[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 14]
[House]
[Page 19197]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       AMERICA UNDERSTANDS WE ARE NOT DEVELOPING AMERICAN ENERGY

  (Mr. AKIN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. AKIN. America by this time understands that we have not been 
developing American energy. There are three things required to develop 
American energy. First, you have to have natural resources. America is 
blessed with a great supply and diversity of natural resources.
  The second thing you have to have to develop American energy is the 
technology to be able to develop energy in a scientific and an 
environmentally friendly way. We are very clever with our technology. 
We have that in America.
  And the third thing that you need is political will, the desire to 
develop American energy; and in that regard this Congress has failed. 
The Pelosi Congress refuses to put the gears in motion and take action.
  Now, I can understand if you like $4 a gallon gasoline, you prefer to 
see it go to $6, that is a political policy. If that is what the 
Democrats want to do, if that is what Pelosi wants, fine.
  But what we have on the floor today is a sham. It pretends to be an 
energy bill and pretends to say it is going to drill, and it doesn't. 
It has nothing in there for clean nuclear and nothing to allow real 
drilling in Alaska. We have 748 sites to drill, every one blocked by a 
lawsuit. There is no reform in this bill. This is a sham.

                          ____________________