Congresswoman McCarthy Calls for Energy Summit to Address Out of Control Gas Prices
Congresswoman McCarthy Calls for Energy Summit to Address Out of Control Gas Prices
"As gas prices approach $4.00 per gallon, it is time for the President and Congressional leadership to step up and undo the bad policies that created this mess.
I call on President Bush to organize a nationwide energy summit to develop solutions to this crisis. The summit should include not only energy policy experts and industry leaders, but consumers. We must take all measures to ensure that the concerns of working people are heard and addressed as we work to solve our energy challenges.
This summit is necessary because the answers currently coming out of Washington are insufficient and have created more problems than solutions. Last year, I voted against the comprehensive energy bill that passed both houses of Congress and was signed into law by President Bush. I opposed this legislation because it put the interests of the oil companies ahead of those of consumers. In fact, the President's own Department of Energy said the bill would result in an increase in gas prices.
The energy bill was packed with perks for the oil industry, such as tax credits and massive giveaways that cost taxpayers more than $20 billion. And since the passage of this legislation, the industry has seen record profits and executive compensation packages that are absolutely obscene. While Americans struggle to fill up their tanks, Exxon just gave its retiring Chief Executive a $400 million retirement package.
The time for Congress and the President to get involved in finding a solution to this serious problem is long overdue. High gas prices not only increase the cost of living for American families, but will affect the prices of nearly every consumer good on the market. Soon, working families will not only be paying more at the pump, but at grocery stores, pharmacies, and shopping malls as well.
Congress must pass a consumer-friendly energy bill this year, before these gas prices start to cost Americans their jobs. We must also increase our investment in alternative sources of energy to relieve our reliance on foreign oil. We must also crack down on the corrupt corporate culture that created this crisis. I'm all for corporations maximizing their profits, but paying CEO's hundreds of millions to retire while many Americans are forced to change their ways of life because of record gas prices is wrong.
Bad decisions in Washington created this mess, now its time to listen to our working families and pass meaningful and consumer-friendly energy legislation once and for all."
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