Congress Holding 40th Hearing This Year On The Cause Of High Oil Prices

With Americans growing angrier by the day about high gasoline prices, nobody can accuse Congress of turning a deaf ear.

On Wednesday lawmakers will hold their 40th hearing so far this year on the cause of high oil prices. Filing bills on Capitol Hill to combat the problem is becoming a cottage industry, with clever names like the Prevent Unfair Manipulation of Prices Act, or PUMP Act, and the No Excuses Energy Act.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[RememberTheAlamo]

Hi All,

So . . . how did the session work out?

Standard conclusion? . . . blame the oil companies and go then to dinner?

or the more advanced? . . . let's tax our way to lower gas prices and then go to dinner?

or the old stand-by? . . . this was Bush's fault, so we don't need to worry about it . . .and then go to dinner?

or my favorite? . . . what is the problem? higher gas prices are healthy for us . . . and then go to dinner?


Curious!

[Cunningham]

Here's to the 41st and higher prices. Heckuva job, Congress!

[jmndodge]

Anyone want to review Greg Pallest's reports of Iraq and Oil. His suggestion that the war was fought to keep the oil in the ground, and coupled with VP Cheney's profession of the "enormous success" of the war effort, and I think we have a part of the solution. Indeed, increasing demand from the developing economies of India and China, and the much needed expansion of third world economies will lead to inflation, but what we are seeing is the result of a major gamble by the bush administration to force up prices, and price the Chinese and Indian economies out of the market. The strategy was a colossal failure, and indeed has destroyed our economy. Russia was brought down by the unsustainablility of their military expenditures, and they are no longer our feared enemy, replaced by "terrorists" living in mountain caves and villages, without government supports, and we are rapidly falling, not to their acts of terrorism, but to our own stupidity.

[jsarets]

Yes, the energy futures markets should be regulated. But markets are ultimately driven by rational expectations, and it's quite rational to expect that growth in demand for oil will continue to out-pace the growth in supply for at least the next 5-10 years, and it's also rational to expect that the global oil supply will never exceed 90-100 Mb/day. There's a fine line between speculation and seeing the writing on the wall.

Like it or not, oil is worth $150/bbl or more. If it didn't have such intrinsic value to humanity, then Congress wouldn't be holding 40 hearing on the price increase. Liquid petroleum is the most transformative substance in the history of human civilization. Without it, our economies would be dramatically less productive and our lives would be markedly less comfortable. So how much, exactly, is oil worth?

[karrezza]

"Invest $150 Billion over 10 Years in Clean Energy"

This is NOTHING!!!!

Global annual military spending tops $1.2 trillion!!!
What is there to "defend" if its all under water, droughted or on fire??

$18 billion for OIL subsidies?? More than on Green Energy investment??
$5.8 billion in FY 2008 for FEMA? They are gonna save our environmental disasters annually with that budget??
NASA has a FY 2008 budget of $17.3 billion!! Thats more than the $15 Billion for clean energy!
We all going to move to the Moon when our planet is 150 degrees?

$144 billion a year on Iraq we seem to be able to invest to protect us from a few thousand terrorists?? Why dont we spend $144 billion a year on clean energy as it seems we have the money, at least to borrow.. and it will create jobs!!!!!

If we invested in any environmental, job stimulating, educational or healthcare program, the same dollars we seem to magically obtain for war, all our problems would be solved!!!

[FunGuy13]

The culprits are 1) the Americans who buy gas guzzling autos, 2) the American auto makers who build them, 3) Congress for not setting a rational long-term oil/energy policy (one that involves other energy sources such as nuclear, solar, wind, thermal energy, etc.), 4) POTUS Bush/Cheney for subsidizing their friends big oil...

[cf864]

google grease cars my friends.....

[cadawa]

They don't need any more hearings, especially ones in which they permit CEO's to lie and make excuses. This congress is all about looking like they are doing something when what they are really doing is supporting the status quo.
All congress needs to do is insert the words "energy producers" into the commodities modernization act passed earlier this decade.
They could also compel the DOJ to exercise the same zeal they unleashed on Microsoft, a company that grew the economy instead of destroying it, on the oil companies.
They could replace members of the FEC who have failed to do their jobs (all of them).

[NeverRepublican]

Obama says he wants an Appollo type mission to help renewable energy...

He plans to spend $150 Billion over the next ten years to do this...

That's $15 Billion a year for renewable energy...

NASA operating budget for 2009 is estimated at $17.9 Billion...

Obama will spend less on renewable energy per year than NASA spends per year...

THIS IS NOT ENOUGH OF AN INVESTMENT BY OBAMA!!!!!

MORE $$ NEEDS TO BE INVESTED IN RENEWABLE ENERGY!!!!!

[JoeBlough]

Let's stop the bogus "War on Terror" and free up 100s of billions for this reseach. Everything is doable, when you don't have the treasury tied up with Iraq.

[cf864]

4% of GDP, the cost of the Iraq War, is not quite tying up the treasury. Gas prices would be high and research funds scant right now with or without Iraq.

[HopeandChange]

How did Bush work it so that gas prices didn't rise until the dems took control of Congress? Is he this smart or are dems this stupid?

[LiberalBuzz]

It has to do with the deregulation pushed through by McBush's current economic adviser, Phil Gramm who managed through lobbyists and his connections in the Congress to get rid of all government oversight dealing with how futures are regulated.

And yes democrats are cowards when it comes to repealing this law but republicans are evil for having allowed it to begin with and that include DumbleBush.

IF the speculators, who are after only pushing a self fulfilling prophecy through their constant manipulation of the oil futures had to come up with the same amount of a deposit that buying stock requires you would see the price of oil drop like a rock.

Right now oil futures buyers only have to put up about 5 percent of what they are buying the future of whereas if you buy stock as speculation you have to put up fifty percent.

That was done to prevent what happened in 1929.

It needs to be done again but everyone is terrified of the oil and energy lobby. So Bush who is an idiot anyway just went along with what ever his energy adviser told him to sign.

Know who that energy adviser is?

Yep

Darth Cheney.

[UncleHomer]

The same way he did just prior to his first election when the price of oil took a significant jump but there was no correlating increase in the price of gasoline. If there had the democrats (Clinton and Congress) could have slapped some controls on them and Gore would have won the election by too big a margin to steal

One thing I think is a hidden cost of the record oil prices right now is the major oil companies know the democrats are coming and they want to make hay while their CEO and Chairman of the Board are still in the White House.

[mgsorens]

Who is causing the real problems?

ANWR Exploration
House Republicans: 91% Supported
House Democrats: 86% Opposed

Coal-to-Liquid
House Republicans: 97% Supported
House Democrats: 78% Opposed

Oil Shale Exploration
House Republicans: 90% Supported
House Democrats: 86% Opposed

Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Exploration
House Republicans: 81% Supported
House Democrats: 83% Opposed

Refinery Increased Capacity
House Republicans: 97% Supported
House Democrats: 96% Opposed

[RememberTheAlamo]

Seems clear to me!

[kasinca]

You fail to mention that the oil companies are not using the capacity they already have and we haven't built a new refinery since the '80's. It is bigger than your GOP brain. Try to google Enron Loophole.

[AdLib]

You left out percentages for:

Iraq War

Enron Loophole

Energy Deregulation

Declining Dollar

Tax Incentives for Buying Hummers

Bush_begging Saudis for more oil

Cheney's_energy task force

and many many more REAL causes for what's happening...but then you have to for your BS to make any sense to you.

[AdLib]

You left out percentages for:

Iraq War

Enron Loophole

Energy Deregulation

Declining Dollar

Tax Incentives for Buying_Hummers

Bushie begging Saudis for more oil

Cheneys_energy task force

and many many more REAL causes for what's happening...but then you have to for your story to make any sense to you.

[darthdarcy]

You have no grasp on the real situation...!

$70 dollars of the cost of a Barrel of Oil approximately is due to Market Manipulation and The speculators using the Enron loophole. it's all artificial the biggest swindle of all time...!

[NHIndependent]

Congress asks the oil company execs if they know a way to reduce the cost of oil, and the execs all stare blankly (like the oil companies are going to advise anything to reduce their record profits).

The Saudis claim the price is due to speculators and not a Saudi problem (ignoring that the Saudis are the people charging the $135 a barrel for oil, if the Saudis really wanted the price of oil to be less, they could simply charge less! )...

Oil companies and their conservative quislings claim they need more cheap public land leases to produce 'domestic oil ' (exactly how much less do Americans pay for domestic oil vs foreign oil ?? not a penny less, we pay as much for oil from our public lands as we do from Saudi Arabia).

I suggest :

(1) give oil companies more land leases only in exchange for their dormant land leases, AND require that this domestic oil be sold to Americans at a discount ... if the current leases are not worth drilling, they should not mind giving them up.

(2) remove oil from the futures markets, it only be bid up at the actual time of purchase (not repeatedly bid up endlessly into the future)... so, the only people to bid on the oil would be those that actually want to purchase it and take delivery of it.

[MourningDude]

If you're suggesting that oil companies should be able to trade in old leases for new ones for free, that would be a great way to stimulate oil exploration here in the US. Of course, the Dems in Congress would never allow that, and would demagogue it as a "giveaway to Big Oil". But it's a good idea nonetheless.

[thegreatgiginthesky]

I'd suggest you start by looking at what the oil companies have done with the leases they currently hold. The answer is.....wait for it.......NOTHING. No exploration and no drilling. Now why would anyone spend millions of dollars to lease stuff that they never use? Furthermore, isn't it rather odd that you would take a lease and then claim that we need to drill in ANWR instead of concentrating on what you have? Sorry but if you think any oil company is going to take ANWR and start drilling right away you are insane. Oil companies don't have a single reason to keep the general public happy. They care about profits and lots of it. Plus, in the American public they have a hostage that can never stop using oil because there is no alternative.

[RememberTheAlamo]

Hi NHIndepedent,

As an oilman . . . believe your idea has merit . . . and we would be willing to pay royalties to the states, set aside funds for drilling accidents . . . and provide price discounts . . . . to the people in the states which allow us to drill offshore.


Just let us put a bit down!

[NHIndependent]

Well, ok then, lets have your people do lunch with my people, maybe they can hammer out some agreement to get some cheap domestic oil on the US market... and then we just have to fax it to G.W. and Pelosi to rubberstamp it into law !

[realityczech4u]

So you're saying that the Saudis should sell us oil at below market prices. How do they justify this to their people. The Arabs rely solely on the pools of oil that lie beneath them. They design and invent nothing. They produce virtually nothing..Without the oil, they'd starve to death.
Tell me, NH, if you went to the car dealer to trade in your car. The dealer tells you that he'll give you X dollars for it. You ask how he came up with that number. He responds that he looked in the book and that is the market value for your car. So you would tell him "Well, I don't believe that cars should cost so much. They've gotten too expensive. So I'll let you have it for Y dollars". I don't think so.

[NHIndependent]

It is the Saudis themselves that say the high price of oil is a problem,
and they want the price to go down.

Since they are the ones selling it for $135 a barrel, they are the ones that have the ability to respond by lowering the price of oil they are selling to the world.

I was just pointing out the Saudis are full of baloney with their supposed concerns about the price of oil.

[TxAggie]

NHIndependent-could you direct me to that "cheap" public land you are talking about? It certainly does not exist in the Gulf of Mexico. As an "oilman" you should know that leases are acquired by competitive bid and Uncle Sam determines the bid adequacy level (the value given the leases by the govt)). If Uncle determines the bids are adequate the leases are issued. Annual delay rentals are paid each and every year for the priviliage of owning the lease. If a lease is drilled and commercial hydrocarbons are encountered Uncle Sam regulate and overseas every step of the process. Leases are closley monitored to insure that production in paying kind is maintained. Oil and Gas Exploration and production in the OCS is closes regulated and monitored and billions of dollars are paid to our Treasury each and every year. We do not have "dormant" leases.

[MourningDude]

Wow, another Congressional hearing! That's EXACTLY what we need! The last 39 failed to produce any results, but by golly this one's gotta work.

Perhaps a strongly worded letter to Hugo Chavez will solve everything.

Good ol' Dems. We're so lucky to have their pointless bloviations at a time like this...

[thegreatgiginthesky]

Would you rather suffer in silence?

[MourningDude]

There's little that Congress can do to strengthen the dollar? How about balancing the budget????

That would do a WHOLE LOT to strengthen the dollar, and putting forward a balanced budget is 100% within the capabilities of Congress.

Where's Captain Obvious when we need him?

[MFWolff]

There are multiple ways to view oil prices, many of which you may not have seen?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/max-fraad-wolff/our-love-hate-relation-to_b_108970.html

[MFWolff]

Another way to see gas prices:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/max-fraad-wolff/our-love-hate-relation-to_b_108970.html

[TovSquirrel]

deregulation

&

speculation

oh! don't forget the american WAR of aggression

[NoFactsJustTruth]

just so

[thegreatgiginthesky]

That is something that is never spoken about, how much oil is being spent on this useless war in Iraq?

[KBAR]

h! don't forget the american WAR of aggression

That was 1861 -1865

[Midnightrain]

History is repeats itself ... so they say.