UPDATE: GOP Kills Democratic Drilling Plan

Today the House GOP vote to defeat a Democratic plan known as the DRILL act that would require increased oil exploration in the National Petroleum Reserve - Alaska, as well as include provisions to, 1. require oil companies to "use or lose" leases on 68 million acres that they already hold but with no active exploration taking place, and 2. increase the staff at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to look into oil speculation's damaging effects, and curb traders from using the market speculation to drive up prices as the airline industry requested recently. 

This vote goes to show that the GOP is more interested in delivering profits for their oil company buddies than in helping bring down oil prices. The NPR-A is close the Trans-Alaska pipeline and production could be brought on line there much faster than ANWR. Similarly, the 68 million acres currently under lease but not being actively explored are in the western Gulf of Mexico near oil pipelines and infrastructure that would allow production to come on-stream much faster than off the coasts of Florida or California. 

While I know there are some environmental groups who don't like the idea of drilling in the NPR-A (the Natural Resources Defense Council prefers to call it the "Western Arctic Reserve," making no mention of the fact that it has been designated the NPR-A since the 1920s), the fact that the oil contained there can be brought on stream much more quickly than ANWR means that this is the place we need to drill now.

So, to summarize, the GOP killed the Democrats' plan to drill in places where we can get at oil quickly, because they prefer to open areas for drilling where we can't produce oil for 10 years. And, the GOP fought for years against higher fuel economy standards that could have put millions more hybrids on the road years ago, thus reducing consumption and prices.

Now, which party has the more credible plan to bring down gas prices? 

UPDATE: Zach Space has just issued this press release responding to the GOP killing this drilling plan:

“The fact that Congressional Republicans have chosen to place partisan politics over the needs of our struggling families is absolutely irresponsible.  We had the opportunity to increase drilling in Alaska, but Republicans are more interested in scoring political points than reducing gas prices.”

“For the sake of American consumers, I hope that cooler heads will eventually prevail and bring relief at the pump.  Unfortunately, the actions of Congressional Republicans have ensured that today will not be the beginning of that opportunity.  Both Democrats and Republicans should stop playing politics and work together to reduce gas prices for the American public.  ”