In the latest move as an effort to fight the rising cost of fuel let alone lower it, the majority of the United States Senate has moved to vote filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for at least six months. To the Senate, this move should decrease the cost of gas by 1 to 25 cents per gallon. That is safe to say at least.
US President George W. Bush who opposes this move said that it will threaten the country’s national security. However, many Republicans have disagreed with what Bush had said. To Bush, this movie will limit the supplies that the reserves will have in case of a natural disaster or an act of terrorism.
GOP Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson of Texas is one of them. She said that many Republicans within the Senate truly disagree with Bush on the issue.
“We are talking to people out there. We are out there. People are really worried. They are worried about the high cost of food [and] transportation,” Hutchinson has said.
“Halting the filling of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has been tried before, and there is no evidence that it will affect the price of oil or gasoline in a meaningful way,” said White House deputy press secretary, Scott Stanzel.
The amendment that Senate Democrats and Republicans have agreed upon will stop the new deliveries to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for six months. But, it has the stipulation that it will be the case if oil remains above $75 a barrel. Right now, oil is at least $120 a barrel.
Democratic frontrunners Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and Senator Hillary Clinton of New York supported this move. However, presumed GOP nominee Senator John McCain of Arizona was not present to vote. This could create ammunition for the eventual Democratic nominee to use against McCain in the general election race.
It is highly likely that the US House will do the same thing. In the case of the halting of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for six months, this could become a highly debated topic in the near future.
The rise in gas along with the creation of bio-fuels have been blamed on the high rising prices of food. Scientists have blamed the creation and consumption of bio-fuels as the cause of high food prices that contributes to world hunger. However, the farmers and ethanol producers have blamed the high fuel prices for the rise in food prices.
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