Rep. Joe Barton (R-Tex.) thinks he stumped Energy Secretary Steven Chu at a hearing today. He tweets:
I seemed to have baffled the Energy Sec with basic question - Where does oil come from? Check out the video: http://bit.ly/O4m0p #tcot
The video is from a subcommittee hearing on energy legislation during which Barton quizzed Chu, a Nobel prize-winning physicist, on oil formation. Here's how it went down:
Barton: You're our scientist. I have one simple question for you in the last six seconds. How did all the oil and gas get to Alaska and under the Arctic Ocean?
Chu: (laughs) This is a complicated story, but oil and gas is the result of hundreds of millions of years of geology, and in that time also the plates have moved around, and so, um, it's the combination of where the sources of the oil and gas are--
Barton: But, but wouldn't it obvious that at one time it was a lot warmer in Alaska and on the North Pole. It wasn't a big pipeline that we created in Texas and shipped it up there and then put it under ground so that we can now pump it out and ship it back.
Chu: No. There are--there's continental plates that have been drifting around throughout the geological ages--
Barton: So it just drifted up there?
Chu: That's certainly what happened. And so it's a result of things like that.
Daily Kos's Markos Moulitsas is worried that some conservatives' attempts to redefine the 4th of July constitute a "War on the 4th of July" similar to a "War on Christmas" conservatives have complained about.
The conservative war on 4th of July, far more real than the bogus "War on Christmas". http://bit.ly/nD7Lp
Moulitsas linked to another blog in his tweet, which outlines efforts by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich to make this year's Independence Day "American Freedom Day," in which last week's tea partiers would recruit more supporters.
Conservatives have long complained that liberals have waged a "War on Christmas" by seeking to redefine it and remove the religious significance of the holiday to Christians.
Former Rep. and Connecticut Senate candidate Rob Simmons (R) is using new media -- Twitter -- to spread the word about his use of old media -- the telephone -- this Wednesday.
Simmons had pledged to personally call five donors from Connecticut who donated to his campaign in the last 24 hours. The fundraising ploy was meant to take a jab at Simmons's opponent, Sen. Chris Dodd (D), who only received five in-state donations in the first fundraising quarter this year.
Look to see more of Sen. John Thune on Twitter -- the South Dakota Republican was named one of the three co-chairmen of the Congressional Internet Caucus on Wednesday.
Thune will help lead the 150-member caucus, consisting of lawmakers in both parties and both houses, as the Congress continues to increase its use of new media and Web 2.0 technologies to craft and deploy messages.
Thune, a newcomer to Twitter whose first tweet came on April 7, tweeted Wednesday:
Just named Co-Chair of the Cong. Internet Caucus-- bipartisan/bicameral group with over 150 members. DM me with your ideas or suggestions.
Thune's reference of a "DM" refers to a "direct message" two followers of Twitter can send to each other through the microblogging service. The direct messages are still fewer than 140 characters, but are private messages, unlike "@" replies users exchange with each other.
Debt Day (4/26) is a symbol of Washington's arrogant culture of borrowing & spending: http://tinyurl.com/clpqrk
Debt Day, Boehner explained in an op-ed today for a conservative web magazine, is the day in the government's fiscal calendar when spending by the government exceeds its available revenue.
Rep. Joe Sestak (D-Pa.) tweeted on Wednesday his speech in the House memorializing legendary Philadelphia Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas, who passed away last week.
Kalas collapsed in the annoucers' booth before calling the Washington Nationals' home opener against the Phillies here in D.C.
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