Do Democrats Want Energy Independence or Not?

Almost all Americans know that energy independence would be good for America. Without as much money from oil, the Saudis and other countries wouldn't be able to finance jihad. Democrats say the want energy independence, but when given an opportunity to do so, they refuse? Even if everyone drove hybrid cars, that would only create a tiny drop in demand. More supply is better. Why is basic economics so hard for some?

The Democrats' return to power is increasing pressure on House Republican leaders to accept a limited expansion of offshore oil and gas drilling.

Supporters of such exploration say the next Congress, with Democrats in control come January, probably will not tamper with the long-standing drilling bans that have protected most coastal waters for a quarter-century.

A stubborn standoff has festered for months between the House and Senate over developing more of the oil and gas resources in the Outer Continental Shelf. The dispute is expected to be an issue in the final days of the Republican-run Congress this week when lawmakers meet in a lame-duck session.

The proposal is of great importance to Louisiana and three other Gulf Coast states. They stand to reap hundreds of millions of dollars under changes to the way the government shares royalties from oil and gas taken from the Gulf of Mexico.

House Republicans pushed through a bill that would open coastal waters for drilling everywhere unless a state objects. That essentially would end a ban on such drilling that Congress has imposed annually for the past 25 years in most areas outside the western Gulf.

Even drilling supporters said there was no chance that measure can pass the Senate, which has approved a compromise: opening 8.3 million acres in the east-central Gulf, no closer than 125 miles of land, and leaving other areas alone. AP