They can't even wait until they get into office to do it.

[rabscuttle385]

"There are things we can do for domestic production but keep in mind we control less than 3 percent of oil in the world," Reid said. "Ninety-seven- plus percent is in Saudi Arabia, Russia, other countries. We can't produce our way out of the problems that we have. It's not improbable, it's impossible.

What a maroon. That's known oil reserves. Plus the Canadians have tar sands in Alberta. Plus, you know, our oil and energy companies are busy spending money looking for more oil...and they would prefer to look for the oil in U.S. territory, but you 'Rats won't let them, so they go looking elsewhere.

[digger48]

Maybe we could start by limiting the energy consumed in his home state.

[jveritas]

"ANWR will not happen. I am opposed to it. That was one of the joys of my life was when we defeated that legislative initiative of Sen. (Ted) Stevens (R-Alaska) to drill in ANWR," he said.

What a hateful POS! This man is full of anger and hate.

[Mogollon]

Sounds like we better get ready for Jimmy Carter style 1974 gas lines times 10 and $5.00/gallon gasoline.

[snarks_when_bored]

I guess Harry Reid has some Las Vegas 'associates' who are 'silent partners' in some alternative energy companies...

[FreedomCalls]

If he's serious about energy independence, he can start by changing this policy and overruling this judge:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1746668/posts

[hosepipe]

[ "We can't do it overnight but I think we have to set goals. How about something as simple as reducing the importation of oil by a million barrels a year," Reid said. ]

ANWR would be a million barrels a DAY....

[KingKenrod]

We believe that there should be a windfall profits tax. See I personally think it's not right that Exxon makes $40 billion a year net profit and we give them subsidies."

Personally I think Harry is disappointed that Exxon makes $40 billion and doesn't get his cut. Those subsidies are for oil exploration and developing alternative energy sources, so eliminating the subsidies would produce less of what Reid wants.

[PghBaldy]

He thinks it horrible that use too much energy? Maybe a good depression will cut back on that. I'm sure that wind powered cars are just years away. What an idiot. They hate capitalism and America. They think we don't deserve to be on top of the world. The other thing- there is no guarantee they'll even have 1 hour of a Senate majority. There are some mighty old Senators slithering through DC.

[Captain Peter Blood]

They knew this a longtime ago and are the very reason we can't drill more in the U.S..
What unreal Hypocrites!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[syriacus]

I hate it when Reid says, "now, think about this."

He sounds bossy and condescending.

It's also a tip-off that he is about to say something that is inherently boring (or untrue).

[Pontiac]

Reid said Congress needs to invest away from fossil fuels and more in solar and wind power, geothermal (generating power from the natural heat deep in the Earth) and biomass (converting plant matter to fuels).

How many drags on the Hookah did it take to come up with this pipe dream Harry?

Solar, Wind and geothermal (along with the unmentioned Hydro) are all site limited. Even if all of the available economically feasible sites were developed it would not amount to 10% of current electric energy production.

As for biomass if we converted all of the current farm production to biomass fuels we would not produce enough fuel to supply current fuel consumption.

Not to mention the thermodynamics of biomass do not add up. It takes more energy to produce products like biodiesel than the biodiesel generates when burned.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

Harry Reid and the Democrats want us to follow the lead of other energy conserving states:

[Timocrat]

How did we come up with the energy policy that we have? Obviously this is the most oil-friendly administration in the history of our country. They both made their fortunes in oil."

The President made his money by an astute investment in a baseball stadium that the good people of Arlington Texas approved in a referendum. How did you make your money Senator.

[AmericanExceptionalist]

When he takes control of the U.S. Senate in January, Harry Reid's agenda will include moving the country toward energy independence -- a U.S. security issue, he says -- which he blames the Republican Congress and president for hindering.

Well, the honorable senator is half right: We do need to move toward energy independence, so that we aren't giving billions in petrodollars to our rabid enemies. But to lay the blame for our current dependency exclusively at the Republicans' doorstep--or even chiefly there--is a convenient distortion of the facts. The Democrats' refusal to drill in the winter wonderland of ANWR is hardly the result of dispassionate reasoning; it is more closely akin to a religious taboo, albeit one of a distinctly secular variety.

Reid...favors raising the bar for fuel economy standards, which the [automotive] industry is against.

Reasonable people can debate this one. But if new standards are applied to US-manufactured cars alone, there will be an even greater flight to imported cars--at least, to the extent that the two can still be distinguished from each other. (After all, Nissans are built in Smyrna, Tennessee--just a hop, skip, and a jump from where I live--and other "foreign" cars are also routinely built in the US.)

If the new standards are applied across the board, it will probably result in marginally higher prices for new cars--not an automatic disqualifier, but something to be considered, nonetheless.

Either way, the result is likely to be lighter cars--which is to say, more fatality-prone cars, whenever they are involved in accidents.

An honest approach would be one that considers the potential benefits and trade-offs of the proposed policy. Anything less is unworthy of a man who seeks to be a leader.

Without giving exact details, Reid said to expect a tax on oil company profits he deems excessive.

This is sheer demagoguery. Very few people harbor warm and fuzzy feelings toward Big Oil; so there is not much of a downside in rhetorically attacking it. And since President Bush and Vice-President Cheney have past ties--in one way or another--to the oil industry, there could be no better opportunity for a cheap shot. It's a "twofor."

In fact, oil-company profits are not typically "excessive," when compared with other industries. To single out this vital industry for confiscatory taxation is not indicative of a great mind--even by the rather limited standards of the US Senate--since that would no doubt result in less domestic exploration.

Then again, that is something about which most Democrats (including Majority Leader-to be) Harry Reid seem rather unconcerned...

[MaDeuce]

Yes Harry ... raise those CAFE standards on cars and trucks. I can't wait to see the news stories of the American auto plants closing down because we no longer can compete with Honda, Toyota, etc...

I can't wait to see the Asia companies eat what is left of the American auto makers lunch.
And I'm gonna laugh when I see and hear a news story about some whiny auto worker being laid off who voted for the dems, with a look of bewilderment on his face as he still doesn't put 2 and 2 together and figure out who put him in his predicament.

[NormsRevenge]

Hey Harry,

I hear Jimmah Carter has a few sweaters he can spare for use by the Whine Wing of the Dem party. You know, the ones hat blocked any attempts at meaningful policy legislation for 6 years.. all in the name of energy independence.

PS.. If you want to champion efforts, quit being such a freakin' hypocrit.

[upchuck]

"ANWR will not happen. I am opposed to it. That was one of the joys of my life was when we defeated that legislative initiative of Sen. (Ted) Stevens (R-Alaska) to drill in ANWR," he said.

High school Dingy. Very, very high school.

Grow up!