Some Beltway Dems Complaining About Gore's Timing In Unveiling 10-Year Energy Proposal - WP

[hatrack]

Al Gore hopes to put global warming back at the top of Washington’s agenda Thursday, but some Democrats in Congress are questioning his timing when they are getting pummeled by Republicans over record gas prices. Gore hopes to deliver a major speech on the environment at Constitution Hall in Washington that will “press the reset button on how people are looking at the energy crisis and the climate crisis,” said Brian Hardwick, spokesman for Gore’s Alliance for Climate Protection.

“It depends on how it’s presented,” said Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), who emphasized he did not want to “pre-empt” Gore’s speech by telling him what to say. “I think the American public will be much more receptive to arguments about climate change when gas prices aren’t so critical,” said Rep. Zack Space, a freshman Democrat who represents a mostly rural district in Ohio. Space and other Democrats say that gas prices have begun to overwhelm other issues.

Republicans are pouncing on Gore’s re-emergence, holding it up as proof that Democrats favor environmental policies that further escalate energy costs. “Mr. Gore will yet again call attention to the policies called for by radical environmentalists that would result in even higher gas prices,” said Michael Steel, spokesman for House Republican Leader John Boehner (Ohio).

EDIT

Some lawmakers warn that Americans are angry about gas prices and don’t necessarily want to be reminded about the economic sacrifices that may be necessary to reduce the nation’s oil consumption. “People’s anger about a lot of things is crystallized as a result of the gas prices,” said Lautenberg. “The anger is focused by the visibility at the pump.” Lautenberg warned that Americans aren’t eager to hear about the need for more financial sacrifices if there’s not a possible reward in the not-too-distant future. “If it looks like it’s just a continuation of an attack of our economy and family budgets, then its starts getting dispiriting,” he said of innovative yet expensive energy proposals.

EDIT/END

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/some-finding-gores-timing-inconvenient-2008-07-16.html

[phantom power]

1. Dude, this is awesome:

I think the American public will be much more receptive to arguments about climate change when gas prices aren’t so critical,” said Rep. Zack Space

I said "Zack" and that rhymes with "hatrack" and that stands for "Hatrack's Principle."
:rofl:

[niyad]

5. ummm, zacky??? maybe if we had been more concerned a few years ago, we wouldn't be seeing

these ridiculous gas prices, because the oil companies wouldn't be running things.

this guy is a dem? and that stupid?????

[OwnedByFerrets]

2. OMG.....some more chickenlivered

dems are shaking in their shoes that some farking republicant is gonna say mean things about them. Boo HOO HOOOOOOOOO. Grow some and back the truth like BO did in his statement concerning President Gores speech.

[LisaM]

3. Perhaps they should have thought of that when they tossed him under the bus

in the 2000 election.

[phantom power]

4. Do you know what else is awesome?

It's such a clear demonstration that we've come exactly nowhere since the voters threw Carter out of the White House for daring to talk about energy and environment in any manner divergent from "Morning in America!"

[Strelnikov_]

6. And people wonder why I am a Doomer (political variant) n/t

[stuntcat]

7. I went to see him today

What he was saying is that renewable energies are going to become easier and much cheaper, while the fossil fuels are becoming more expensive and plain stupid to use.. all stuff y'all already know. And the audience went wild!

I tried to record some if it but my videos kinda suck and I missed the best things he said and anyway the whole speech might be online somewhere.
The shit he talked about the oil industry was great.

This is him, you can't tell it though-