[A] threat by President Bush to veto a GOP proposal to increase taxes on oil companies has led Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist to rethink the source of a $100 per driver gasoline tax rebate.'That oughta teach 'em not to laugh at the decider.'
Frist said Tuesday he changed his mind on his plan, opposed by business leaders, and has gone back to the drawing board. The proposed accounting change would have required oil companies to pay more taxes on their inventory of crude as a way to pay the one-time rebate.'What? You actually want to take the money that Big Oil gouged from The People and give it BACK??? Holy cow, Bill! What were you thinking? You must not be smoking enough crack!'
Republican lawmakers, however, haven't given up on the notion of a $100 gasoline rebate for millions of motorists. [Image]They're going to come up with a plan that makes US pay for the rebate!
They say that would be more helpful to consumers than the 60-day gas tax holiday proposed by Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J. That proposal would remove the federal government's 18.2 cent per gallon take for much of the summer driving season.That's a hair-brained proposal since there's no guarantee that Big Oil will pass the tax savings on to US.
[T]here's no assurance the tax break — which is collected from refiners — will be passed on to consumers at the pump. If the lost revenue from a tax suspension — estimated at $6 billion — is made up by imposing additional taxes on oil companies, as Democrats envision, there's incentive for companies not to pass the savings on to retailers, said critics of the plan.

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The White House's top economist said late Tuesday that neither the rebate nor the gas tax holiday would solve the problem of high gas prices.

"One of the things we worry about when we cut the tax on gasoline is that it basically stimulates additional use," said Edward Lazear, chairman of the White House's Council of Economic Advisers.

"Over a longer period of time, it would be a significant problem ... because what it would do is it would encourage us to use more oil, not less and that is the way we got to the situation right now," he said.By his logic, Big Oil should be encouraged to gouge us even further - hike it up to $6 a gallon! That ought to reduce our consumption - and bring our economy to a grinding halt!

The argument is patently absurd. We're in this position now because of decades of cronyism and corruption that has left our entire economy centered around and dependent on carbon based fuels.
As for the rebate, Lazear said it is problematic for other reasons.

"It doesn't have the same kind of direct adverse consequence" as the gas tax holiday tax, "but there are other issues that we have to think about — Is that the best way to be using our tax revenues? Is it the most efficient way to allocate our resources?" he said.And he's the White House's "top economist"??? No wonder we find ourselves in the worst economic crisis in the history of the world!

Let's face it, they'll do anything and everthing to give US less control over our own money. They never intended to pass this measure.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. called the $100 rebate "dead before it was offered." He also accused Republicans of siding with corporations over consumers.

"It's big oil versus the American consumer. And under this administration, this oil-oriented administration, the consumer is losing," Reid said.You better believe it.The rebate so far hasn't seemed to catch on with voters or editorial pages, and even some House Republicans say the proposal is not up to snuff.

"The really insulting part of this whole proposal was the fact that someone would offer $100 to every American family over this. It is not going to solve the problem," said House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio. "Over the weekend I heard about it from my constituents a few times. They though it was stupid."That's a load of crap. What's more insulting? Getting a $100 rebate, or getting NOTHING?

Saying that a $100 rebate is not enough, DOES NOT mean that it's rejected. Any measure that offers immediate relief for the current crisis is welcome. But, long term solutions are needed in ADDITION to the rebate!

But, these guys aren't interested in finding solutions for US. They're too busy pandering to Big Oil.
ExxonMobil chairman Rex Tillerson, appearing at an energy conference Tuesday, called the proposed charge on oil companies "nothing more than a backdoor windfall profits tax" and a "very dangerous and very poorly thought out step to take."That sounds like a threat. There are ways to deal with creeps like you, buster.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., hasn't jumped on to the oil company tax, but he said he wants to know why the companies aren't investing record profits into increased gas production.Evidently, Hastert has never read Senator Wyden's 2001 Report on Big Oil's conspiracy to limit supply.
"Obviously, we want to turn down the cost of gasoline if we can, but that's something that we've got to work on. It's going to take some time to do," Hastert said.First, we have to spend our lives working to enrich Big Oil. Then and only then can we enjoy the fruits of our labor.

TOO BAD (SUCKERS!), we each have only one life to live!

This government is hopeless. America needs to clean HOUSE and start from scratch.