Bob Menendez: “my constituents in New Jersey have not been immune to skyrocketing oil and gas prices. We have seen consumers, truckers…”

“my constituents in New Jersey have not been immune to skyrocketing oil and gas prices. We have seen consumers, truckers, and oil-dependent industries suffering for months as a result of exorbitant prices, including some independent truckers having to take their trucks off the road, because they simply cannot afford to operate them. In essence, what this legislation does, which we voted for in the community, but let us be honest, what it does is, it does exactly what the administration has been doing, which is to leverage its relationship with OPEC countries and diplomacy to get them to produce and, therefore, help the price. That is what we expect the result to be next Monday when OPEC meets; that is the diplomacy that we need. This is a cheering of that effort. Regardless of what happens on Monday, we need steps to protect the American economy and consumers in the short and long terms. In addition to passing this bill, we will send a message to OPEC that the administration has already done through its diplomacy, that we will not be held hostage to its monopolistic practices. We need to implement President Clinton's initiative to create a home heating oil reserve for the Northeast to cushion future spikes in oil prices. And we should also reauthorize the strategic petroleum reserve, which is set to expire in a few days on March 31, next week.”