State of the Superpower

House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi finally agreed to include provisions for limited oil exploration on the Outer Continental Shelf in new energy legislation scheduled for debate later this year.

Click for GOP Prepared To Cut Oil Drilling Deal With Pelosi

Click for Democrats To Offer Bill With Offshore Oil Drilling

Click for Congress To Vote On Drilling Ban

In a major policy reversal, Mrs. Pelosi said legislators will “consider opening portions of the Outer Continental Shelf for drilling, with appropriate safeguards, and without taxpayer subsidies to Big Oil”.

By allowing for limited coastal oil drilling, Mrs. Pelosi and the Democratic Majority not only diffuse a political landmine, but also force their Republican counterparts to confront some unpleasant political realities of their own.

Any energy legislation granting expanded oil exploration will certainly be laced with provisions House Republicans oppose, including windfall taxes on Big Oil, the release of oil from the strategic reserve, and mandates requiring specific amounts of power to come from renewable sources.

Congressional Republicans would be left with two choices: vote for a bill they don’t like or oppose drilling legislation that doesn’t “coddle” the oil industry and further cement their image as the champion of Main Street over Wall Street.

The two sides could compromise, but after 7 years of the Bush Administration’s “my way or the highway” philosophy coupled with traditional election year posturing, it seems unlikely.

House Republicans should be careful what they wish for. They just might get it.