Topic: gas
National Push for Lower Gas Prices and Energy Independence Kicks off in Cleveland
Ohio Drivers Paying Nearly $1 More a Gallon for Gas than Last Year
The Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland was brimming with activity Saturday afternoon, May 20, as dozens of Clevelanders turned out to to hear Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid and Sherrod discuss their plan to lower gas prices and move America toward energy independence by 2020.
Ohioans traveled to the event from as far away as Medina and Lake County to hear solutions for skyrocketing gas prices, which have jumped almost a dollar a gallon since one year ago.
Sherrod spoke first about his ideas to lower prices at the pump through a 60-day gas tax holiday, and the creation of a regional gasoline reserve system.
Sen. Reid used the event to kick off a nationwide push by Senate Democrats to make America energy independent by 2020. He also showed his strong support for Sherrod?s campaign by telling the crowd that his happiest day in Washington was the day Sherrod Brown announced his candidacy.
Sherrod and Senator Reid energized the large crowd gathered in front of a new giant wind turbine, which is capable of producing seven percent of the Science Center's electricity.
Also speaking at the news conference were two Northeast Ohio mothers struggling with the burden of soaring gas prices.
Reverend Lois Annich, a Presbyterian minister and counselor, spoke passionately about the social and economic injustice of working families being stuck with high gas prices while oil companies take in record profits. Patients in her counseling practice are feeling the stress as more of their family budget is consumed by fuel costs.
"This is a social injustice of the highest order," she said.
Jennifer Tucker, a working mother of two, explained that gas prices have hit the Tucker family particularly hard. Tucker must travel from Medina County to Cleveland five days a week -- more than 50 miles round trip -- to finish her graduate program in nursing, which she hopes will lead to a good-paying job. Her family now spends up to $500 a month on gas, which she can only pay by adding more debt to her student loans.
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05/22/2006 / Permalink / Economy, Environment, gas, (all tags)
Sherrod Stands Up for Ohio Drivers
Prior to Saturday's event with Sen. Harry Reid, Sherrod crisscrossed the state calling for swift federal action to help Ohio drivers at the pump.
Sherrod is driving the debate to lower gas prices in Ohio, which has seen the price at pump rise nearly $1 a gallon from a year ago. Industry experts predict the situation will only get worse if action is not taken soon.
Sherrod detailed his plan at appearances in Cincinnati, Dayton, Toledo, Cuyahoga Falls, Cleveland, and Columbus over the last few weeks.
The plan calls for a 60 day federal gas tax holiday and the creation of a regional fuel reserve system.
The gas tax holiday would lower fuel prices by more than 18 cents a gallon at the pump overnight. Lost revenue would be made up for by revoking $10 billion in corporate giveaways to big oil companies.
Sherrod first proposed the creation of a regional gasoline reserve system in 2003 to stabilize fuel prices during shortfalls and disaster periods.
The proposal has picked up the influential support of Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois and the AAA, which testified in favor of the idea before Congress. The initiative has even caught the attention of the White House, which is now considering a gas reserve system.
"The oil companies wrote the energy bill, and now Ohio drivers are paying for their record profits," Sherrod told a group of Toledo residents. "Ohioans shouldn't be squeezed to make the richest companies in the world even richer. Congress must stop guzzling gas-company campaign dollars and move in a new direction."
Following Sherrod's visit to Toledo, the Blade reported that Sherrod's opponent, Republican incumbent Mike DeWine, has received more than $350,000 from oil and gas interests over the course of his career:
Mr. DeWine, a Cedarville Republican, has rubbed financial shoulders with some of the nation's most controversial politicians and interest groups this campaign. He has raised money with President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, whose approval ratings have nose-dived in Ohio, and with two leading figures in a high-profile Washington lobbyist scandal: U.S. Sen. Conrad Burns and U.S. Rep. Bob Ney.
...Mr. DeWine has taken nearly $40,000 from oil and gas interests in the first few months of this year and close to $350,000 over his career. An industry lobbying group says Mr. DeWine voted its way 80 percent of the time in the last three years, despite his opposition to oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
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VIDEO: Sen. Harry Reid and Sherrod Call for Energy Independence
Sherrod and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid today showcased a sweeping new Democratic plan to lower gas prices and move America towards energy independence.
The event was previewd in Saturday's Washington Post:
The kickoff event will take place today in Ohio, when Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) appears with Rep. Sherrod Brown, the Democratic Senate candidate, in front of a giant wind turbine outside a Cleveland science center.
"Wherever you live, your gas prices are out of control, and you want to hold someone accountable for it," Reid said.
Brown is making an issue of the $330,000 in donations that Sen. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) has received from oil and gas companies over the course of his career.
Click here to read the full article.
05/20/2006 / Permalink / Economy, Environment, gas, Video, (all tags)
Brown, Reid Offer Plan for Lower Prices at the Pump; Energy Independence
Columbus Drivers Paying Nearly Dollar More Per Gallon of Gas Than Year Ago
CLEVELAND--Congressman Sherrod Brown (D-Lorain County) and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) today showcased a sweeping new Democratic plan to lower gas prices and move America towards energy independence.
Joined by several dozen area parents and local workers, Brown and Reid unveiled the program in front of the new wind turbine at Cleveland's Great Lakes Science Center. The wind turbine, installed this month, is expected to provide seven percent of the Science Center's electricity.
"As gas prices skyrocket, Ohioans are making painful sacrifices just to afford the drive to work, or to take their kids to school," Brown said. "It is time for Congress to stand up to oil companies and on the side of middle class families."
Last month, gas prices shot past $3 per gallon and ExxonMobil reported quarterly profits of $8.4 billion. Some analysts now predict $5-per-gallon gas by mid-summer.
READ MORE »05/20/2006 / Permalink / Economy, Environment, gas, (all tags)
Sen. Reid Joins Sherrod in Cleveland to Call for Energy Independence for Ohio
Join Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid and Sherrod at the Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland to talk about revamping U.S. energy policy to help lower gas prices by investing in alternative energy and renewable fuel.
Click here to get event information.
05/18/2006 / Permalink / Economy, Environment, gas, (all tags)
Gas Crisis Straining Ohio Family Budgets
Brown Proposes Steps to Relieve Pain at the Pump
TOLEDO--Congressman Sherrod Brown (D-Lorain County) today discussed Ohio's gas crisis and offered ways to reduce costs to consumers. Speaking by a gas station in Toledo, Brown addressed the effect of soaring fuel prices on the lives of Ohio drivers.
"For many Ohio families, simply paying for the drive to work will require difficult sacrifices," Brown said. "Our energy policy has failed. The need for change grows more urgent every day."
In the past month, gas prices shot past $3 per gallon in many parts of the country. Some analysts now predict that prices at the pump could hit $5 by mid-summer. ExxonMobil recently reported profits of $8.4 billion for the first quarter of 2006.
"Gas prices are skyrocketing, but for too many Ohioans, paychecks are frozen in place," Brown said. "We need a gasoline reserve system to provide a buffer against painful spikes in fuel costs."
On Tuesday, May 9, Brown and Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) wrote to President Bush urging action on the creation of a strategic gasoline reserve. Such a reserve, proposed in the House by Brown in 2003, would protect against gasoline supply shortages that drive up prices. Durbin introduced a similar proposal in the Senate last year.
READ MORE »Sherrod Urges Quick Federal Action to Lower Ohio Gas Prices
With gas prices nearing $3 a gallon, Sherrod urged quick federal action at news conferences in Cleveland and Columbus this week.
Sherrod Brown highlighted a range of options for reducing the burden of fuel costs for consumers.
"It is time to stand up to the oil companies," Sherrod said. "We should crack down on oil-company price gouging, cancel billion dollar subsidies for companies like Exxon, and give Ohio drivers a holiday from gas taxes."
A gas tax holiday would reduce prices at the pump by 18 cents a gallon.
Last week, ExxonMobil reported profits of $8.4 billion for the first quarter of 2006.
"The oil companies wrote the energy bill, and now Ohio drivers are paying for record profits," Sherrod said. "Ohioans shouldn't be squeezed to make the richest companies in the world even richer. Congress must stop guzzling gas-company campaign dollars and move in a new direction."
Since 2000, President Bush and GOP members of Congress have received $73 million in campaign contributions from oil and gas companies. In the same period, U.S. gas prices have doubled.
Sherrod Guest Blogs on "Give ‘Em Hell Harry"
Sherrod will be guest blogging all this week on "Give 'Em Hell Harry" -- the website of Sen. Harry Reid.
The Senate Democratic Leader asked Sherrod to kick off his new community blog as the first guest poster.
Sherrod started off the week by contrasting the Democratic and Republican responses to high gas prices, "Running on Empty: The Republican Revolution Sputters to a Halt":
As I travel across Ohio on my campaign for the U.S. Senate, I meet more and more people ready for change, including a lot of Republicans who are frustrated with the way things are done in Washington these days.
The Republican Revolution is sputtering to a halt as a majority of Americans realize that they've taken us on the wrong path for far too long.
On issue after issue -- health care, education, jobs, national security -- Democrats are offering a new direction for the country.
In contrast, the Republicans are failing to effectively address pressing problems at home and abroad. Their contributors -- the oil companies, the drug companies -- have paralyzed them.
No issue better illustrates my point than the soaring price of gas, which has created record-breaking profits for the oil industry at the expense of working families and small businesses.
Ironically, it was George Bush who criticized Al Gore during the 2000 campaign for being part of "the administration that's been in charge" while the "price of gasoline has gone steadily upward."
The way things turned out, gas prices have increased twice as much during the first two years of Bush's second term than during Clinton's entire time in office.
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