"Drill, baby, drill" and the Florida delegates

ST. PAUL - Florida Republicans are hobnobbing today with former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, who it would seem has his eyes on Florida's coastline.

He started the "drill, baby, drill" call and response Wednesday that fired up the crowd in the convention hall: "So, do you want to put your country first?" Steele asked the crowd to cheers, "Then let's reduce our dependency on foreign sources of oil and promote oil and gas production at home. In other words, drill baby drill! And drill now!"

It'll be a different response Friday from Sen. Bill Nelson who is scheduled to deliver what his office bills as a "major energy policy speech" at the Forum Club of The Palm Beaches. Here's some of what he has to say and it isn't "drill, baby, drill."

He said he wants energy independence, but cautions "against listening to the misguided rhetoric and hollow chants like those heard on the floor of the Republican convention this week: 'Drill, baby, drill.'

"Such a seemingly swift and simple solution to high gas prices has no basis in reality.." Nelson said in remarks prepared for delivery. "More leasing will only delay America’s freedom from oil. And, if we do - 'drill, baby, drill' - we will dirty and destroy our state’s economy...More fundamentally – no matter what anybody says or writes – the U.S. has only three percent of the world’s oil reserves, while it uses nearly one-fourth of the world’s supply. That means we cannot drill our way out of this problem."

Nelson renews vow to block offshore oil drilling

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi may have suggested that she'll consider limited offshore oil drilling as part of a larger plan, but Bill Nelson says stay away from Florida's coast.

"We've got to have somebody who's going to think of the interests of the constituency instead of the interests of the party," Nelson said Wednesday as he endorsed Democrat Christine Jennings's bid for Congress. Full story here in the Bradenton Herald.

UPDATE: Pelosi's Miami appearance to attract protestors

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's appearance tonight at a book signing in Coral Gables is sparking a protest by a group of "concerned citizens, worried about prices at the pump." The group says its protesting Pelosi's decision to go on recess for the month of August -- and not take up bills to expand offshore oil drilling.

"It is disturbing that while American citizens are paying over four dollars a gallon at the pump, that the Speaker would adjourn Congress for 5 weeks without allowing a vote on possible solutions to the energy crisis," said event coordinator Armando Ibarra.

The Republican Party of Florida yesterday sent out an e-mail urging respondents to protest Pelosi's appearance, but Ibarra says his protest isn't related.

"I'm not coordinating with them, it's just and families I reached out to," he said. He said the group includes people from across the "political spectrum," though a Facebook aficionado notes that an Armando Ibarra was recently "tagged" in a photo participating in a campaign kickoff for Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, R-Miami.

Prez Bush continues the drill on drilling; Obama suggests he's open to a compromise

From his parents' vacation home in Kennebunkport, Maine, President Bush today continued hammering Democrats in Congress for leaving on August recess without taking up legislation to boost US oil drilling.

"Congress is now taking a month-long recess of its own," Bush said in his weekly radio address, noting August marks the start of many summer vacations. "Unfortunately, Democratic leaders are leaving town without taking any action to ease the burden of high gas prices on families across America."

He repeated his call for Congress to lift a ban that prevents offshore exploration of most of the U.S. coastline and said Democrats have prevented a vote on the issue. And he suggested a second benefit to lifting the ban, saying it would help create jobs.

Recent polls suggest more voters favor offshore oil drilling and Barack Obama -- who had rejected calls to lift the ban -- signaled Friday he'd be open to some drilling, if it was packaged with other efforts, including increased spending on alternative and renewable sources of energy.

He offered tempered praise for a bipartisan Senate proposal that melds drilling and renewables, even as Florida's two senators vowed to oppose the deal because it could put rigs as close as 50 miles to the Florida coast.

Opponents of drilling say it would do little to affect gas prices; most estimates say drilling wouldn't occur for at least 7 to 10 years.

Revolt on the House floor!

Blogs are ablaze with the news of the latest House GOP rebellion. Angry that House Democrats decided to leave the Capitol for summer recess without voting on oil drilling, Republicans, the Associated Press says, "occupied the House floor for a rare, and at times bizarre, protest against Democratic energy policies.

"The microphones were off, the House had stopped TV feeds to C-Span and the lights dimmed after the pre-noon vote to adjourn for the August recess. That didn't deter Republicans, who one after another rose to demand that Congress stay in session until it does something about high gas prices.

"Unlike a normal session where the rules of decorum are strictly enforced, GOP lawmakers and their aides who filled the chamber clapped, chanted, gave standing ovations and booed the Democrats.

"Madame Speaker, where art thou?" shouted out Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, in a glancing rhetorical shot at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. "Where oh where has Congress gone?"

One lawmaker was said to be on a plane to return home when he got word of the revolt and turned back to the Capitol.

Martinez denounces the "Gang of 10" drilling proposal

A bipartisan group of senators today unveiled what they said is an energy package that all sides will like.

Unless your side is in Florida. Republican Sen. Mel Martinez immediately denounced the plan, noting it would lift a 2006 moratorium on oil and gas exploration off Florida's Gulf Coast -- the same moratorium that he and Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson forged in 2006. Drilling under the plan, he said, could occur as close as 50 miles to the Florida shoreline.

"I compliment the group for coming together in a bipartisan way to try to address the current energy crisis," Martinez said. "Unfortunately, the proposal would eliminate Florida's 2006 Gulf protections and give Floridians absolutely no voice in determining where exploration could occur."

Floridians back oil drilling; pollsters see opportunity for McCain

With gas prices hovering near $4 a gallon, a majority of Florida voters now support drilling for oil in protected areas offshore, according to a new poll.

The survey found 60 percent of respondents favor drilling, with 10 percent telling pollsters they had opposed offshore drilling in the past. Thirty-six percent of respondents said they remain opposed to offshore drilling.

The poll of 1,248 likely Florida voters was conducted July 23-29 by Quinnipiac University. The margin of error: 2.8 percentage points. The poll also suggests Barack Obama and John McCain virtually tied in the key swing state, with McCain narrowing the gap since June.

Obama has a 46 percent lead to McCain's 44 percent, compared to a 47 to 43 percent lead for Obama in June.

Pollsters suggest oil drilling could be an opportunity for McCain, who in June reversed course, saying he would support lifting a two-decade old offshore drilling ban that prevents exploration off most of the nation's coastline. Obama has opposed the measure, saying it would do nothing to affect gas prices.

Poll: Floridians say let's drill; McCain/Obama neck and neck in Florida

With gas prices hovering at $4 a gallon, a majority of Floridians now support drilling for oil in protected areas offshore, according to a new poll.

The survey found 60 percent of respondents support drilling, with 10 percent telling pollsters they opposed offshore drilling in the past. Thirty-six percent of respondents said they remain opposed to offshore drilling.

The poll of 1,248 likely Florida voters was conducted July 23-29 by Quinnipiac University and has a margin of error of 2.8 percentage points.

The same poll also shows John McCain narrowing Barack Obama's advantage in the state. Obama has a 46 percent lead to McCain's 44 percent, compared to a 47 to 43 percent lead for Obama in June - a shift within the poll's 2.8 percentage point margin of error.

"While Obama was on tour, trying to show voters he could handle world affairs, voters were home trying to fill their gas tanks," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the school's polling institute.

Read more here.

Prez and Co. up the drilling pressure on Congress

President Bush and his administration pressed Democrats to take up offshore oil drilling, but it doesn't look like it will be happening anytime soon.

Bush, after meeting with his Cabinet, noted that he called on Congress last month to lift the offshore drilling ban, but that Democrats are poised to leave Washington for the summer "without taking any action on this vital priority for the American people."

Bush noted he's lifted the presidential ban: "I've done my part. And that means the only thing now standing between the American people and these vast oil resources is the United States Congress...The sooner Congress lifts the ban, the sooner we can get this oil from the ocean floor to your gas tank."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave no indication she'll bring a drilling bill up for a vote. She has said oil companies already hold acres and acres of unused leases.

"The president has failed in his economic policy and now he wants to say 'But for drilling in protected areas offshore, our economy would be thriving and the price of gas would be lower,' " Pelosi said. "That hoax is  unworthy of the serious debate we must have to relieve the pain of consumers at the pump and to promote energy independence."

Crist tells Financial Times he'll sue for oil as last resort

Continuing his ever-available presence on national and international media circuits, Gov. Charlie Crist today was asked by the Financial Times in London the same round of questions that have been dogging the governor for weeks: Will you really drill for oil off Florida's coast? Are you really being considered as McCain's VP?

The governor was asked if the president's lifting of the ban on offshore oil drilling gave states a chance to challenge the continuing moratorium. Crist said: “I suppose you could go to court potentially, but I think Congress has to change the law in order to lift the ban.”

Q: Would he take court action? A: “I’d consider anything that would be good for the people of my state,” but he repeated his preference for a congressional solution.

Q: Have you been vetted for the vice-presidency? A: “No. I can’t talk about it. Since [the post] has not been offered I’m prepared to accept being governor of Florida.”

(That's our emphasis added. Not to read too much into this, but is there a tinge of resignation and perhaps disappointment here?)

Ros-Lehtinen, Diaz-Balarts side with Dems on DRILL bill

Florida GOP'er Adam Putnam called it "sham legislation." House Republican leader John Boehner went even further, lambasting it as a "sham wrapped in a hoax."

But Miami Republican Reps. Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen apparently didn't see it that way. The three -- facing significant reelection challenges -- were among just 26 Republicans who sided with Dems and voted for a bill Democrats claim would boost domestic production of oil and gas.

Republicans successfully thwarted the bill -- at least for now -- with Alaska's Republican Don Young calling it "nothing more than a feeble attempt to fool the American people into believing that the Democratic leadership in Congress actually supports more drilling."

The bill - which had the backing of all the state's Democrats, was co-sponsored by Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa. Democrats say it would spur more drilling by imposing a "use it or lose it" provision on oil companies, forcing them to drill in areas they already lease.

The industry hailed the collapse of the legislation saying it would do little because it doesn't recognize that there are valid reasons for not developing every lease -- including lack of supply. Democrats are under pressure to address rising gas prices; President Bush upped the ante earlier this week by lifting a presidential ban on drilling in federal waters off the US coastline.

Jeb: I would've supported drilling at $4.30 a gallon

Former Gov. Jeb Bush tells the Florida Keys' Keynoter this week that "if he'd known while he was Florida's governor that oil would spike above $4.30 a gallon in the Keys, he would have been in favor of drilling for oil off Florida's coast.

In an e-mail to the Keynoter, he wrote that "had I known that gas was going to be $4.30 per gallon, as I stated, I would have supported a lifting of the moratorium with proper safeguards."

The paper notes his disclosure came the same day his brother, President George Bush, announced he was lifting the executive ban on offshore drilling in the United States.

Pelosi: Bush's plan "is a hoax"

President Bush says the ball's in Congress's court now that he's lifted a presidential ban on drilling offshore.

But judging from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's reaction, the ball isn't likely to budge.

"Once again, the oilman in the White House is echoing the demands of Big Oil," she said in a statement. "The Bush plan is a hoax. It will neither reduce gas prices nor increase energy independence. It just gives millions more acres to the same companies that are sitting on nearly 68 million acres of public lands and coastal areas."

Bush: Let's drill!

President Bush says he's lifted the presidential ban on offshore oil drilling his father imposed in 1990 and now it's time for Congress to act.

"It's been almost a month since I asked Congress (to lift the congressional ban) and they've done nothing," Bush said from the Rose Garden at the White House. "Failure to act is unacceptable. It's unacceptable to me and it's unacceptable to the American people."

Now, he says, "the ball is squarely in Congress's court."

He called for Congress to adopt legislation that allows the states to have a say in whether drilling is allowed. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has already said he's opposed, though Florida Gov. Charlie Crist relaxed his opposition to offshore oil drilling and sided with John McCain, who reversed his opposition to drilling.

Obama: Drilling would "merely prolong ..failed energy policies"

Here's what Barack Obama's campaign says about President Bush's lifting of the ban that prevents offshore oil drilling:

"If offshore drilling would provide short-term relief at the pump or a long-term strategy for energy independence, it would be worthy of our consideration, regardless of the risks. But most experts, even within the Bush administration, concede it would do neither. It would merely prolong the failed energy policies we have seen from Washington for 30 years. Senator Obama believes Americans need real short-term relief, which is why he has proposed a second round of stimulus with energy rebates for working families. And over the long-term, Senator Obama understands that our national security and the survivial of the planet demand a real strategy to break our dependence on foreign oil by developing clean, new sources of energy and by vastly improving the energey efficiency of our cars, trucks and our economy. He is ready to lead such a transformation."

Nelson: Bush is "cruelly misleading Americans"

No question where Sen. Bill Nelson stands on the question of rolling back the offshore drilling ban. He just sent out a release saying President Bush by lifting the offshore drilling ban is "cruelly misleading Americans for attempted political gain.

"He knows ruining our coastlines won't bring down gasoline prices nor solve our energy challenges," the Florida Democrat said. He notes that a recent administration report found that increasing offshore drilling "will have no impact on gas prices."

Nelson has pointed at oil speculators as the cause of rising prices and is pushing a bill that would ban all unregulated speculative trading in oil futures.

President Bush to lift ban on oil drilling

President Bush is scheduled to make remarks on offshore drilling today and announce that he's lifting the presidential ban on offshore drilling.

He's scheduled to appear at 1:30 p.m. in the Rose Garden and press secretary Dana Perino told reporters that he'll officially lift the ban. She said the move comes a month after Bush called on Congress to lift the ban -- but that "Democratic leaders in Congress have not shown a willingness to move forward. They haven't even held a single hearing.

"So we are going to move forward and hopefully that will spur action by the Congress," she said. "the baill is squarely in their court now..."

With gas prices topping $4 a gallon, Congress has come under increasing pressure to lift the decades-old ban that has protected the coastline. Dems, though, say lifting the ban will do nothing to affect prices.

It's also playing in the presidential election: John McCain reversed his opposition to coastal drilling and now supports it; Barack Obama opposes it.

McCollum says we don't need to drill off coast, we need more nuke power

Attorney General Bill McCollum added his name to the list of Republicans distancing themselves from Gov. Charlie Crist's call for the exploration of oil drilling off Florida's coast. At a press conference today, McCollum said: "I'm personally not in favor of drilling off the coast."

Instead, he said, "we need to make a special effort in our state to expand any kind of regulations to build nuclear power plants." He noted that Congress has "recently opened up more offshore property for exploration" and that he spent years debating the issue in Congress and is firmly opposed to drilling off Florida's coast.

"I know the governor has said he favors more offshore oil exploration,'' McCollum said. "I'm not in the same position."

Diaz-Balarts, Ros-Lehtinen vote aye on a bill GOP leaders pronounce a "fake solution"

At odds over how to address rising voter anger with soaring gas prices, House Republicans have spent part of the day deriding a Democratic proposal that would require oil companies to prove they're using land they've leased - or lose the leases.

The legislation failed to pass -- but it did get the support of Miami's three Republican members of Congress, who are facing their first significant re-election bids. Reps. Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen were among just 11 Republicans who voted in favor of the bill that House Republican Whip Roy Blunt called a "sham." He said the bill had been "thoroughly discredited by independent geologists, outside experts, and even members of their own caucus."

Schwarzenegger: expecting oil drilling to lower gas prices is 'blowing smoke'

Flying across the country to support the fight against global warming, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in Miami Thursday praised Gov. Charlie Crist's efforts, but firmly separated himself from Crist's recent support of off-shore drilling.

"Politicians have been throwing around all kinds of ideas in response to the skyrocketing energy prices, from rethinking nuclear power to pushing biofuels and more renewables and ending the ban on off-shore drilling, and it goes on and on the list," Schwarzenegger said.

"But anyone who tells you this will bring down our gas prices immediately and/or anytime soon is blowing smoke," he said as the audience applauded. "America is so addicted to oil that it will take years to wean ourselves off from it. And to look for new ways to feed our addiction is not the answer."

The Californian's other remarks, however, were unmitigated praise for Crist. He said his Republican counterpart in Florida was "doing such an extraordinary job'' in fighting climate change.

Speaking at the closing luncheon of  Crist's second summit on climate change in Miami, Schwarzenegger listed all the elements, some serious, some not, that California and Florida shared.

With a wry smile, he said each state had a governor with a good tan and each had one who could run for vice president. Then the Austrian-born Schwarzenegger sighed and said, no, as a foreign-born citizen, he couldn't run, but Crist  "can run and I can vote for him."

Read full story here.

-- JOHN DORSCHNER

Quote of the day:"It is B.S."

A routine congressional meeting ended in rancor and partisan bickering today when Republicans apparently tried to bring up a bid to open the coast to offshore oil drilling.

According to Republicans, Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee "chose to dissolve" a mark up of a spending bill "while in progress - rather than be forced to vote on an amendment to unlock American energy resources for the benefit of the American people."

But that's not the way Kirstin Brost, a spokeswoman for Rep. Dave Obey, D-Wisc., the chairman of the appropriations committee, saw it. She issued a press release calling the move the "latest Republican stunt.

"It should come as no surprise to anybody that Dave Obey has no patience for B.S.," Brost wrote. She noted that Obey said the Interior Appropriations bill -- to which GOP'ers would like to attach the drilling language -- is scheduled to go before the committee July 9, "giving folks a real debate and real votes on issues in that bill.

"Today's plan by Republicans to tie the committee in knots with a series of unrelated amendments was just another political stunt, the kind the American people have come to despise," she said. "It is B.S. and Obey won't put up with it."

Crist to WSJ: I do support a 125-mile buffer for oil drilling

Continuing his practice of spending more time with national media outlets that Florida's, Gov. Charlie Crist Wednesday gave a lengthy interview to the Wall Street Journal on oil drilling for this article. Among the new developments:

*the governor said he was not consulted by the McCain campaign before he made his statements on oil drilling,

*it is not a reversal of position if you are looking out for the pocketbooks of Floridians,

* he would like to see the 125-mile buffer from oil drilling be kept in place off Florida's coast (a suggestion former Gov. Jeb Bush first made here on Naked Politics)

* he still hasn't been asked to be vice president. The VP question when like this:

WSJ: Do you have any interest in being vice president?

Mr. Crist: No, I really don't. I'm enormously happy being governor of Florida -- I can't believe I'm governor of Florida. But I will do everything I can to help Sen. McCain because I think this is an awfully important election. Obviously, I endorsed him before the Florida primary, and the point of that was, you know, to help the man win.

WSJ: But if he asks, would you say yes?

Mr. Crist: He hasn't asked, so it's a moot question.

See story here.

Martinez: McCain will protect Florida's Gulf Coast from drilling

Mel Martinez joined a bevy of fellow Republican senators today to tout a GOP-led effort they say will reduce gas prices by among other things, opening the US coastline to drilling.

But Martinez says he's got assurances from GOP leadership that the Gulf of Mexico would be off-limits in the plan. Florida's Atlantic Coast, however, could be opened up to drilling, if the state decided to back the measure. Drilling would be banned within 50 miles of the coast.

"It's something I can live with," Martinez said, noting that it upholds a 2006 agreement that barred drilling within 125 miles of Florida's Gulf Coast. "I think Florida's well protected by this, which is why I'm able to support it."

His support puts him at odds with his Democratic counterpart, Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, who routinely said (pre-$4 a gallon gas) that the two were "joined at the hip" when it came to oil drilling proposals.

"To call this legislation the 'Gas Price Reduction Act' is cruelly deceitful," Nelson said. "That's because we now know from documents inside the Bush administration that coastal drilling won't lower prices."

Martinez said he has "every reason to believe" that John McCain -- who last week kicked off a storm when he endorsed lifting the decades-old ban on offshore drilling -- will support leaving the Gulf off limits.

Jeff Sadosky, a spokesman for McCain, said the presumptive GOP presidential nominee hadn't yet seen the legislation, but supports leaving it up to states to decide what to do off their coastlines.

The China-Cuba rumor that will not die

Vice President Dick Cheney's office says it isn't true. Mel Martinez even went to the Senate floor to blast its veracity. And columnist George Will said it isn't so.

But the claim that China is drilling some 60 miles off Florida's coastline won't die. In the latest incident, the Missouri Democratic Party has posted a YouTube clip of Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo., telling his constituents that "China's within 40 miles of our coast right now, drilling for oil, taking it out of the ground."

The clip features Graves repeating the claim even after Cheney and Martinez discredited it, along with a guest appearance by Martinez, calling the reports "akin to urban legend."

A spokesman for Graves referred the blog, Talking Points Memo, to a 2006 New York Times story that is often cited as the source of the drilling claim. The story doesn't say China is drilling, but was hoping to drill in Cuba. China doesn't however, hold any offshore leases, Martinez and others say.

But that hasn't stopped Republican lawmakers from using the spectre of China to push for opening Florida shores to drilling.

Crist now says oil drilling needs to be "far enough" and "safe enough"

After jumping headlong last week into an endorsement of oil drilling off Florida's shores, saying only that he thought it should be studied but remaining silent for days without clarification, Gov. Charlie Crist offered more thoughts Wednesday. In his speech to the Serve to Preserve climate change summit in Miami on Wednesday, he said:

"Comprehensive policy must include, in my view, a study of how to enhance our domestic oil supply. However, we must have an open discussion -- without compromising Florida's sensitive econsystems and natural beauty.''

He then explained, for the first time, that what he means is that the oil drilling happen "only when we are able to do so far enough from Florida's coast, safe enough for our people and clean enough for our beaches."

He said he stated that last week but, in fact if he had, it might have avoided some of the dust up.

Crist's final words to the conference on the subject: "Let me repeat that -- far enough, safe enough, clean enough.''

Nelson: Obama backs my bill

Sen. Bill Nelson says he's got Barack Obama's support for a bill to ban the unregulated speculative trading of oil futures and other energy commodities. Nelson says the measure will cut gas prices.

It comes as Democrats rebuff GOP efforts to open more coastal areas to drilling. Obama and John McCain clashed on the issue last week and Nelson, who will unveil his bill today, says Obama is co-sponsoring the legislation.

"Clearly, unregulated speculators have bid up oil prices to unbelievable and unacceptable highs," Nelson said. "Congress needs to step in.  We need to shine a light on all the participants and put an end to excessive speculation and any unlawful market manipulation."

President Bush pushes his bid to drill on the radio

President Bush took to the airwaves Saturday morning to pressure Congress to lift the ban on offshore drilling, claiming Democratic opposition to his energy plans has helped "drive gas prices to record levels."

"My administration has repeatedly called on Congress to open access to new oil exploration here in the United States," Bush said. "Unfortunately, Democrats on Capitol Hill have rejected virtually every proposal. Now Americans are paying the price at the pump for this obstruction."

Bush's call for drilling didn't create much opposition for his trip to Naples Friday. According to a press pool report of the event, his motorcade on return to the Fort Myers airport passed a hand-made "Stop Drilling" banner, "the only sign of protest among otherwise curious and supportive crowds."

Democrats in a rebuttal say "Bush and his Republican allies rallied behind the oil industry's political agenda once again, and advocated opening more of America's federal land, including coastal areas to drilling.

"This proposal," says Rep. Nick Rahall, D-West Va., "will not bring the type of relief Americans deserve at the pump."

Obama: "As president, I'll keep the drilling moratorium."

Barack Obama is sked to address the press in a bit in Jacksonville and his campaign says he'll open with a vow to "keep the moratorium in place and prevent oil companies from drilling off Florida’s coasts."

"What wouldn’t do a thing to lower gas prices is John McCain’s new proposal to open up Florida’s coastline to offshore drilling," he said in remarks prepared for delivery. "In what is becoming a bit of a regular occurrence in this campaign, Senator McCain once had a different position on offshore drilling.  And it’s clear why he did – it would have long-term consequences for our coastlines but no short-term benefits since it would take ten years to get any oil.

"Well, the politics may have changed, but the accuracy of his original position hasn’t. Offshore drilling would not lower gas prices today. It would not lower gas prices this summer. It would not lower gas prices this year. In fact, President Bush’s own Energy Department says that we won’t see a drop of oil from this proposal until 2017. It will take a generation to reach full production.  And even then, the effect on gas prices will be minimal at best."

Brown-Waite circa 2006, call your mother and defend Florida beaches; Brown-Waite 2008, time to drill!

Florida Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite will deliver the House Republican weekly radio address Saturday, sounding what is becoming a common GOP refrain: Democrats are to blame for rising gas prices.

"Watching gas prices rise from $2.32 a gallon in January 2007 to $4.08 this week, I am firmly convinced that Americans today face a new hostage crisis," Brown-Waite is to say. "Instead of a 1970s style OPEC embargo, however, American families and the United States economy are being held hostage by a Democrat Congress that refuses to explore for more oil and gas.

"It is about time for this Congress to wake up and face the fact that 'No' is not an energy policy," Brown-Waite says.

Two years ago, when Republicans controlled Congress, Brown-Waite was part of a united Florida delegation, firmly opposed to lifting a moratorium on drilling along the coast. During debate on the issue in May 2006, she urged her fellow lawmakers to call their mothers and grandmothers who have retired to Florida.

"I would ask you to pick up the phone and listen to what they say,'' the Brooksville Republican said at the time. "How much they love Florida and how much they love the beaches.''

The Democratic radio address will be delivered by Rep. Nick Rahall of West Virginia, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. He'll argue that President Bush and the GOP have "rallied behind the oil industry's political agenda once again... Big Oil does not need to be coddled. It needs a kick in the backside."

Gelber tells Crist Florida 'coastline is no political chit'

The Democratic pile-on over the oil drilling debate continues, this time with House Democratic Leader Dan Gelber sending a letter to Gov Charlie Crist urging him to reverse his reversal on oil drilling. Here's the letter:

Governor Crist,

You and I have worked together on many, many issues. While we don't always agree, I have always respected you for your willingness to engage an honest debate and avoid the rank partisanship that has defined our state for too long.

So it is in that spirit that I urge you to reconsider your support of Senator McCain and President Bush's position to lift the moratorium on drilling off the shores of Florida. Although I am confident that we will disagree on who to support for President, we both should be able to agree that Florida's pristine coastline should not become just another chit in presidential politics.

House Dems to oil companies: "Use it or Lose it"

Accused by Republicans of blocking efforts to find new sources of oil and gas, House Democrats today unveiled legislation they say will help lower gas prices by demanding that oil companies use what they say are 68 million acres of land onshore and offshore that they currently lease.

"Before we put Florida's economy and families at risk, I want to know why the major oil companies have yet to drill on more than 68 million acres of federal lands that are already under lease," said Rep. Tim Mahoney, D-Palm Beach Gardens, a co-sponsor of the legislation and opponent of plans to lift a drilling ban off the coast.

The act would bar companies from obtaining any more leases until they demonstrate they are producing oil and gas, or developing the leases they already hold.

Republicans have scoffed at the measure, saying oil companies already have time limits to explore and tap leases. They held a dueling press conference of their own, poking fun at two of the Democrats' more liberal members who earlier this week raised the possiblity of the government controlling gas prices.

"Apparently," said Rep. Adam Putnam, R-Bartow. "They went to the Hugo Chavez school of goverment enterprise."

Jeb's oil alternative: drill but preserve the buffer

Former Gov. Jeb Bush, who negotiated the federal-state compromise to keep drilling away from Florida shores, said in an email to the Miami Herald that he supports drilling off Florida with restrictions. His suggestion: reviving the 2006 compromise to create a deep buffer around Florida while lifting the moratorium on domestic oil and gas drilling.

"I support the president's continued advocacy to develop domestic sources of oil and gas with a sense of urgency," Bush said. "This does not diminish the long term need to conserve and develop alternative sources of energy.

"I would encourage Congress to reconsider the common sense plan that Congressman Pombo and I worked on in 2006. The proposal would have provided a 100 mile buffer of permanent protection around the state from Jacksonville to Pensacola and, at the same time, would have opened up millions of acres in the energy rich Central Gulf for new exploration."

See today's Herald on the rising Republican rift over oil driling, and the nuts and bolts questions surrounding drilling off Florida's coast.