Republicans Loves Em Some Oil Subsidies

Energy is the Lifeblood of Civilization

Not surprising: oil corporations love Republicans as much as Republicans love oil corporations.

Despite statements in the past week from Speaker John Boehner and tax-and-program slasher Paul Ryan that oil company subsidies should be included in items getting the ax, House Republicans today voted in unison for a procedural motion that kicked the legs out from under a proposal which would have chopped one of those key subsidies. Every single Republican voted for the motion, along with seven Democrats who jumped ship. Democrats wanted to defeat the motion so that they could bring up a bill penned by Rep. Tim Bishop (NY-01) to repeal the Section 199 domestic manufacturing tax credit for the five largest oil companies. The provision, part of a 2004 law meant to promote domestic production, allows corporations to reduce their taxable income by 9 percent under prescribed circumstances.

Although Democrats knew from the outset that there was no chance they would win on the procedural motion, they had hoped to get Republicans on the record at a time when American consumers are unhappy over rising gas prices and rising oil-company profits. By that measure, they succeeded.

(click here to continue reading Daily Kos: Number of Republicans who voted to allow vote to cut oil subsidy: Zero.)

But hey, tax breaks for oil corporations just means there is less revenue in the US Treasury, and thus less teachers and police, and so forth. Win, win, right? Unless of course you like living in an educated country, or like law and order, yadda yadda. Ya damn Socialist, you.

In fact, no company on this list of most profitable should get any tax relief, at all, imo.

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