Republican and Democratic Legislators Urge Legislation/to Punish Putin..We Must Frack More

[KoKo]

US Legislators: To Punish Putin, Frack More
Some legislators are pushing for LNG exports to weaken Russia's energy grip on Ukraine
- Andrea Germanos, staff writer

As the crisis in Ukraine continues, some U.S. legislators have pushed for exporting the nation's natural gas to be used as a "weapon" or leverage point to weaken Russia and President Vladimir Putin's influence on the region.

Ukraine is heavily dependent for natural gas on Russia's state-owned Gazprom, though it has cut off that supply at times, most recently in 2009, while the fracking boom has made the U.S. the biggest natural gas producer.

Some on The Hill are saying that the U.S. should send off all this fracked gas via liquified natural gas (LNG) exports to loosen Russia's grip, and that the Department of Energy should expedite approval of pending permits for LNG exports.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), for example, said that exporting more natural gas could "strengthen our economy here and our security here and abroad," and that the "the only thing standing in the way are the bureaucrats in the Department of Energy."

Expediting approval of natural gas exports is one clear step the U.S. can take to stand by our allies and stand up to Russian aggression, while creating American jobs at the same time," Boehner also said.

Democratic Colorado Sen. Mark Udall added, "The situation in Ukraine shows the urgent need for Colorado and the nation to export more natural gas," and urged quick approval of pending liquefied natural gas terminals, introducing legislation on Wednesday to make that happen.

Republican Congressman Ted Poe (R-Texas) introduced similar legislation on Wednesday as well.

But exporting LNG is expensive, and, as Politico reported:

Even if the pressure from Congress prods the Energy Department to move faster, the practical effect anytime soon would be nil. The U.S. has no currently operating plants that could ship liquefied natural gas overseas, and probably won’t until late 2015 at the earliest. And Ukraine has no plants that could convert the liquid fuel back into gas for use in furnaces or power plants.

Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz stressed this point, telling Politico. "The fact is [that pouring U.S. gas into Europe] is just physically not going to happen."

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On All In on Wednesday, Chris Hayes and his guests radio host Sam Seder and Dan Dicker, CEO of wealth management group MercBloc, take apart this push for LNG exports as means to neutralize Russian power over Ukraine as well. Aside from climate impacts from increased fracking, it is unrealistic, they say, to think that pushing for more LNG exports would have any effect on the current crisis at all:

VIDEO of CHRIS HAYES SHOW AT:

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2014/03/06-8

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License.

[KoKo]

1. Think this is one of those "Issues" that go "Below the Radar" that

our Dems and Repugs work together when it suits their Corporate Interests... The Lobbyists and the PAC's and the rest.

[Agony]

2. no doubt pushed by the "secret" Congressional Natural Gas Caucus

http://williamahuston.blogspot.com/2013/08/us-house-or-rep-natural-gas-caucus.html

posted below for your perusal... 17 Democrats + 68 Republicans



House Natural Gas Caucus
113th Congress


Co-Chairs:

Glenn Thompson (R-PA);
Gene Green (D-TX);
Tom Reed (R-NY);
Jim Costa (D-CA)

Members:

Spencer Bachus (R-AL);
Tim Griffin (R-AR);
Ken Calvert (R-CA);
Scott Tipton (R-CO);
Doug Lamborn (R-CO);
Mike Coffman (R-CO);
Diana DeGette (D-CO);
Ed Perlmutter (D-CO);
John Larson (D-CT);
Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC);
Trey Radel (R-FL);
Steve King (R-IA);
Bobby Rush (D-IL);
Peter Roskam (R-IL);
Adam Kinzinger (R-IL);
Aaron Schock (R-IL);
Larry Bucshon (R-IN);
Mike Pompeo (R-KS);
Harold Rogers (R-KY);
Steve Scalise (R-LA);
Bill Cassidy (R-LA);
Rodney Alexander (R-LA);
Dr. John Fleming (R-LA);
Mike Michaud (D-ME);
Dave Camp (R-MI);
Fred Upton (R-MI);
Candice Miller (R-MI);
Gregg Harper (R-MS);
Virginia Foxx (R-NC);
Howard Coble (R-NC);
Patrick McHenry (R-NC);
Lee Terry (R-NE);
Chris Collins (R-NY);
Richard Hanna (R-NY);
Bill Johnson (R-OH);
Bob Latta (R-OH); Steve Stivers (R-OH);
Tim Ryan (D-OH);
David Joyce (R-OH);
Jim Renacci (R-OH);
Michael Turner (R-OH);
Bob Gibbs (R-OH);
Frank Lucas (R-OK);
Markwayne Mullin (R-OK);
James Lankford (R-OK);
Jim Gerlach (R-PA);
Joe Pitts (R-PA);
Mike Doyle (D-PA);
Tim Murphy (R-PA);
Lou Barletta (R-PA);
Keith Rothfus (R-PA);
Bill Shuster (R-PA);
Tom Marino (R-PA);
Mike Rogers (R-MI);
Bennie Thompson (D-MS);
Ben Lujan (D-NM);
Joe Wilson (R-SC);
Kristi Noem (R-SD);
Marsha Blackburn (R-TN);
Blake Farenthold (R-TX);
Pete Gallego (D-TX).
Henry Cuellar (D-TX);
Al Green (D-TX);
Ralph Hall (R-TX);
Kevin Brady (R-TX);
K. Michael Conaway (R-TX);
Randy Weber (R-TX);
Filemon Vela (R-TX);
Bill Flores (R-TX);
John Carter (R-TX);
Pete Olson (R-TX);
Rob Bishop (R-UT);
Jason Chaffetz (R-UT);
Jim Matheson (D-UT);
Jim Moran (D-VA);
Bob Goodlatte (R-VA);
Morgan Griffith (R-VA);
Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (R-WA);
Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV);
David McKinley (R-WV);
Cynthia Lummis (R-WY);

[KoKo]

7. Thanks for that information. Recommend!

[sabrina 1]

8. Good to know who's doing what on 'our behalf'.. Do they know that there is now evidence that

fracking has caused small earthquakes and as the study that revealed that continues, possibly worse?

Better question I suppose, do they care?

They should all be advocating to halt fracking considering those results.

Putin isn't the issue for them. They are merely using this situation to get support for what they intended to do anyhow.

Same way they use 9/11.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

3. The vultures, and their mouthpieces, never sleep.

[William769]

4. Got that right!

Oh wait, you meant Congress. Sorry my bad.

[woo me with science]

5. K&R

[jsr]

6. The more we destroy our soil and drinking water, the more humiliated Putin will be