Cornyn Ties to Big Oil Outweigh Potential Gas Price Relief for Texas Families

Written by: Tegan R on Aug 4, 2008 11:54 AM EDT

Linked to campaigns: Rick Noriega for US Senator from Texas

(Disclaimer: This post is from a Rick Noriega press release. I do not work for Noriega's campaign, but I am an intern at Democracy for America.)

Houston – In voting to block legislation designed to rein in excessive energy speculation, John Cornyn continued a pattern of placing Big Oil interests ahead of those of Texas families, said the Rick Noriega campaign today, which unveiled its plan for energy self-sufficiency earlier this week and will be hosting roundtable discussions and townhall meetings to hear Texas families' concerns on Cornyn's status quo energy policies this coming week. Cornyn, who has received more donations from oil and gas firms than nearly any other Senator, voted against moving forward on a bill to crack down on energy financial speculation and provide families with relief from record-high gas prices.

A chorus of leading economists and energy experts has cited the role excessive speculation plays in driving up the price of oil. Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com and an advisor to John McCain, said financial speculation "clearly has played a role" in raising oil prices. Similarly, Michael Greenberger, formerly of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, said, "there’s a speculative premium that goes beyond what supply-and-demand factors dictate. And that’s what could be drained with aggressive United States regulation."

"John Cornyn is not willing to take the first step to address our energy crisis by cracking down on excessive price speculation - falling flat on short-term solutions," said Noriega spokeswoman Holly Shulman. "Unfortunately for Texas families, Cornyn would rather vote in line with his Big Oil friends' wishes than listen to the advice of experts and the pleas from Texas families for relief at the gas pump."

This is the latest in a series of Cornyn votes that show his energy policy is out of touch with our short-term needs and ineffective in addressing our long-term problems. For example, Cornyn recently voted to block the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008, which would have extended tax incentives for renewable energy.

In contrast, U.S. Senate candidate Rick Noriega's energy plan is designed to provide immediate relief for Texas families; build the road to energy self-sufficiency; and develop a sustainable energy and economic future for Texas and the U.S. The Noriega energy plan lays out a research and development agenda for developing new energy sources and promotes ways to protect consumers and Texas families being stung by the high costs of gas and electricity this summer. Unlike Cornyn, Noriega supports ending tax breaks for Big Oil and shifting that revenue – $17 billion over 10 years – towards research and development that will drive innovation for energy self sufficiency.

The Noriega energy plan is available in its entirety at: http://www.ricknoriega.com/assets/img/energyplan.pdf

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