Timely death: Bill's demise opens next energy debate

Timing is everything. Democrats in the U.S. Senate couldn't have picked a worse time for the recent debate on a global warming bill that would've raised prices on gasoline and other energy sources while lopping billions off America's economic output for decades to come.

Americans might not understand the intricacies of the proposed cap-and-trade system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but they know $4-a-gallon gas and no doubt felt that those in Washington proposing legislation to kick those prices even higher had lost their minds.

When the key vote arrived on the so-called Lieberman-Warner bill, the floor manager, Sen. Barbara Boxer of California, couldn't scare up 50 votes. Members of the Senate are political creatures first, and they know how to duck and cover when there's a roll-call tally on bad legislation.

Credit Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa, for leading the opposition effort. During a similar debate a few years ago, Inhofe had trouble getting much help from his friends. More than 20 Republicans joined the debate to underscore Lieberman-Warner's folly — owing to the current energy picture and Inhofe's personal tenacity.

While we celebrate Lieberman-Warner's timely death, let's hope it catalyzes efforts to change foolish policies that are keeping billions of barrels of U.S. oil unavailable to mitigate the current situation. If anyone is responsible for America's inability to buffer itself against oil price shocks, it's those who have blocked drilling in remote Alaska and offshore for the past two decades.

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