Yes, to counter the GOP’s successful efforts at exposing the truth the liberal Democrats don’t want you to hear (namely that Dems don’t want to vote on oil drilling or anything that would bring down the price of oil/gas), MoveOn.org is planning a counter-protest (read: astroturf) tomorrow afternoon at the Capitol.

So, while Republican leaders in DC are demanding that we actually debate the American energy crisis and try to solve some problems for Americans who are suffering daily at the pump…MoveOn.org will help their Democrat friends by creating a distraction by waving their hands frantically in a nearby location.

Hopefully, they will behave with some dignity, but their history suggests otherwise.

Here’s the email they sent out to their membership in the DC area (names of spies protected):

—— Forwarded Message
From: “Noah T. Winer, MoveOn.org Political Action” <moveon-help@list.moveon.org>
Date: Mon, 04 Aug 2008 19:11:__

To:

Subject: URGENT: Emergency rally in DC

Tomorrow (Tuesday), we’re organizing an event at the Capitol to highlight the GOP’s extensive ties to Big Oil. We’ve invited the media, and having a good crowd is critical to show them that voters don’t want oil industry gimmicks, they want real solutions like alternative energy to solve our energy crisis. Can you make it at 4 PM?
<http://pol.moveon.org/0805oilrallyrsvp.html?id=13396-9767871-GTosdix&amp;t=1> Click Here <http://pol.moveon.org/0805oilrallyrsvp.html?id=13396-9767871-GTosdix&amp;t=2>
Dear DC-area MoveOn member,

Republicans have been escalating their attacks on Obama and the Democrats over oil drilling, and we need to push back hard. Will you come to our emergency rally outside the Capitol tomorrow (Tuesday)?

House Republicans have been “protesting” ever since Congress adjourned on Friday because Speaker Pelosi blocked their offshore drilling plan. Speaker Pelosi blocked their plan because it won’t help lower gas prices—but it will line the pockets of Big Oil executives, the same people donating millions of dollars to Republicans.

But Republicans are working hard to make it seem like they’re fighting for cash-strapped commuters—and not the oil companies who wrote their plan.

So tomorrow (Tuesday), we’re organizing our own protest to highlight the GOP’s extensive ties to Big Oil. We’ve invited the media, and having a good crowd is critical to show them that voters don’t want oil industry gimmicks—they want real solutions like alternative energy to solve our energy crisis.

Can you make it at 4 PM on Tuesday?

Here are the details:

What: Rally to Stop Big Oil Gimmicks
Where: US Capitol Building
Meet in front of Grant Memorial (statue of Grant on a Horse)
On the Mall, 1st    Street, between Pennsylvania Avenue and Maryland Avenue,  below the west front of the United    States Capitol Building Click Here for a Map <http://www.moveon.org/r?r=4008&amp;id=13396-9767871-GTosdix&amp;t=3>
When: Tuesday, August 5, 2008 at 4 P.M.
RSVP: http://pol.moveon.org/0805oilrallyrsvp.html?id=13396-9767871-GTosdix&t=4

Republicans have been dominating the debate around gas prices for weeks with their sham drilling plan. Oil drilling is a gimmick and the only reason they’re pushing for it is because their donors in the oil industry want it.

Their latest stunt is getting a lot of press coverage. But no one has challenged their ridiculous arguments, so we have to.

Here are few key facts about oil drilling:
It’s a gimmick. The US only has 1.6% of the world’s oil. And drilling could take over a decade or more to produce any oil.1
It won’t lower gas prices. Even after a decade-long wait, the price will barely drop a few cents per gallon.1
America knows drilling won’t work. According to a recent poll, 54% of poll respondents said they did not believe more drilling would lower gas prices. And 63% said opening up public lands to oil and gas drilling is more likely to enrich oil companies than to lower gas prices for American consumers.2
Voters are ready for real solutions.  The public overwhelmingly believes (76%!) that policymakers should focus on investing in new energy technologies including renewable fuels and more efficient vehicles rather than expanding exploration and drilling for more oil.2
Tomorrow, we’ll call out the Republican stunt and remind the media and the Republicans that voters want real solutions—not oil industry gimmicks like drilling.

Can you join us at 4 P.M. on Tuesday in front of the Capitol?

http://pol.moveon.org/0805oilrallyrsvp.html?id=13396-9767871-GTosdix&t=5

Thanks for all you do.

–Noah, Lenore, Ilyse, Nita and the rest of the team

Sources
1. “Correcting the Record: You can go to the Energy Information Agency,” Office of Speaker Pelosi, June 18 2008
http://www.speaker.gov/blog/?p=1390

2. “Americans Don’t Believe Bush, Industry Claims on Gas Prices, Poll Shows,” Wilderness Society poll, July 24, 2008
http://tinyurl.com/5v7mgp

Want to support our work? We’re entirely funded by our 3.2 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here <http://political.moveon.org/donate/email.html?id=13396-9767871-GTosdix&amp;t=6> .

PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. This email was sent to Tierra Warren on August 4, 2008. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here <http://moveon.org/subscrip/coa.html?id=13396-9767871-GTosdix> . To remove yourself from this list, click here <http://moveon.org/s?i=13396-9767871-GTosdix> .

—— End of Forwarded Message

Congressman Cantor has created an online petition with a simple demand—for Speaker Pelosi to call Congress back into session to deal with high energy prices.  Sign it now.

From the petition:

“We, the undersigned, believe that gas prices are too high. Speaker Pelosi has closed Congress for a five-week paid vacation, without taking any action to lower gas prices. We, the undersigned, have a simple demand: Call Congress Back, Madam Speaker!”

Politico and House Republican Leader John Boehner’s blog have some great quotes from House Republicans about the Republican Revolt and the Democrats’ do-nothing attitude about skyrocketing energy costs.

From Rep. Mike Pence:

“We believe that Congress should reconvene because Americans will not take a vacation due to gasoline prices….Congress should not be out.”

“The American people won’t get a vacation from high gasoline prices, so why should Congress take a five week vacation?”

From Rep. Steve King:

“We produce more renewable energy in our district than in any of the 434 other districts. In our land, we know about energy. Not Pe-la-la-losi-land! Here, we know what we’re talking about.”

[Puts up a huge poster of Pelosi] : “This is her dilemma: ‘I am trying to save the planet, I am trying to save the planet!’ She wants the planet restored to some imagined state of being. She says she wants to save the planet but doesn’t show concern for the homo sapiens that live on it! She doesn’t want our standard of living to go up, she doesn’t want more energy. We might as well backtrack and start at the Garden of Eden.”

From Rep. Jim Jordan:

“Most politicians don’t see the light, they feel the heat.”

From Rep. John Kline:

“There’s a saying that everything has been said but not everyone has said it, now it’s my turn. The question is what has Congress has done about the price of gasoline. The answer: Congress has done nothing.”

From Rep. Thaddeus McCotter:

“This is the people’s House.  This is not Pelosi’s politburo.”

Day 2 of the Guerilla Congress was today and the GOP did not relent in demanding that Dems return from their five-week vacation to allow votes on how to solve our energy crisis. While the Dems are out sitting on beaches of lying to constituents, many GOP Members have chosen to stay or come back to DC to continue the debate on offshore drilling and energy policy in general.

Here’s a video caught by College Republicans of Rep. Marsha Blackburn from TN speaking today on the House floor:

The below video covers the opening of the Washington (state) HQ for McCain as part of the Street Team ‘08 journalism effort from MTV. Notice anything? I’d say the average age of the volunteers manning the phones is somewhere around 20 years old and the guy they interview on screen is shown as 29.

The youth believe McCain truly means it when he says he will work to change the way Washington works, not because of some digengenuous lofty rhetoric, but because of his long record of doing so while serving our country. That’s why we support him for president over The One.

MTV’s Street Team ‘08 reports can be viewed here.

Very interesting. I thought maybe this had begun to die down, but that is certainly not the case. The heavy-handed Obama machine continues to disrespect and exclude former supporters of Hillary Clinton.

For the whole scoop, click here to read the PJM article.

Last Friday, House Republicans did an amazing thing.  After weeks of contentious debate about the energy crisis, Democrats decided to take a five week vacation before the House reached a solution.

Republicans in the House thought that going on vacation when so many Americans are suffering from high energy prices was irresponsible, and refused to leave the House chamber.  They spoke for hours on the importance of passing an energy bill immediately, and insisted that Pelosi call the House back into session so legislation could be passed.

Meanwhile, the Democrats did everything in their power to shut the demonstration down.  Politico reports that lights and microphones were turned off, C-SPAN cameras were not allowed to broadcast, and Capitol Police tried to kick reporters out of the press gallery.  Reporters were kicked out of the Speaker’s lobby, where they normally interview lawmakers.

The House Republicans stopped their demonstration at 5 p.m. on Friday with a round of “God Bless America,” but this is far from over.  They are back on the Hill today to pick up where they left off.

Along the way, several Representatives (including Reps. Pete Hoekstra and John Culberson) have been sharing what is happening on the House floor through Twitter.  Be sure to follow their Tweets today as they continue to fight for Americans.  You can also follow the Twitter feed of what is going on here, and watch video here.  Be sure to check it throughout the day—this is bound to stay interesting.