Republican Victory: Pelosi Caves on Offshore Drilling Vote

Looks like the Republicans have scored a major victory by refusing to go home for the summer recess and continuing to hold floor debates on the merits and necessity of offshore drilling.

Public pressure has been mounting for some time in favor of expanded exploration as the price of oil has skyrocketed. Democrats have offered no solution to high gasoline prices except angry rhetoric and increasing taxes on the "Big Oil" corporations...both moves are almost certain means of lowering prices...aren't they?

Thanks to those stalwart Republican Congressmen and the efforts of the non-MSM, Madame Pelosi, who has repeatedly refused to allow a floor vote in the House on removing congressional restrictions on oil exploration in the Outer Continental Shelf, has been forced into making a 180˚.
This in The Hill today:

Pelosi indicates openness to offshore drilling vote

By Mike Soraghan
Posted: 08/11/08 09:51 PM [ET]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday night dropped her staunch opposition to a vote on offshore oil drilling in the House.

Republicans, reacting to high gas prices, have demanded a vote on additional oil exploration in the Outer Continental Shelf, where drilling is currently blocked by a moratorium. Until now, Pelosi (D-Calif.) has resisted the idea as a “hoax.” But in an interview on CNN’s Larry King Live, she indicated that she was open to a vote.

“They have this thing that says drill offshore in the protected areas,” Pelosi said. “We can do that. We can have a vote on that.”

She indicated such a vote would have to be part of a larger package that included other policies, like releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which she said could bring down prices in a matter of days.

Oh! I bet that hurt. Yep, Madame Speaker Pelosi has once more proven herself to be the least effective Speaker of the House of Representatives in living memory.

Ummm, Nancy, if the idea is a "hoax," then why would you allow the vote? Are you in the habit of allowing hoax votes? Is that the reason the House of Representatives exists, to allow floor votes on hoaxes?

What a totally dishonest, bantam-weight intellect. The hateful harridan has capitulated because she knows she is facing a revolt by her fellow Democrats. They all know that refusing to allow offshore drilling during a time of record gasoline and oil prices is the ultimate vote loser.

Not only is Pelosi a weak Speaker, but if you ever wanted proof that Democrats are incapable of defending the nation, I call your attention to the persistent calls for releasing oil from our Strategic Petroleum Reserves. What part of the word "Strategic" don't Democrats understand?

The SPR was designed for a specific purpose and that purpose was not a temporary fix for high gasoline prices so that Democrats could garner more votes.

I can only hope that this is a portent of things to come. It is looking more and more possible that the long predicted and expected "landslide" Democrat victory is not going to occur. Obama is looking weaker by the day and his latest ad, an in kind response to McCain's "celebrity ads" is weak and ineffectual.

Obama has resorted to the old "I'm rubber, you're glue..." strategy, calling John McCain the ultimate Washington DC celebrity. It would appear that Liberals cease to mature at the age of about 5 years old.

"Nah, nah, nah, I know you are, but what am I?" is not a very rational, mature, or effective response. I guess McCain's Brittany/Paris ad was far more effective than the MSM pundits were willing to allow. Not very surprising when you consider that the MSM has been in the tank for Democrats for 50 years.

With the Democrat Convention rapidly approaching, all of those "Superdelegates" who committed to Obama have got to be getting a little worried. Watch for a possible surprise in the convention.

With Hillary giving the keynote address and Bill speaking the night before, this convention is going to be more about the Clintons than about Obama.

If there is a floor vote, we may wind up with a very big news story...Hillary Wins Democrat Nomination.

It could happen, if those superdelegates had any backbone, or at least enough to weather the backlash from such a turn of events from African American voters.

Of course they don't have that kind of backbone, so the likelihood of a Hillary upset is very remote, but it is just possible.

Long Live Our American Republic!!!!

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