2 Bills   H.R. 3221 - American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008 (Subject to a Rule) (Sponsored by Rep. Frank / Financial Services Committee)     ***Note: More information on 'H.R. 3221 -  American Hou

The Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee is currently holding a hearing, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell Review." The hearing will include testimony from military veterans on the effects of the policy. Former Naval intelligence officer Captain Joan E. Darrah, USN, (Ret.) gives testimony.

Author: NancyPelosi
Keywords: Democrats Congress Ask Don't Tell Gays Military Captain Joan Darrah
Added: July 23, 2008

The Armed Services Committee is currently holding a hearing, "On the Comptroller General's progress report on Iraq." Witnesses are Gene Dodaro, Acting Comptroller General of the United States, and Joseph Christoff, Director of International Affairs and Trade for the Government Accountability Office. Dodaro explains why the GAO believes a new strategy is necessary now.

Author: NancyPelosi
Keywords: Democrats Congress Skelton GAO Dodaro Iraq New Strategy
Added: July 23, 2008

The Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee is currently holding a hearing, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell Review." The hearing will include testimony from military veterans on the effects of the policy. Wounded Iraq war veteran Staff Sergeant Eric Alva, USMC, (Ret.) gives testimony.

Author: NancyPelosi
Keywords: Democrats Congress Ask Don't Tell Gays Military Staff Sergeant Eric Alva
Added: July 23, 2008

Joins With House Republicans to Demand Vote on Landmark “All of the Above” Energy Bill Before the August Recess July 23, 2008 WASHINGTON – Earlier this afternoon, House Republicans gathered on the West Front Steps of the U

The Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee is currently holding a hearing, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell Review." The hearing will include testimony from military veterans on the effects of the policy. Rep. Patrick Murphy (PA-08), the only Iraq veteran in Congress, questions the witnesses.

Author: NancyPelosi
Keywords: Democrats Congress Ask Don't Tell Gays Military Staff Sergeant Eric Alva
Added: July 23, 2008

The Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee is currently holding a hearing, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell Review." The hearing will include testimony from military veterans on the effects of the policy. Subcommittee Chairwoman Susan Davis gives opening remarks.

Author: NancyPelosi
Keywords: Democrats Congress Ask Don't Tell Gays Military Captain Susan Davis
Added: July 23, 2008

The Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee is currently holding a hearing, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell Review." The hearing will include testimony from military veterans on the effects of the policy. Former Naval intelligence officer Captain Joan E. Darrah, USN, (Ret.) gives testimony.

Author: NancyPelosi
Keywords: Democrats Congress Ask Don't Tell Gays Military Captain Joan Darrah
Added: July 23, 2008

Yesterday Leader Boehner attended a roundtable discussion organized by Americans for Tax Reform and The American Spectator where he spoke and answered questions on the House Republican agenda. Boehner also discussed his experiences from the recent American Energy Tour, where he and ten of his colleagues witnessed first-hand the real solutions that make up House Republicans’ “all of the above” strategy to lower gas prices and increase American energy production.

More from Redstate.com:

Boehner came out swinging at Democrats this afternoon. “We will use every option we have to force votes in the House,” Boehner said at a press lunch sponsored by The American Spectator and Americans for Tax Reform. “Democrats have done everything humanly possible to avoid making their members vote.”

…Technology has helped further reduce the impact on the land. Boehner noted that the footprint needed to produce oil in ANWR today is much smaller than 30 years ago—about 1/6th of the original land mass.

Eight months after the Democratic-led New Direction Congress led the enactment of a landmark new energy policy for our country, House Republicans are now releasing an energy plan that largely rehashes failed ideas on domestic drilling or proposes ideas that they have repeatedly blocked in the past.

Their all-out legislative battle in recent years to protect the record profits of oil companies earning record profits has earned them the moniker “Grand Oil Party.”  They call their plan “All of the Above.”  Americans paying $4 a gallon thanks to an energy policy literally written by the oil industry may see it as “All Too Familiar.”

The GOP says their plan will “open our deep water ocean resources.”  
That means drill off more of America’s beaches.

• According to the Bush Administration’s own Energy Department, if we repealed the offshore drilling ban today, oil and gas production would not begin there until 2017, and impact on prices would be “insignificant.” [EIA, 2007]
• 80 percent of America’s oil and gas natural resources are in areas where oil companies can already drill. [Committee on Natural Resources, 6/18/08]
• There are 33 million acres of the federal OCS lands that are under lease but are not producing.
• Oil companies are spending more of their record profits on buying back stock than they are on new oil and gas exploration — both on and off shore. [AP, 7/21/08]

The Democratic-led Congress leadership has pushed for responsible drilling practices, telling the oil companies to drill on the 68 million acres—the size of Georgia and Illinois combined—that they already hold.  House Republicans have twice blocked this drilling proposal.

The GOP says their plan is to “open the Arctic coastal plain.”  
That means drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

• According to the Bush Administration’s own Energy Department, if we opened the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling today, we wouldn’t get the first drop of oil for 10 years, and it would take nearly 20 years for the field to reach peak production, and at that time, gas prices would drop by less than 2 cents a gallon. [EIA, 5/08]

The Democratic-led Congress has proposed, as part of a larger plan, to expedite drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A), which holds over 10.6 billion barrels of oil – more than the Arctic Refuge.  House Republicans blocked this measure.

The GOP says their plan is to “allow development of our nation’s shale oil resources.”
That means open up huge parts of the American West to costly, water-intensive, land-stripping “tar shale” practices even though it’s use is not commercially viable now.

The Republicans want to open up 2.3 million acres of public lands in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming for tar shale development despite the fact that 3 million acres of prime tar shale lands are already owned by oil companies.

• The technology needed for commercially-viable extraction of oil from tar shales does not yet exist.
• To convert tar shale into oil, enormous electricity and water are needed to power the operation. It takes about three barrels of water to produce one barrel of oil from tar sands. This water would be taken in parts of the country experiencing long-standing water supply issues and historic droughts.  [Wilderness Society, 3/08]
• Furthermore, even the most optimistic estimates say it will take 20 years for tar shales to produce 1 million barrels of oil per day and 30 years to produce 3 million barrels of oil per day. [RAND, 2005]

The Democratic-led Congress has expanded the use of American-grown biofuels transitioning to non-food sources, such as switchgrass and woodchips, rather than continuing America’s dependence on foreign oil. House Republicans have repeatedly voted against investing in renewable energy development.

The GOP says their plan is “to improve energy conservation and efficiency.”  
Republican actions tell a different story.

• Vice President Dick Cheney summed up his party’s view: “Conservation is a sign of personal virtue, not an energy policy.” [USA Today, 5/1/01]
• From 1995 to 2007, the Republican majority and President Bush repeatedly blocked efforts to increase efficiency standards for vehicles, buildings, lighting, air-conditioning, and appliances.  The 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act finally broke the obstruction on appliance and lighting standards.
• One of the first things the Bush Administration did after it took office was to reverse a regulation to strengthen the efficiency of central air conditioners by 30%, and then it dragged its feet in implementing new appliance standards of the 2005 Energy Policy Act.
• The President’s 2009 budget cuts renewable energy and energy efficiency programs at the Department of Energy $467 million below the FY 08 enacted level. President Bush’s 2009 budget request eliminates funding for programs that help low-income families save millions of dollars by making their homes more energy efficient. [2008]
• If the Republican majority had not blocked the transition to a 35-mile per gallon (mpg) standard in the mid 1990’s, then we would now be saving 1.5 million barrels of oil per day and consumers would be saving $90 billion a year on gasoline they didn’t have to buy.

The Democratic-led Congress improved vehicle, lighting, and appliance standards in 2007, over Republican objections, and we passed energy tax credits to help families afford plug-in hybrid cars. Despite President Bush’s opposition, Democrats will continue to fight for funding for low-income Americans to weatherize their homes.  

The GOP says their plan will “promote new and expanding energy technologies.”
Republican actions tell a different story.

• President Bush and Congressional Republicans continue to block legislation that would repeal unnecessary tax breaks for Big Oil and move them to renewable energy. Republicans have voted at least four times against the tax incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency that are key to an energy independent future.
• Funding for energy technology research has been woefully inadequate under President Bush – around a third the level seen during the energy crisis in the late 1970s – underscoring the low priority this Administration has given to investing in new technologies to solve the energy and climate crisis.

The Democratic-led Congress passed legislation to extend and expand tax incentives for renewable energy, retain and create hundreds of thousands of green jobs and spur American innovation and business investment. Democrats will continue to push for a Renewable Electricity Standard that would require 15 percent of all electricity to come from renewable sources by 2020. The majority of House Republicans oppose all of these measures.

The New Direction Congress taking action to bring down high energy prices squeezing American families and businesses. Tomorrow, Democrats will vote on a proposal to draw down a small portion of oil the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to immediately expand available supplies, send a strong message to oil speculators, and help reduce the record prices that are helping push the economy toward recession.

We hope House Republicans will drop their opposition and stand with Democrats to pass this crucial bill.

RoyBlunt: Democrats Push Flawed Housing Legislation, Block Republican Attempts to Protect Taxpayers. http://tinyurl.com/54tzg2

The Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee is currently holding a hearing, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Review.” The hearing will include testimony from military veterans on the effects of the policy.

Watch the hearing live >>

GOPLeader: Dems "Scrambling to Run Down the Clock" on GOP Solutions to Help Lower Gas Prices: With the five-week A.. http://tinyurl.com/5m5w46

Also posted at The Hill’s Congress Blog.

Last weekend I had the opportunity to witness first-hand some real solutions to help lower gasoline prices and energy costs for families and small businesses.  Ten of my house Republican colleagues and I travelled through the Rocky Mountain West on the way to Alaska on an American Energy Tour.  What we saw further opened our eyes to the challenges, and opportunities, which make up America’s energy future.

Our trip began on Friday with a visit to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado.  NREL is an Energy Department facility operated by private-sector scientists dedicated to perfecting cutting-edge solar, wind, fuel cell, biomass, and other emerging energy technologies.  The work being done at NREL is a critical component of our strategy to reduce our nation’s dangerous and costly dependence on foreign oil through a comprehensive “all of the above” strategy.  For a look at another critical component of that strategy, we departed for Alaska.

While in Alaska we learned two valuable lessons that will further embolden our fight in Congress for more production of American energy.  First, we learned that the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline, which carries petroleum from Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope to the Gulf of Alaska, is in decline. Officials in Alaska warned us that in 10 years, if the pipeline continues its current rate of decline in transporting oil supplies, the pipeline will be processing less than 300,000 barrels of oil per day, compared to nearly 720,000 today.  Experts agree that at that level — without adding new supplies of oil — the pipeline could not continue to operate, shutting down all production in the North Slope and turning a multi-billion dollar asset into scrap metal. It’s a “pipeline deadline,” if you will.
Secondly, we learned that wildlife can successfully coexist, and flourish, within close proximity to environmentally-safe energy production thanks to new technologies in use by energy companies. While in the North Slope area we saw plenty of wildlife.  Caribou, musk ox, and other native species where everywhere – including our runway as we attempted to depart from the small airport near Prudhoe Bay.  Those on the Left who cite these companies’ “insensitivity” as a reason for stonewalling more production in the region either suffer from a complete misunderstanding of the issue or are purposely twisting the facts. And either way, it’s the American people — not to mention North Slope residents who depend upon energy production for jobs — who suffer the consequences.

The American public and an increasing number of rank-and-file Democrats are demanding that Speaker Pelosi schedule a real vote to increase American energy production.  Her response to CNN recently: “I have no plans to do so.”  House Republicans will continue this fight every single day, but let’s be clear: Only Speaker Pelosi and her liberal Democratic colleagues are standing in the way of lower gasoline prices for the American people.
MORE:

American Energy Tour Photos

The Armed Services Committee is currently holding a hearing, “On the Comptroller General’s progress report on Iraq.” Witnesses are Gene Dodaro, Acting Comptroller General of the United States, and Joseph Christoff, Director of International Affairs and Trade for the Government Accountability Office. The GAO released a report on the lack of strategy going forward in June.

GAO Report Faults Post-’Surge’ Planning
Karen DeYoung, Washington Post - June 24, 2008

Watch the hearing live >>

Comtroller General Dodaro explains why the GAO believes a new strategy is necessary now during his opening testimony and under questioning by Chairman Ike Skelton:

Dodaro: “Now looking ahead, we think an updated strategy is called for for several reasons. One, many things have changed in Iraq since January, 2007. We also think there are some limitations in the current plans of the agencies that need to be attended to. Also, the US is negotiating a new agreement in light of the UN mandate expiring at the end of this year. And I would point out that that expiration of that mandate will occur before the change in the Administration going forward, so I think that it is important that we have an updated strategy that reflects whatever agreement is reached…”

Republicans Falsely Claim Their Offshore Drilling Plan Is The Best Way to Lower Gas Prices, So Why Are They Saying No to a Vote on Their Drilling Proposal?

Reid Remarks On 60th Anniversary Of Integration Of U.S. Armed Forces

ANTICIPATED FLOOR SCHEDULE
On Wednesday, the House will meet at 10:00 a.m. for legislative business. Last votes expected: 7:00 p.m.

With the five-week August recess just nine days away, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and her colleagues in the Democratic leadership are doing everything they can to keep Members from having to vote on more American energy production to help lower gas prices. Their months-long campaign of inaction in the face of soaring gas prices not only pits Democratic leaders against the American people – who support more production as part of any comprehensive energy plan – but it also pits them against an increasing number of rank-and-file Members of their own party. This morning’s Politico details the Democrats’ strategy of “running down the clock” until August recess rather than allow a simple up-or-down vote on more American energy production – a vote that would pass by a strong, bipartisan margin:

American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008, The National Highway Bridge Reconstruction and Inspection Act and Suspensions