Ah Nostalgia! Republican Congressional Campaign Committee Brings Back An Oldie And Not So Goodie - Red Baiting

Not sure what they were thinking at the National Republican Congressional Committee, where they are clearly worried that they may be overseeing the transfer of control of the House of Representative from their party to the other guys this fall. Wonkette posted the top graph or two from a press release from the committee which accuses the Democrats of turning to a communist organization for help this fall. In the press release the NRCC refers to this article in the People's Weekly World , which simply points out what many other observers are beginning to realize, New York may be in for a big shift this year as the governor's office is expected by many to change parties and New York may contribute one or more of the seats Democrats nead to flip to take control of Congress. What a subversive, commie article this is!! What a s-t-r-e-t-c-h this is by the NRCC.

WORKING ON THE SENATE AS WELL


Meanwhile, the Democrats are hard at work trying to gain the upper hand in the Senate as well, a possible, but still improbable feet according to most pundits. If the change takes place, New York Magazine reports this week, it will be in no small part due to New York Sen. Charles Schumer who is heading up the overal campaign for the Democrats in the Senate.

ZOGBY HAS MORE GLAD TIDINGS FOR THE DEMS


A New Zogby poll out today shows Sen. Hillary Clinton and Democratic gubenatorial candidate and current state Attorney General Elliot Spitzer well out ahead in their races. Clinton has a 54-33 lead over former Yonkers mayor John Spencer. President Bush's job approval rating is sub-30 in this poll and when asked which party they would like to see lead Congress after the elctions, voters say the Democrats by a 27-point margin over the Republicans. Some of these numbers were jointly released by Zogby and the Wall Street Journal over the weekend and it should be pointed out that while Spencer still trails Clinton by a wide margin, he did pick up 10 points on her since the last poll in January.

CLINTON CALLS FOR WINDFALL PROFITS TAX TO FUND ENERGY RESEARCH

Clinton sent out a letter to supporters today calling for a windfall profits tax on oil companies, which would require them to place the funds in an alternative energy research fund. She also calls for consumer tax credits for those who buy hybrid cards and financial incentives for auto makers who produce more fuel-efficient cars. If you didn't get one, you can read the letter outlining the plan in detail here:

Like so much else, America's energy policy is going in the wrong direction. We actually import more oil from the Gulf today than before the beginning of the Iraq War. Increased energy costs are squeezing American businesses and consumers, with working families paying more to go to work, while seniors face too-high bills to heat their homes.

Yet, the Bush administration continues to support increased subsidies for oil and gas companies that are already making record breaking profits.

Hillary believes we must change course.

"Assess the oil companies an alternative energy development fee, taken solely out of unanticipated profits from sky high oil prices, to be put into a new Strategic Energy Fund. The Fund would promote adoption of existing clean energy and conservation technologies; stimulate research and investment by the private sector into the next generation of energy technologies; and help consumers cope with spiraling energy costs. It's not about new energy taxes on consumers - it's about redirecting the hidden 'tax' that middle class Americans are already paying to OPEC and the oil companies in the form of higher prices and harnessing it to secure our energy future."

Hillary believes we must invest in reducing demand for oil by getting more hybrids and other advanced technology vehicles on the road; we should expand consumer tax credits for these vehicles and offer incentives for American automobile manufacturers to produce new, even more efficient technologies.

To reduce demand for electricity and natural gas, we should be doing much more now to make homes and businesses energy efficient. But the President’s budget cuts back on efficiency, such as a program for low-income housing that reduces heating bills an average of 31%!

We also need to develop and deploy alternative sources of energy. The largest wind farm east of the Mississippi is being built in upstate New York, and a large biofuels facility is planned nearby. These renewable energy projects will help achieve energy independence and strengthen rural economies. We should be expanding use of these and other alternative sources of energy, including geothermal and solar.

And we must increase funding for energy research. Hillary has sponsored legislation to create an Advanced Research Project Agency within the U.S. Department of Energy, as recommended by the National Academy of Sciences. This new agency would fund a diverse portfolio of cutting-edge energy research projects to reduce oil dependence, increase energy efficiency, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"This is a nation of innovation when we set our minds to it," Hillary said. "We know investment in public-sector research works - it's what brought us the Manhattan and Apollo Projects and the Information Age, from the Internet to Google and beyond. ...The energy revolution can be as big and important as the industrial revolution and the explosion of the information age."

For the sake of our future, we must change the direction of America's energy policy. Hillary will be addressing this important issue in the coming weeks. If you are interested in learning more, please let us know by clicking here.

Thank you, as always, for being a Friend of Hillary.

Sincerely,

Ann F. Lewis