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Peter Callaghan is a local columnist. He’s covered the statehouse and state politics since 1981. Before joining The News Tribune in 1985, the Stadium High grad worked for newspapers in Everett and Lewiston, Idaho, and for The Associated Press in Olympia and Seattle. Email Peter

Joe Turner has covered state government and transportation issues since 1990. Since the Bellarmine grad’s arrival in the newsroom in 1978, he’s covered police, suburban cities, Tacoma City Hall, Federal Way City Hall and the Pierce and King county governments. Email Joe

David Wickert covers Pierce County government. Before coming to The News Tribune in 1998, he covered local government for newspapers in Illinois, Virginia and Tennessee. Email David

Ian Demsky is a general assignment reporter who specializes in database-driven reporting. He's been at the News Tribune since 2007 and has previously worked in Nashville, Tenn. and Portland, Ore. When he's not at work, he enjoys hiking and science fiction. Email Ian
Les Blumenthal has been covering Washington, D.C. for The News Tribune since 1990, focusing on issues and politicians involving the state. Before joining The News Tribune, he spent 13 years working for The Associated Press in Seattle, Illinois and Washington, D.C. Email Les

John Henrikson is a local news editor who oversees political coverage. He's worked as a journalist in the Northwest for 19 years, supervising coverage and reporting on local and state government, the environment and growth. Email John

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Let's talk politics.
Thursday, July 17th, 2008
Posted by Hunter George @ 05:00:39 pm

From our man in D.C., Les Blumenthal:

U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell is blocking three nominations to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, saying that the federal agency has failed to regulate oil markets even as the price of gasoline hits new highs almost daily.

“I want them to do their job,” the Washington state Democrat said.

Cantwell’s action came as the Senate began debate today on a bill designed to rein in speculation on the markets in which crude oil futures are traded. The senator and others believe that speculators have driven up the price of oil and could be responsible for more than $1 of the cost of a gallon of gasoline at the pump.

Though some Republicans are sympathetic to the need to provide tighter control over energy markets, they say any energy legislation should include lifting the congressional moratorium on offshore drilling for oil and natural gas.

Cantwell and most Democrats oppose lifting the offshore-drilling ban. They quote the Department of Energy as saying that offshore oil and gas wells wouldn’t come online for seven to 10 years and the impact on prices would be insignificant. Democrats also say that oil companies already have more than 68 million acres along the outer continental shelf and on other federal lands under lease that haven’t been drilled on.

Republicans counter that there are abundant resources offshore and that polls show a majority of Americans support more drilling on the outer continental shelf.

"All we are getting from the majority is silence," said New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici, the ranking Republican on the Senate Natural Resources Committee. "The American people are calling for solutions, and they are getting excuses."

Cantwell has been one of Capitol Hill’s toughest critics of the Commodities Futures Trading Commission and has been calling for tougher regulation of oil and gas markets.

Two of the three nominees already serve on the commission and would be reappointed if they’re confirmed: acting Chairman Walter Lukken, a former general counsel to the Senate Agriculture Committee, who’d become the full-time chairman; and Bart Chilton, a former lobbyist for the National Farmers Union who worked in the Agriculture Department during the Clinton administration.

The third nominee is Scott O’Malia, a former adviser to Domenici on oil and gas issues and a one-time executive with Mirant, an Atlanta-based energy company.

Categories: Congress 6 comments

COMMENTS:

billyizme @ 17:40 - Thursday, July 17th, 2008 Email
course one factor in the price of oil is supply. what senator lead the fight against more drilling in alaska ?

it wasnt maria cantwell was it ?????????

wow ! it was.
boazo @ 19:00 - Thursday, July 17th, 2008 Email
Someone should give her another brain cell, so the one she has won't get lonely.
pungentsound @ 20:02 - Thursday, July 17th, 2008 Email
hey, 3000 plus Americans dead fighting for a country full of mindless ragheads. Everybody said it was about oil. OK let's make it about oil and take it we sure as hell paid for it they didn't. WE have it let's keep it. It's time for no more Mr. Nice Guy. If we are the new Nazi's let's start acting like it. If not get the hell out.
moo @ 21:13 - Thursday, July 17th, 2008 Email
Good for Cantwell. Hopefully for ONCE the Dems don't cave. They haven't followed any of the mandate we elected them on in 2006. We're still in Iraq, & they roll over & play dead anytime dubbya wants anything.

Good Democrat puppy. Roll over, fetch.
jimkingjr @ 00:25 - Friday, July 18th, 2008 Email
Block some commission appointments. Really gets the job done, yes?
notme @ 13:55 - Friday, July 18th, 2008 Email
Before we get too critical of Sen Cantwell and pooh-pooh her blocking "some commission appointments" let's recall it was the same Senator Cantwell who smelled a rat in the the electric energy crisis earlier this decade and badgered another commission sufficiently that the blatant manipulation of the energy markets was finally uncovered. Senator Cantwell is on the right track and done more on behalf of consumers than any Republican in Congress or the administration.

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