Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is sticking to her guns, firmly rejecting the notion the House solely vote on whether or not to drill offshore.   The California Democrat will instead introduce comprehensive energy legislation which includes limiting tax breaks for oil companies and funding alternative, renewable energy with the royalties from new drilling in approved areas.   The Republican backed measures for a simple yes or no vote on offshore drilling, sidestepping or ignoring all other energy concerns in the United States for the GOP’s corporate oil sponsors, were described as “a hoax on the American people,” by the Speaker.

The Baltimore-bred, San Francisco Congresswoman went on to tell KQED television’s “This Week in Northern California“:

You want to drill? We want the royalties for the American people, and we want that to pay for renewable energy resources. We want to connect all that together.

While the push for any new oil drilling off of American coastlines is obviously a sham, perpetrated to benefit oil services companies, the unfortunate political reality in Congress is that some compromise on the issue will be necessary to bring about any other, meaningful change, long overdue in United States energy policy.   Speaker Pelosi’s comprehensive solution to the legislation paves the way for progress going forward on this most pressing of all issues.

You can takepart by contacting you Representative in Congress and demanding a push for massive alternative energy funding in any energy legislation put through Congress.

LINKS:

SFGate: Pelosi won’t limit vote to offshore drilling

Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Some refreshing news and views on offshore drilling

Baltimore Sun: Pelosi leans to offshore drilling