Hey folks,
Well, here is my take on the Sen. Chambliss and Rush Limbaugh interview. Now like I said, I did not hear it first hand, but I have read the transcript three times and this is what I got from it. Can you say CYA? Seriously. He ducked Rush's questions, completely denied the FACTS on what this "Energy Plan" REALLY does. He continued to try to pass this off as a victory for the American people and the Republicans in Congress saying that they got Democrats to cave and come over to the RIGHT side of this issue.Lets look at some of the points here.
I, and apparently Rush, see this as a victory for the LWL and Envionuts. We see it as a victory for the Anti-drilling crowd all together. Rush even started out with this.
RUSH: I'm fine. There's a hubbub here because of a Wall Street Journal column today about you being a member of the Gang of Ten, you and four Republican colleagues that basically signed on with the Democrats' idea of an energy plan that will essentially shut off all drilling, all kinds of tax credits for renewables and alternatives, it will let all kinds of brand-new regulations, basically thwart the effort to drill for more oil.
Which is true. Sen. Chambliss flat out denies this.
CHAMBLISS: Well, Rush, nothing could be further from the truth.
He goes on this little rant about how people are tired of paying $4.00 a gallon gas prices.
CHAMBLISS: So what we did was we got together in a bipartisan way, Rush, and you well know that no major issue gets resolved in Washington unless you got 60 votes, and we had to get 60 votes, so we put a bipartisan group together, a group of Democrats who were willing to make the commitment to additional offshore drilling, provided that we would make some compromises otherwise, and --
Rush cuts him off and said he had to go to break then after the break, he said this.
RUSH: Now, let me set a couple things up here, it won't take long at all and it will give you the general idea why people are bamboozled today and a little angry. In the first place, people are fed up with the four dollar gas price, it's a tipping point and they want to drill for new oil, become independent, they want to drill here and drill now, and they don't like being dependent and they want to have more supply from domestic sources. The ban on offshore energy production is set to expire at the end of September if Congress does nothing, giving the American people exactly what they want. Now, here comes your bill, The New Era Bill, and it says that new production will only be permitted in four states, and the state legislatures are in charge of it, not the federal government anymore, and only 50 miles or further offshore in those four states, which eliminates the richest fields and things like ANWR. It has 84 billion dollars in tax credits, subsidies and federal handouts for alternative fuels and renewables. It basically, according to the Wall Street Journal today, will eliminate any effort for new drilling.
Again? Sen. Chambliss flat out denies this.
CHAMBLISS: Well, it's actually designed to do just the opposite, Rush. First of all, our bill has nothing to do with whether or not the moratorium remains on after September 30.
Not true. This new plan actually provide the means to enact NEW laws against Drilling that will replace the Ban. Then he starts with the "We won" thing.
CHAMBLISS: What it does have to do with is we've got a commitment for the first time that I can remember in my now 14 years in the Senate, a significant number, although five may not sound significant, but it really is. We've got five Democrats who are willing to say, "Look, you know, we think we need to be reasonable and we need join with you guys, so let's work on a compromise bill that will allow additional offshore drilling," something we haven't done in the last 28 years. And sure, we had to make some compromises on the other side, but what we've got is this. We've got common ground. Is ANWR common ground? Absolutely not. I voted on that, Rush, as you well know, I got elected to the House in '94 with --
So he admits that ANWR is still off limits. Then Rush calls him on it and he denies THAT.
RUSH: -- I know, but this bill puts ANWR off limits.
CHAMBLISS: No, no, no. It doesn't address ANWR one way or the other, but we knew Rush that we would never be able to get 60 votes and we will not get 60 votes on ANWR in any piece of legislation right now until we get enough like-minded, folks, in there. But this bill that says while we know we can't do that, we can drill offshore. We're going to open up additional areas, plus --
But off shore in the states where there is LITTLE Oil. Not where we KNOW the Oil IS. Rush called him on this also.
RUSH: In four states.
CHAMBLISS: Well, four states will have -- but, look, the Gulf of Mexico is where the oil is. And that's where we're going to start with in this bill. We're going to protect the beaches of Florida. That's why the 50-mile barrier is there.
{Sigh} The beaches of Florida are NOT in any risk whatsoever. What do you think he was about to say here? "Well, four states will have -- " To DO? I guess he thought better of that.
They talk about McCain for a second, then Rush gets back to the REAL issues.
RUSH: But Senator, the Democrats don't want to drill, and the obstacles to drilling that are apparently in this bill are going to make it impossible to succeed. I mean, letting the ACLU and animal rights groups and so forth have a regulatory role or at least a right to protest here, which is just going to make the permit process extended over and over and over. I don't see the Democrats compromising anything here.
He COMPLETELY ignores the Envionut part of this. Then he tries to make friends with Rush by telling him he was right.
CHAMBLISS: Well, they agreed that we move into additional areas of the Gulf of Mexico, they've agreed that we go to places like Virginia where the two senators there want to immediately take advantage of this, and we don't know whether there's oil out there or not off the Atlantic coast. We think there is gas out there, and we will have the opportunity to have immediate access, but let me mention one other key point to what we agreed to, Rush. One argument we've heard is that if you start drilling now, it's going to be ten years before you see any results of it. Well, in the Gulf of Mexico, where we, number one, know there's oil, know there's gas, there's something else out there that is key to immediate effect on the market, and that's the infrastructure. They've got the pipelines already existing in the Gulf of Mexico, and if a driller were successful out there in the short term, we could immediately see some impact in the supply. And as you and I well know, supply and demand is what is causing the price--
RUSH: Absolutely. Absolutely. And I know the ten years thing is a bogus thing. The Democrats are trying to shut down -- I mean they've turned oil into a campaign issue demon. It is amazing. So you say you've got five Democrats -- by the way, we're talking with Georgia senator Saxby Chambliss -- you say you had five Democrats that were willing to compromise with you, moving in our direction. It's the first time in 14 years. Why not make 'em come a little further?
They go back and forth a little then Rush said this.
RUSH: The Wall Street Journal today says that this deal is essentially what Harry Reid wants, that it guarantees no drilling because, even though there's four states that can drill, states have to decide it, you've turned the decision over to the states, the 50-mile limit and the new regulations, the analysts of this bill on our side say this is going to result in no meaningful discoveries.
Which sounds true to me. But of course..
CHAMBLISS: Well, if that's true, then they're telling you something entirely different from what our analysts are telling us. We did our homework on this. We did our research. The folks that we talked to say there is additional oil and gas reserves in the Gulf of Mexico. It's there now; we know where it is. There have even been wells that have been shut down, down there. If they're within 50 miles, we won't be reopening them, but if they're outside of that, potentially they could be. So we know there is oil and gas there. The question is, Rush, whether you want to have access to it or whether you want the issue out there from a political standpoint. And I know and understand that. I understand that we're winning on this issue, but at the end of the day we have the opportunity not only to win on the issue -- because it's pretty clear, Democrats as a whole, don't want to drill; Republicans do -- but people know that the price at the gas pump is not going to come down until we do have the opportunity to drill. As long as we stay where we are today and keep the issue, we don't have the opportunity to drill. But if we do have a compromise on offshore drilling, we can drill within a short period of time.
So basically, he just told you they really do not even know if there is, or even if there is, that we may not be able to get it. Yet, where we KNOW the Oil and Gas is, we STILL would not be able to drill with this new Bill. Yet, the oil companies and YOU will be taxed more, the Envionuts will get PAID more, and NO NEW OIL will be processed.
Then of course there were the niceties, and the call ended. Sorry Sen. Chambliss, but you did not convince me, I do not think you convinced Rush, or anyone else that actually heard this call, or read the transcript, that you and your four little friends did anything BUT sell out to the Democrats.
What really ticks me off about this is that you and the Gang, did this while your own people, the Republicans in the House are continuing to work in the dark, for US. They are continuing to fight the fight and even McCain came around on this. The Democrats WERE defeated, but now? Because of you Senator, Nancy Pelosi can enjoy her Vacation and not worry about coming back. You Senator, have indeed given her and the other Loons cover on this issue. YOU Senator, sold out. Period. Those of us that are truly fed up with this, are not going to be satisfied with a sell out. Trust me on this.
Peter
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