[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 119 (Wednesday, September 21, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1913]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             REGARDING THE ARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 21, 2005

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, ladies and gentleman, there's an old 
saying that says ``If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to 
see every problem as a nail.''
  I cannot think of a more appropriate metaphor for what we're seeing 
now.
  The hammer being used by some in Congress is drilling in our pristine 
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. And to them, there are simply not 
enough nails.
  The latest nail, of course, is spiking gas prices. The knee-jerk 
drillers will tell you that the logical solution to expensive gas is to 
drill in the Arctic. But in a best case scenario, we would only see a 
reduction in gas price of 1.5 cents per gallon. And production wouldn't 
even start until at least 10 years from now. That doesn't help you and 
me. That helps the oil companies.
  What they don't tell you is that, in the words of one oil industry 
expert, the difference between price gouging and taking advantage of 
market distortions is a political question. I strongly believe that 
price gouging may be occurring.
  I am not alone. In May of 2005, 33 of my colleagues joined me in 
introducing the Gas Price Spike Act. It would tax windfall profits tax 
on gas, create tax credits for ultra-efficient vehicles, and lower 
fares for mass transit. Now that's a part of a real solution.
  But our opponents are still convinced that gas prices are a nail. 
They are also convinced that our dangerous foreign dependence on oil is 
a nail. But even in a best case scenario, our dependency would still 
increase from 59 percent to 64 percent by 2025.
  Our hammer happy friends think a job shortage is nail easily solved 
with the hammer of the Arctic. But improving energy efficiency and 
motor vehicle efficiency would generate more than 1.3 million jobs in 
15 years--185 percent more jobs than domestic oil production.
  The nail of investment in our economy can be covered by investing in 
Arctic oil extraction, they say. But one dollar spent on petroleum 
production creates only a buck-fifty in economic value to our economy. 
That same dollar, when invested in energy efficiency programs and 
incentives, gives us two dollars and 23 cents in economic value.
  It should be clear that drilling the Arctic will not solve any of 
these problems. And there is no way drilling in the Arctic can solve 
the mother of all these problems: climate change. I don't care how 
creatively they spin it. We can only expect more extreme weather in the 
coming years and we absolutely must address it with meaningful efforts 
to reduce greenhouse gases. Drilling can only make it worse.
  There are so many more realistic, more effective, more sustainable 
ways to proceed. In fact, some of my colleagues here today have joined 
me in efforts to address not only prices, but national security, our 
health, the integrity of our environment, and a lopsided economic 
recovery. We should raise the minimum fuel efficiency of cars and 
trucks, invest in the transition to wind and solar energy, emphasize 
biofuels like biodiesel, and encourage conservation.
  The solutions are there for the taking. The time is now.
  Please join me in driving the nail in the coffin on this backdoor 
effort to drill in the Arctic.

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