Senate Republicans block heating aid bill

[DogPoundPup]

Source: Yahoo News

Republicans on Saturday blocked the Senate from considering a bill next week that would nearly double federal aid to help the poor pay heating and air-conditioning bills.

Although a dozen Senate Republicans support the measure, most voted with GOP leaders who would rather spend the time trumpeting their call to expand offshore oil drilling before Congress takes six weeks off for vacation and the presidential nominating conventions.

"The American resources on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts contain 14 billion barrels at a minimum ... more than we have imported from the Persian Gulf in the last 15 years," said Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M.

Democrats needed 60 votes to substitute the measure on heating and air-conditioning aid in place of the debate on an expansion of offshore drilling championed by President Bush and GOP presidential candidate John McCain. They got 50 votes Saturday, with 35 Republicans voting against changing the topic.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080726/ap_on_go_co/senate_heating_aid

[SpiralHawk]

1. "You'll pay for this, you republicons, you." - Soon-to-be-freezing Americans

Meanwhile, republicon crony oil profits SKYROCKET....

[napi21]

2. Yea, I watched that vote on cspan. I also noticed that there were only

85 Senators there. I understand Kennedy, and I accept Obama & McNuts, but where the hell were the other 13? OH YEA, and of course smokey joe would have been hangin with McNuts. That still leaves 12 MIA!

[Vinca]

3. Beyond disgusting. People will be freezing to death this winter. nt

[roguevalley]

17. I would love names so that I can cull newspapers and send them the

fruits of their labors. I can never navigate congressional archives. :( I am techno challenged on bullshit.

[Marblehead]

4. they want to

cull the herd, what better way than to freeze us to death...

[Tab]

5. Screw our "resources"

If you don't live up north (like I do) you may not appreciate the problem, but most houses heat with oil. A few heat with electricity (which sucks - dry heat), gas, or wood, but most are oil.

Oil tanks, which we have in our basement, hold 275 gallons.

An average winter, I guess we go through 3 or four tanks. That provides the heat and usually the hot water boiler.

So, effectively, in relatively no time at all, heating with oil has jumped from $2000 a winter to $4000+.

The offshore reserves don't have crap to do with it. If they were cranking and brought the price down to two bucks a gallon, maybe so, but they're not.

Real people up here need to heat their frickin' house, and when it's twenty degrees below zero, you don't have a choice. If you don't make a lot of money - or even if you do - the heating cost can put you right over the edge and mean the difference between food and warmth, or sustenance and foreclosure.

[liberal N proud]

6. Mr Potter and Mr Scrooge would let them all freeze

[Faygo Kid]

7. This is Bernie Sanders' LIHEAP bill, and this is terrible, terrible news.

The "Cool in Summer, Warm in Winter Act" is desperately needed.

With energy costs as high as they are, many will not be able to heat their homes this winter. The Rethuglicans are disgusting on this one.

This is a much, much bigger issue than the play it has gotten. People will actually die.

[boomerbust]

8. I invite

All these filthy pukes up here to Wisconsin in January and live a few days in a house with the thermostat set at 45 just so the pipes wont burst. I just dont understand how the average working stiff could ever vote for any of these filthy pukes!

[Historic NY]

9. How many frozen elderly will they find this winter.........

its become a choice between eating or freezing for some people especially the northeast.

[madrchsod]

10. eat or freeze is not an option

there will be hell to pay if that is the only option we have

[Ian David]

11. Republickers are evil, nasty vile creatures. I fucking hate them. Eat them first. n/t

[bluerum]

25. Eww. You would eat that?

[bluesmail]

12. Sociopaths

[catgirl]

13. Let's get to 60 this Nov.

A lot is at stake. I'll be helping up in NH to help win the senate seat there!

[2Design]

14. they helped their buddies in housing but not the poor n/t

[Delphinus]

15. I saw that

on the newscast tonight and just cried. :cry:

[Diane R]

16. Which democrats were missing, besides Obama & Kennedy? Is there a roll call?

[riverdeep]

18. The Republicans also voted for the decimation of SCHIP.

Remember? Letting kids die because of no healthcare? Anyone see a pattern?

[Odin2005]

19. BASTARDS!!!

My parent's are worried that they won't be able to AFFORD PROPANE FOR HEATING THEIR HOUSE this winter. (This is MINNESOTA, mind you, it gets DAMN FUCKING COLD in these parts) Bastards, fucking bastards. It is an outrage that there are people in this country that can't afford to heat their homes, and that 2 of those people are my mother and step-dad make this VERY FUCKING PERSONAL to me.

:grr: :grr: :grr: :grr: :grr: :grr: :grr: :grr: :grr: :grr: :grr:

There is a reason Scandinavians and us people of Scandinavian ancestry tend to be Liberals; in places with cold winters everyone makes sure nobody freezes to death.

[BunkerHill24]

20. I am Speechless!!!!

[mbperrin]

21. What a shock.

However, I do wish real ill to befall those who think people freezing is okay.

[sakabatou]

22. Kill, kill, kill, kill the poor...

[aquart]

23. Turn off the air conditioning in Congress.

[bluerum]

24. The point is not how much oil the oil Corps. have in inventory. The point is

helping people who can't pay the extortion money the oil corpos are demanding for heating oil.

Damn republicons. Always screwing the little guy.

[lonestarnot]

26. And we can wait 6 more months?

[underpants]

27. Okay read THIS in conjunction with this outrageous move by the Republicans

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3411629&mesg_id=3411629