[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 60 (Friday, May 3, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S4694]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HIGH GASOLINE PRICES

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, let me thank the distinguished Senator 
from Arkansas for an extraordinarily strong statement with regard to 
gas prices and gas taxes. I do not know that anyone has said it more 
eloquently and passionately and more compellingly than has the senior 
Senator from Arkansas. There are, indeed, a number of things we can do 
if we are serious about addressing high gasoline prices.
  The Senator from Arkansas has mentioned again yet another opportunity 
for us to reduce prices, and that is to find ways with which to make 
gasoline-powered automobiles, all kinds of vehicles, more efficient. By 
providing an increase in the CAFE standards, we can, indeed, make 
gasoline-powered vehicles a lot more efficient--not just gasoline 
vehicles, but diesel-powered vehicles and all transportation more 
efficient.

  He has taken, as well as the Senator from Nevada, a very strong 
leadership position in making that happen. So whether or not we take 
that approach and whether or not we give people across this country the 
assurance that any tax reduction goes into their pocket, whether we 
take other approaches, we will have the opportunity to debate it. But I 
think there is a clear, clear choice here. We can bail out the oil 
companies, as some have suggested, or we can help consumers and 
taxpayers. If we really want to help consumers and taxpayers, we are 
going to make vehicles more efficient and we are going to ensure that 
whatever relief we offer goes in the pockets of consumers, and not into 
the pockets of the oil companies.
  So we will have that opportunity perhaps as early as next week. I 
hope next week we can work out an arrangement that will allow us to 
address the real issue here, and that is, how can we address the 
economic stagnation that so many working families are feeling. Working 
families are not getting their share of the benefit of the economy in 
part because they are not seeing increases in wages, in part because 
they are not getting the kind of health benefits they deserve, in part 
because they do not have the pension security that they so badly need. 
And so we will have an opportunity to address those issues in the 
coming days and hopefully resolve them successfully.

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