Pelosi: Airline Industry Supports Call to Free Our Oil by Releasing Oil from Strategic Petroleum Reserve

Press Release

Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats met with Air Transport Association (ATA) President Jim May and top industry CEOs today to discuss the efforts by the New Direction Congress to increase energy independence, address rising prices and address excessive speculation. In the meeting, the ATA and industry CEOs endorsed Speaker Pelosi's call on President Bush to release a small amount of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to reduce fuel costs in the short term. Below are opening remarks by the Speaker following the meeting:

"We just had an important meeting attended by leaders of the airline industry in our country and their representatives. Jim May brought some of the leadership of the airline industry to meet with leadership of the House, here with the relevant committee chairmen.

"The subject of our conversation was what we can do in Congress to relieve some of the uncertainty in terms of the price of oil in our country, and the impact that it has on the airline industry.

"The two subjects that we focused on were the release of oil from the SPR [Strategic Petroleum Reserve] and the issue of the role that speculation may play in the price of oil. We must undo excessive speculation.

"I thank all of the participants for their leadership and involvement: the Chair of the Committee of Jurisdictions, Mr. Oberstar, the Chair of the Transportation, Infrastructure is with us, the Chair of the Agriculture Committee that has jurisdiction over speculation, the Chair of Ways and Means, Appropriations, Budget, the Chair of our Select Committee on Energy Independence. I want to thank all of them for participating, but I directly yield to Mr. May to speak for his industry on what he sees coming out of this meeting and where we go from here. Thank you."

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