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Anonymous
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Bush could do something today- but he puts the banking/speculators interests and profiteering ahead of that of the working person....
Obama Vows Crackdown on Energy Speculators
Sunday, June 22, 2008 4:00 PM
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Barack Obama on Sunday said as president he would strengthen government oversight of energy traders he blames in large part for the skyrocketing price of oil.
The Democratic candidate's campaign singled out the so-called "Enron loophole" for allowing speculators to run up the cost of fuel by operating outside federal regulation. Oil closed near $135 a barrel on Friday _ almost double the price a year ago.
"My plan fully closes the Enron loophole and restores commonsense regulation as part of my broader plan to ease the burden for struggling families today while investing in a better future," Obama said in a campaign statement.
Obama's campaign blamed the loophole on former Sen. Phil Gramm, a Texas Republican who serves as Republican candidate Sen. John McCain's co-chairman and economic adviser. The Obama campaign accused Gramm of inserting a provision into a bill in late 2000 "at the behest of Enron lobbyists" that exempted some energy traders from government oversight.
Houston-based Enron collapsed in scandal in 2001 when it was discovered the company had vastly overstated its income.
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Congress already has acted to close the loophole, including a provision in the huge farm bill that passed earlier this year. But Obama's campaign said the candidate would go further by requiring that U.S. energy futures be traded on regulated exchanges.
Obama also would ask the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to consider whether traders should be subject to higher margin requirements. He also would work with other countries to regulate energy markets and press the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice to investigate possible market manipulation.
http://www.newsmax.com/politics/obama_energy_plan/2008/06/22/106629.html