Clueless House Proves They Don't Know Their Energy From Their Interior
The hard working members of our U.S. House of Representatives are on a five week hiatus right now; but did you know that just a few weeks before they left, the House actually passed a bill? YES! And it had nothing to do with defunding, derailing or repealing the ACA!
Representative Steve Stockman (R-Texas) introduced a proposal that would bar the Department of Energy from standing in the way of the approval of offshore drilling permits. The Republican majority was so excited about this idea that they overwhelmingly supported adding it as an amendment to an appropriations bill that was about to be voted on. The bill passed with a vote of 218 to 204.
Republicans are feeling pretty smug about getting this amendment written into law. While they're in their home states, I imagine they'll be bragging about this great accomplishment: "Everyone knows those oil companies need to 'Drill baby, drill!' And we just made sure the road is kept clear for them!"
I wonder when someone is going to tell them that the Department of Energy doesn't have anything to do with drilling regulations or permits. That's the job of the Department of the Interior.
It's like the Washington D.C. version of Dumb and Dumber. You'd think if they're going to be charged with running the government, they might at least make some effort to understand how it actually works.