Press release from Republican congressional hopeful Joe Visconti:
Joseph Visconti, Republican candidate for Connecticut's First Congressional District Thursday proposed utilizing some of the country's Strategic Petroleum Reserve to provide Americans with emergency heating fuel this winter.
Visconti's proposal differs significantly from calls by his Democratic opponent to open up the Strategic Reserve to the marketplace to increase gasoline supplies in an effort to reduce gas prices.
The Democrats' suggestion, Visconti said, would "simply provide more profits for the international oil cartel by placing the oil on the open market, and does nothing to address the enormous tax burden the state and federal governments have placed on gasoline."
"The Strategic Reserve contains American oil, already bought and paid for by the American people." Visconti said. "It was created to provide petroleum for our military in the event of a national emergency, and temporary relief from economic and natural disasters."
"Americans freezing in their homes this winter would certainly be a disaster, brought on by economic conditions that are directly traceable to inaction by Congress. But that is our oil and it should be made available to the states, so it could go directly to Americans who would use it to heat their homes."
American Oil on American Soil
Visconti cautioned, however, that using the strategic reserves would be a viable solution only when coupled with a decision by Congress to lift its restrictions on drilling offshore, for shale oil in the Rocky Mountains, and in a barren and desolate tract of the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve.
"We need to drill our way out of this for the near future as we combine clean and safe drilling with clean and safe nuclear, and a concerted effort to replace fossil fuels with alternative energy sources.”
"The Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the oil in ANWR, off the U.S. coast and in the Rockies is American Oil on American Soil," Visconti said. "'We the People' still defines our form of government. In America the people are the government and this oil is ours!"
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve was created in the mid-1970s in response to the Arab Oil Embargo of 1973, to provide oil for the military and vital industries if all other sources were closed. When full, the reserve contains one billion barrels of petroleum, roughly a 50-day supply for all users.
Visconti said that releasing the oil directly to the states for emergency heating oil supplies would "keep American oil in America where it would directly benefit Americans.
This is the emergency
"This is the emergency we planned for when American taxpayers bought that oil," Visconti said. "Why should it go on the market, where international speculators can manipulate the price for their profits?"
Visconti further proposed a massive expansion of the Strategic Reserve with supplies to come from all oil production in areas controlled by government leases. “Each lease approved by the government should have a provision to deposit a portion of all oil pumped from those areas into the Strategic Reserve until America has made the transition to alternative non-fossil fuels.
"In essence the Strategic Reserve would kept full by those sources of oil, and if expanded would give America a real buffer against natural or man-made disasters."
Visconti's opponent, incumbent John Larson, has been a staunch opponent of any new drilling, either offshore, in shale or in ANWR.
Larson, the vice chairman of the Democratic caucus, Wednesday led 14 Democrats from New England calling for an additional $10 billion in oil-related taxes; a $9 billion increase to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, more than tripling last year's budget, as well as another $1 billion for weatherization assistance. Larson said he didn't know where the money would come from, but Visconti noted, “If John Larson doesn’t know where the money would come from for his own plan, he is delusional at best, if he thinks it will be in any form other than tax and fee increases.
"Americans already are paying far more than they should in taxes, fees, interest, add-ons and hidden costs," Visconti said. "We don't need more taxes and more bureaucracy. We need action that will directly benefit those who need it most, without charging them or any other Americans for oil that already belongs to us."
Visconti's proposal differs significantly from calls by his Democratic opponent to open up the Strategic Reserve to the marketplace to increase gasoline supplies in an effort to reduce gas prices.
The Democrats' suggestion, Visconti said, would "simply provide more profits for the international oil cartel by placing the oil on the open market, and does nothing to address the enormous tax burden the state and federal governments have placed on gasoline."
"The Strategic Reserve contains American oil, already bought and paid for by the American people." Visconti said. "It was created to provide petroleum for our military in the event of a national emergency, and temporary relief from economic and natural disasters."
"Americans freezing in their homes this winter would certainly be a disaster, brought on by economic conditions that are directly traceable to inaction by Congress. But that is our oil and it should be made available to the states, so it could go directly to Americans who would use it to heat their homes."
American Oil on American Soil
Visconti cautioned, however, that using the strategic reserves would be a viable solution only when coupled with a decision by Congress to lift its restrictions on drilling offshore, for shale oil in the Rocky Mountains, and in a barren and desolate tract of the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve.
"We need to drill our way out of this for the near future as we combine clean and safe drilling with clean and safe nuclear, and a concerted effort to replace fossil fuels with alternative energy sources.”
"The Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the oil in ANWR, off the U.S. coast and in the Rockies is American Oil on American Soil," Visconti said. "'We the People' still defines our form of government. In America the people are the government and this oil is ours!"
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve was created in the mid-1970s in response to the Arab Oil Embargo of 1973, to provide oil for the military and vital industries if all other sources were closed. When full, the reserve contains one billion barrels of petroleum, roughly a 50-day supply for all users.
Visconti said that releasing the oil directly to the states for emergency heating oil supplies would "keep American oil in America where it would directly benefit Americans.
This is the emergency
"This is the emergency we planned for when American taxpayers bought that oil," Visconti said. "Why should it go on the market, where international speculators can manipulate the price for their profits?"
Visconti further proposed a massive expansion of the Strategic Reserve with supplies to come from all oil production in areas controlled by government leases. “Each lease approved by the government should have a provision to deposit a portion of all oil pumped from those areas into the Strategic Reserve until America has made the transition to alternative non-fossil fuels.
"In essence the Strategic Reserve would kept full by those sources of oil, and if expanded would give America a real buffer against natural or man-made disasters."
Visconti's opponent, incumbent John Larson, has been a staunch opponent of any new drilling, either offshore, in shale or in ANWR.
Larson, the vice chairman of the Democratic caucus, Wednesday led 14 Democrats from New England calling for an additional $10 billion in oil-related taxes; a $9 billion increase to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, more than tripling last year's budget, as well as another $1 billion for weatherization assistance. Larson said he didn't know where the money would come from, but Visconti noted, “If John Larson doesn’t know where the money would come from for his own plan, he is delusional at best, if he thinks it will be in any form other than tax and fee increases.
"Americans already are paying far more than they should in taxes, fees, interest, add-ons and hidden costs," Visconti said. "We don't need more taxes and more bureaucracy. We need action that will directly benefit those who need it most, without charging them or any other Americans for oil that already belongs to us."
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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
5 comments:
LET'S GO JOE!!
VISCONTI FOR CONGRESS
I thought he was out of the race? why are you still posting stuff about him?
He never really was in!
Thank God for Art Macobee. He really knows how to pick them.
moccabee only picks those who are most like him - LOSERS
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