GOP Leadership, Sen. McCain, President Bush Say No New Taxes
It’s becoming obvious that Democrats are getting hit hard on the energy issue. It’s becoming equally obvious that Republicans are stepping up the pressure on Ms. Pelosi. This WSJ article highlights how Republicans are attacking the issue.
In her attempt to outmaneuver Republicans, Ms. Pelosi may be using some of the same tools that Mr. Reid used in the recent Senate energy bill debate. Before the August recess, the majority leader offered the Republicans a vote on drilling, but conditioned it on Republican support for renewable energy tax credits, and the chamber failed to pass any energy legislation. Neither side appears to want to actually reach a compromise, but are simply using energy as an election-year bat with which to beat their opponents.
“Raising taxes will ultimately hurt consumers by forcing them to pay even higher gas prices, and Republicans will oppose them,” Kevin Smith, spokesman for House Minority Leader Rep. John Boehner (R-OH) said in an email.
Mr. Smith said Ms. Pelosi’s plan was “largely more of the same failed proposals they’ve been trotting out for months,” and is “designed to give political cover to vulnerable Democrats who are losing ground,” he said.
I said here that tax increases of any sort should be immediately rejected. Much to my delight, they’ve been rejected faster than I’d expected. Here’s what President Bush said:
“The Democratic leadership should bring up a clean bill, give the members a chance to vote up or down on whether or not we should proceed with offshore drilling, and not insert any legislative poison pills,” Mr. Bush said earlier this week after Pelosi indicated she would allow a vote on drilling. “Those would be provisions that they know will never be enacted and are added only for the purpose of killing the effort to open up the…Outer Continental Shelf to drilling,” Mr. Bush said.
Democrats will try loading their bill with a ton of poison pills. That means President Bush and Sen. McCain should take them to task on the massive tax increases. The figure Democrats cite on the existing tax breaks for oil companies is $11 billion. That’s before we start talking about Ms. Pelosi’s royalties provision.
I said here that Republicans should demand, as a sign of good faith, that Democrats either pass a CR that lifts the existing moratoria or a stand alone bill that lifts the moratoria. Until that happens, Republicans should play hardball. I suspect that Democrats won’t relent on that, which means that they’ll stay on the wrong side of this issue. The longer majority Democrats hold that position, the more their rank-and-file squirm, the more their rank-and-file sink in the polls.
Let’s remember that this is a zero sum game. If Republicans are pushing a popular idea and Democrats are resisting the will of the American people, it isn’t a stretch to say that Democrats lose while the American people and Republicans win.
Rep. John Peterson, (R-PA), one of the House leaders of this fight, issued a statement through his spokesman. Here’s that statement:
Patrick Creighton, a spokesman for Rep. John Peterson, R-Penn., a key drilling proponent in the House, said the the plan “rehashes washed-up garbage that didn’t have the ability to pass this House, and they’re going to try to couple that with limited offshore production.”
Let’s also take time to notice that Republicans have done something that activists have been waiting for 3-4 years to do. They’ve grown a spine. They’re going on offense. Best of all, they’re doing these things for the right reasons. They’re fighting the good fight because it’s important to knock oil prices down so that families aren’t hit hard.
When Democrats argue with Republicans on this, more than anything else, they’re fighting against the will of the American people. If Democrats want to continue doing that on the most important issue of the day, that’s their right.
Who am I to say that they don’t have the right to commit political suicide?
Technorati Tags: Gas Crisis, Nancy Pelosi, DRILL Act, Tax Increases, Democrats, John Boehner, John McCain, John Peterson, President Bush, Drilling, Moratoria, Republicans, Election 2008
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog
August 17th, 2008 at 1:56 pm
O.K., so when do they come out and promise and follow through on no new spending? Or maybe even (God forbid) REDUCED spending?
All political posturing that, as the Bard said, is “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
August 17th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
Carlos, I think you’d better check Sen. McCain’s record on spending, especially earmarks. He’s as solid on that as Tom Coburn.