Political Quotes

“I rise tonight to ask the question, How long can America afford to not have an energy policy in place? For many years we had cheap energy in this country. We had oil for over a decade at about $10 a barrel and natural gas around $2 a thousand, but that has all changed. Today we have oil constantly popping past the $40-per-barrel mark. The natural gas that we were putting in the ground today for next winter's heating $6.47 a thousand. Last year the world was shocked when we put it in the ground at $4.60 a thousand for the next heating season during the winter. The question I ask again and again is when will we put an energy policy on the President's desk so he can sign it? He is the first President to continually ask Congress for an energy policy, an energy plan. Other Presidents ignored it. We have an education policy, but no energy policy. We have a defense policy, but no energy policy. We have an ag policy, but no energy policy. A transportation policy, an environmental policy, trade policies, but no energy policy. I live within 5 miles in Pennsylvania of Drake's Well, the first oil well which was drilled in 1859; and when oil was discovered, it changed the world. It brought about the industrial revolution and the modernization of our society, and today the world consumes 80 million barrels daily. We use about one fourth, 20 million barrels; and our use continues to rise.”