Democrats frequently complain about gasoline prices, right before they take action to limit our available supply of oil -- thereby increasing prices further. The energy bill that they passed last year is an excellent example. In that legislation, Congress reclassified oil derived from Canada's tar sands as an alternative fuel which produced excessive amounts of carbon -- thereby putting it off limits for use by the U.S. government. That could put a serious crimp in plans to increase U.S. consumption of this fuel from 1 million barrels per day to 3 million barrels. From Investors Business Daily:

"Classifying the oil sands as a nonconventional fuel," said Tristan Landry, a spokesman for Canada's Embassy in Washington, "would unnecessarily complicate the integrated Canada-U.S. energy relationship."

"Unnecessarily complicate" is putting it politely. Really, it's like someone dying of thirst but refusing to drink from a burbling spring just feet away. It makes absolutely no sense.

Curiously, this provision poses problems for the U.S. and Canada -- one of our most loyal and trusted allies. However, just like the decision to block the Colombian FTA, it also makes Hugo Chavez very happy, since it would leave the United States a little more dependent on Venezuelan oil. One wonders what the Congressional approval rating is in Caracas.

In any case, the Air Force is weighing in heavily in an effort to get Congress to undo the ban. And Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) is expected to offer an amendment that would correct congress' monumental blunder:

Sources say Inhofe, who recently introduced a bill to repeal the GHG restrictions in section 526 of the 2007 energy law, may offer the proposal as a floor amendment to defense authorization legislation, which is currently pending in the Senate Armed Services Committee. The defense bill is expected to pass out of committee within the month and go to the floor shortly thereafter. Inhofe is a member of the Armed Services Committee and the ranking Republican on the Environment & Public Works Committee.

Let's hope that Congress decides its better to address the interests of the Defense Department and Canada than it is the government of Venezuela. No sure thing.