US Senate Ganging Up On Energy Policy

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It sure has stayed under the radar the past week or so, what with all the talk of Palin, and lipstick and pigs and other generally irrelevant items. We’re talking about the so-called “Gang of 10” Energy Compromise Bill, being worked on in the Senate.

But is the bill a good idea or a bad idea?

First, let's get a rundown of the basics on the new energy bill, which currently has 10 Democratic and 10 Republican sponsors, including Indiana Senator Evan Bayh. The compromise energy bill would open additional drilling areas in the Gulf of Mexico, and allow the States of Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia decide whether they want rigs off their shores or not.

The bill would also keep the lockdown on ANWR and West Coast.

Secondly, the bill would earmark $20 billion to research and development for alternative automotive fuels, extend the current blend of tax incentives for alt fuel purchases, such as hybrid vehicles, and funds most of the $84 billion total price tag with licensing fees and stripping tax loopholes for oil companies.

So what's the verdict? Good Idea

On the whole, yeah. Why? Well, with 20 sponsors of the bill, split evenly between the parties, it truly is a bipartisan bill that will most likely pass the Senate, and Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is working on a similar bill in her chamber of Congress. Why is this good? Because it means something has a chance of actually getting done.

That's not to say the bill doesn't have its critics. The Senate Republican Leadership doesn't know where to go with this since Republican presidential candidate John McCain hasn't been all to welcoming of the idea, and Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has at least been mildly supportive, though hasn't paid it much time.

Also, big-name conservatives like Rush Limbaugh think it's a stinker simply because they believe if it passes, it will kneecap McCain's campaign for the Oval Office.

Additionally, environmentalists on the left aren't too particularly happy about the extra drilling provisions the bill has, although they are at least partially assuaged by the maintenance of the moratorium in California, Oregon and Alaska.

Personally, I have my own detail qualms with some of the items, however, I'm more than willing to overlook them if these guys can actually get something done.

Ending all the he said-she said bickering and demagoguery in Washington, on the second most important issue of the whole 2008 campaign, the first being the general economy, is not just a good idea, it's the best idea Capitol Hill has had in years.

And I, for one, am finally energized about something going on in Congress.

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