On April Fool's Day, it was the fools who ruled the court--or rather, the House.
The House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming held hearings and grilled oil company execs over the oil companies' 8-cent per gallon profits.
They remained close-lipped over government's take of nearly 50-cents of taxes per gallon. Or, as the Wall Street Journal notes that "higher gasoline prices is exactly what would happen if Congress enacts proposed global warming policies".
San Diego California IRS representation specializing in accounting and auditing needs.
Three of the House's Select April Fools.
"On April Fool's Day, the biggest joke of all is being played on American families by Big Oil."
Edward Markey (D-Mass)
Chairman of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming
Fierce opponent of drilling for oil in ANWAR. Insists it won't make any difference in oil prices.
Rep. Markey opposes the most significant thing he could do help oil prices drop: increase supply. He has also steadfastly refused to sign the National Taxpayers Protection Pledge.
On April Fool's Day, the biggest joke is Edward Markey pretending that he cares about American families--especially after Markey's Democrat-controlled House has just proposed a budget that will increase taxes on the average American family of over $3000.
It's not a joke many families will find funny.
"This whole situation has been nothing more than manipulation around greed."
John Larson, D-Conn
Larson currently serves on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, the House committee charged with writing tax legislation and bills affecting Social Security, Medicare, and other entitlement programs.
Speaking of manipulation around greed, Rep. Larson's Ways and Means Committee was responsible for tax changes in the proposed House budge which equaled an additional $3120 in taxes per family, according to Larson's colleague, Rep. Eric Cantor.
Larson's had no comment on whether the House will hold hearings on this matter of greed. Of course, Larson's campaign is flush with almost $5 million--none from oil companies.
"With your record high profits, have you thought about lowering your prices?"
Greg Walden (R-OR)
Walden was the only one of Oregon's House members to vote against a "fix-up patch" on a bill to protect the middle class from a new tax.
With federal government's record budget of $3.1 TRILLION for 2008, will Rep. Walden agitate for lower tax rates? What about Walden's earmarks of over $46 million? Will he think about lowering his earmarks, in light of the federal government's record profits?
As Ronald Bailey of Reason writes: "Finally, if Congress wants to blame someone for high oil prices, blame the benighted oil producing countries that have underinvested in oil production for at least a decade. But Congressional grandstanders can't haul the likes of Venezuela's Chavez, Russia's Putin, and Iran's Ahmadinejad to their hearing rooms."
The spectacle of the House blaming the oil companies in a free market for high prices would be bizarre, if it didn't happen so often.
On April Fool's Day, three of the biggest jokers are pictured above.
by Mondoreb
images: wikipedia; backbonecampaign
Sources:
* Big Taxing Big Earmarking Big Congress Grills Big Oil
* Greg Walden's Wampum
* Congress asks Big Oil to justify Big profits
* Federal budgets
* Ed Markey
* US House again votes to drill in Arctic refuge
* Don't Blame Big Oil for High Prices
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