Nancy Pelosi: “today we should be bringing to the American people an energy policy that is worthy of the 21st century. A policy that…”

“today we should be bringing to the American people an energy policy that is worthy of the 21st century. A policy that sets us on a path toward reliable sources and supplies of energy, and a cleaner environment. A policy that promotes efficiency and innovation, and provides more protection for consumers. But the bill the Administration and the Republican leaders have brought to the Floor looks backward and not forward. The Republican bill authorizes drilling in the most fragile untouched wilderness of the Arctic in search of a six-month supply of oil that won't reach the market for another 10 years. The Republican bill makes our air less healthy and our water more dirty. It jeopardizes the health of our children. It allows companies to force diesel fuel into the ground in a way that could threaten the water table in order to fracture and retrieve oil deposits. It jeopardizes the protection of rivers and fish on behalf of hydroelectric companies. The Republican bill allows oil and gas development on sensitive coastal lands and exempts oil and gas drilling sites from water pollution requirements. It includes a variety of taxpayer handouts to oil and gas companies, and protects corporate expatriates that have already moved overseas by grandfathering in their tax breaks. And most significantly to those of us from California, this Republican bill strips out some of the few remaining federal protections for electricity consumers.”