Washington Crude

As one of the candidates remarked in last week's Republican debate; " Whenever something good happens there's always a politician ready to take credit for it and when ever something goes wrong there is always a politician to blame someone for it." I wish my memory was good enough to credit that candidate because he hit the mark dead center. Last week President Blood and Guts Obama, to put it kindly, was taking credit for the death of Osama bin Laden. To put it unkindly he was exploiting the death of the late Mr. bin Laden. Then it was off to Texas to blame the Republicans in Congress for the immigration mess that has been his responsibility for the past two years.

Senate Democrats, who couldn't even get a peek of bin Laden's photo, nevertheless praised the courageous President for his guts and determination and pondered their own political opportunities. Not wanting to gloat over the underhanded passage of Obamacare and not really sure if they wanted to tout the virtues of the Dodd-Frank bill when it might blow up in their faces by making the big Wall Street banks uncompetitive in global finances they scoured the Drudge Report for news of any impending disaster they might exploit. Eureka! Gasoline prices were approaching $4. per gallon.

Immediately the CEO's of the 5 largest oil companies were summoned to a hearing to be scolded, scorned, and mau maued. Yes, it was time big oil paid its fair share. And what was its fair share? Unlike General Electric, the jolly giant of green energy who paid no US taxes these companies paid an effective tax rate of 47% in foreign and US taxes. The scam proposed legislation the kindly Senators have in mind is to not allow these 5 companies to take credit on taxes paid to foreign countries thus exposing these companies to double taxation who, unlike General Electric, friend of all good Democrats, repatriate every cent of their foreign earnings. Unlike General Electric, great friend of President Obama, they would gladly hire Americans to drill for and refine oil right in these United States instead of manufacturing windmills in the Philippines instead of Ohio.

Senator Chuck Schumer, whose largest coup-d'etat was the deliberate crashing of Indy bank in 2008 by pointing out its shaky balance sheet, oiled his way through the hearing and expressed outrage that Jim Mulva of Conoco Phillips had labeled the singling out of just 5 companies to bear the cost of double taxation as un American. About half way through the hearing I decided C-Span, although a godsend for greasy senators was a mixed blessing for its viewers and that Sen. Schumer was probably a child pornographer in an earlier life.