[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 4] [House] [Pages 4525-4526] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]THE DEMOCRATS' ``MAGIC PLAN'' TO LOWER GAS PRICES HAS NOT WORKED The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Westmoreland) is recognized for 5 minutes. Mr. WESTMORELAND. Mr. Speaker, this morning the price of a barrel of oil fell to $105 after hitting an all-time high of nearly $112 in the middle of March. Less than 2 years ago, the Democrats promised Americans that they had a magic plan for lowering gas prices, but since they have been in control of Congress, prices have simply gone higher and higher. But at the time, those prices were enough to alarm Americans when Republicans were in the majority. On the floor of the House and on the campaign trail in districts throughout the Nation, the Democrats seized on those anxieties and pointedly blamed the Republican White House and Congress for rising gas prices. Time and time again, they said they had a magic formula for lowering the cost. On April 16, 2006, the then-minority leader Nancy Pelosi said in a press release, ``The Republican rubber stamp Congress has passed two energy bills, costing taxpayers $12 billion for giveaways to big oil companies. But the Republican bills clearly have done nothing to lower gas prices, as the price of a barrel of oil has settled above $70 a barrel, the highest price in our history.'' The release went on to say, ``Democrats have a plan to lower gas prices.'' [[Page 4526]] Then the next week another Pelosi release said, ``Democrats have a commonsense plan to help bring down skyrocketing gas prices . . . '' When in 2006 the House considered the energy bill to increase domestic production, the Democrats took to this floor in outrage. A Democrat congressman from California said on the floor about the Republican energy bill of 2006, ``It is no wonder their initials are G- O-P: gas, oil, and petroleum . . . It is time House Republicans join us in providing some real relief to the American consumer.'' That same day a Democratic Member from Connecticut said, ``When it comes to solving the energy crisis, President Bush and his Republican Congress have no credibility. If they had only spent the last 5 years working to reduce demand,'' like the Democrats have proposed, ``by raising fuel standards, rolling back the billions of dollars in tax breaks and royalty relief to the big oil companies, and if they were about promoting alternative fuels, as the Democrats have proposed, we might today be on the road to energy independence instead of bracing ourselves for $4 gas prices. Let me put this rhetoric into context, Mr. Speaker. When the Democrats took over both Houses of Congress in January of 2007, gas prices that month ranged from $50 to $60 a barrel for oil. But at the end of 2007, the Democrats' magic plan for lowering gas prices apparently hasn't worked out because today oil is closing at over $100 a barrel. But wait, Mr. Speaker. It gets even crazier. A House Appropriations subcommittee this week will be looking at raising gas taxes 25 to 40 cents a gallon. {time} 2000 Seems to me that that makes prices go up 25 to 40 cents a gallon. But what do I know? I've never professed to understand the Democrats' magic formula for lowering gas prices. On gas prices, as on earmarks, spending, and ethics, the Democrats ran as the Great Crusaders. But they've governed as the Great Pretenders. Democrats have proposed nothing that would do anything but raise gas prices at the pump. Just last month, the House Democrats passed another ``no-energy'' energy bill in the form of an $18 billion tax increase on American energy. This marks the fourth time the Democrats have held a vote to raise energy taxes. This sort of agenda will only slow the economy by discouraging domestic energy production and increasing our dependence on foreign nations for our energy. Our Nation needs energy production to keep our competitive edge in the global marketplace. We all want to achieve breakthroughs in alternative energies that will have a growing importance in the future. But we can't pretend that oil isn't by far the most important fuel in our economy. We have to increase domestic production. We need to give American companies incentive to produce, rather than demonizing them for providing a commodity that our livelihoods depend on. Let's put American ingenuity to work in the field. And let's put the Democrat's magic formula back on the shelf. ____________________