McConnell: Dems' Call For Tax Hikes On Energy Producers Was "Absurd"

Congress is on recess for Spring break until April 16th. When the Senate returns, they will begin with the Democrats scheduled cloture vote on the motion to proceed to S. 2230, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s (D-RI) “Buffett Rule” tax hike bill.

Last week, Democrats and President Obama spent the week pushing a bill to raise taxes on American energy producers, even though not a single democrat could explain how this was supposed to help Americans feeling the pinch of high gas prices. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) held a vote on the measure on Thursday and it was rejected on a bipartisan basis.

The Hill noted, “The outcome of the vote was not a surprise, given that a similar plan failed 52-48 last May. . . . Obama has sought to deflect blame for high gas prices, in part by casting Republicans as allies of big oil companies. He used a Rose Garden speech to urge lawmakers to back [Democrats’ tax bill]”

Despite the president’s attempts to shift blame, the Senate has now rejected Democrats’ calls to raise taxes on American energy producers twice. When Democrats were pushing this same tax increase last year, the Congressional Research Service weighed in and explained that such tax changes “would make oil and natural gas more expensive for U.S. consumers and likely increase foreign dependence.” And of course, Democrats have continually admitted that raising taxes on American energy companies won’t do anything to decrease the price of gas at the pump.

On Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union, Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, discussed the Democrats nonsensical actions: “The issue is the price of gas at the pump. If you raise taxes on the producers of gasoline, you drive the prices even higher. Does anyone think we need higher gas prices when they’re already at $4 a gallon? This is not the way to lower the price of gas at the pump. . . . [The president is] trying to selectively raise taxes on some corporations, and to do that would drive the price of gas at the pump even higher. This is a terrible idea.” He added, “The Congressional Research Service, which is not a polling operation, but analyzes objectively legislation, says if you raise taxes on oil production, the price of the gas at the pump goes even higher. This is an absurd suggestion when you’ve got $4 gasoline. What the President ought to be doing is approving the Keystone Pipeline."

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