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McCain Closely Connected with man responsible for high Gas Prices
In the early evening of Friday, December 15, 2000, with Christmas break
only hours away, the U.S. Senate rushed to pass an essential,
11,000-page government reauthorization bill. In what one legal textbook
would later call “a stunning departure from normal legislative
practice,” the Senate tacked on a complex, 262-page amendment at the
urging of Texas Sen. Phil Gramm.
There was little debate on the floor. According to the Congressional Record, Gramm promised that the amendment—also known as the Commodity Futures Modernization Act—along with other landmark legislation he had authored, would usher in a new era for the U.S. financial services industry....
The impact of the “Enron loophole” has been enormous. Since its passage, the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations has concluded that the loophole contributed to inflated energy prices for American consumers. In 2006, its report found credible expert estimates that the loophole—by encouraging speculation—accounted for $20 of the price of a barrel of oil, then at $70. In 2007, the same committee blamed the loophole for price manipulation of the natural gas market by a single hedge fund, Amaranth Advisors....
Last September, Michigan Democratic Sen. Carl Levin introduced legislation to close the loophole, citing two congressional reports blaming it for excessive speculation that has “unfairly increased the cost of energy in the United States.”
In announcing his legislation on the Senate floor, Levin noted that the Enron loophole was “inserted at the last minute, without any opportunity for debate, into commodity legislation that was attached to an omnibus appropriations bill ... in the waning hours of the 106th Congress.
“The loophole has helped foster the explosive growth of trading on unregulated electronic energy exchanges,” Levin said. “It also rendered the U.S. energy markets more vulnerable to price manipulation and excessive speculation with resulting price distortions.”
Asked about Levin’s legislation, Phil Gramm expresses ignorance. “I don’t know what provision in the law he’s talking about.”
http://www.texasobserver.org/article.php?aid=2767
There was little debate on the floor. According to the Congressional Record, Gramm promised that the amendment—also known as the Commodity Futures Modernization Act—along with other landmark legislation he had authored, would usher in a new era for the U.S. financial services industry....
The impact of the “Enron loophole” has been enormous. Since its passage, the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations has concluded that the loophole contributed to inflated energy prices for American consumers. In 2006, its report found credible expert estimates that the loophole—by encouraging speculation—accounted for $20 of the price of a barrel of oil, then at $70. In 2007, the same committee blamed the loophole for price manipulation of the natural gas market by a single hedge fund, Amaranth Advisors....
Last September, Michigan Democratic Sen. Carl Levin introduced legislation to close the loophole, citing two congressional reports blaming it for excessive speculation that has “unfairly increased the cost of energy in the United States.”
In announcing his legislation on the Senate floor, Levin noted that the Enron loophole was “inserted at the last minute, without any opportunity for debate, into commodity legislation that was attached to an omnibus appropriations bill ... in the waning hours of the 106th Congress.
“The loophole has helped foster the explosive growth of trading on unregulated electronic energy exchanges,” Levin said. “It also rendered the U.S. energy markets more vulnerable to price manipulation and excessive speculation with resulting price distortions.”
Asked about Levin’s legislation, Phil Gramm expresses ignorance. “I don’t know what provision in the law he’s talking about.”
http://www.texasobserver.org/article.php?aid=2767
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