Today in Washington D. C. - April 29, 2008

On The Floor: The Senate reconvened at 10 AM today with a period of morning business and will recess for weekly policy lunches between 12:30 and 2:15 PM. The Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to the FAA reauthorization bill (H.R. 2881). A vote on the bill itself could occur later today when language is finalized. Yesterday, the Senate voted 88-0 to invoke cloture to proceed to the FAA bill.

Senate & News Source Comments on Excessive Rising Gas Prices: In opening remarks on the floor today, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell warned the Senate not forget that Americans are most concerned about the dramatic increase in the price of gasoline over the last year. McConnell added a commonsense warning: “[W]e should be able to stipulate at the outset that raising taxes as a way of addressing that problem isn't even worth our consideration.” Fox News reports that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has asked Democrats to come up with ideas for a bill to address gasoline prices. However, “a senior Democratic leadership aide” said of the bill, “It’s become a kitchen sink. They’ve been trying to put this thing together for awhile, and there’s still no agreement.”

It certainly doesn’t appear Democrats will have any ideas to put forward this week, two years after they promised their “commonsense plan” on gas prices. Senate Democrats have repeatedly shown that they have little to offer other than bombast. Majority Whip Dick Durbin took to the floor today to express his usual outrage over the profits of oil companies instead of offering actual solutions. Durbin took his rhetoric to an absurd level, stopping short of accusing oil companies of siphoning money from consumers. There are a number of policies Congress could adopt to increase domestic energy production and begin to help consumers, but Democrats will need to show a preference for commonsense solutions over demagoguery and tax hikes.

A short time later, President Bush spoke to reporters about specific things Congress could do to boost energy production in the United States. The president noted that Democrats have been vocal in demanding oil production increases from other countries but have repeatedly blocked exploration in the U.S. He also emphasized that no new refineries have been built in the country for over 30 years and reminded reporters that Democrats have also blocked nuclear power proposals for years.

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