Democrats' Energy Independence Legislation Will Protect Consumers, National Security, Environment« Thread Started on May 16, 2007, 5:10am » --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Senator Reid: Democrats' Energy Independence Legislation Will Protect Consumers, National Security, EnvironmentTue, 05/15/2007 - 11:05 — admin read at sourceMay 14, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada made the following statement today in response to President Bush's remarks:"Democrats are committed to achieving greater energy independence - an issue this Administration and past Republican Congresses have failed to adequately address. In the coming weeks, we will move forward with bipartisan legislation that will increase the production of clean renewable fuels, improve energy efficiency, punish gas price gougers and support research on greenhouse gas capture and storage."Six years ago this week, the Bush-Cheney secret task force made up of oil and energy company lobbyists released its report on the nation's energy policy. Since then, the Administration has rolled back environmental regulations, ignored climate change and under-funded the energy research budget. Meanwhile, our oil dependency and consumption have grown, harming our national security and leaving America vulnerable to price shocks and supply disruptions."After six years of putting the interests of the oil industry ahead of our national and economic security, we hope the President is finally getting serious about energy. His announcement today was mainly about organizing the bureaucracy, but if he brings forward proposals that make legal, economic and environmental sense, we will work with him as we legislate. In the meantime, I hope the President will work to make the Federal government's own energy and environmental performance better."###