Dems defeat Saxman off-shore drilling bill ... Creigh Deeds votes against it

The Democrats in the state senate voted down Del. Chris Saxman's off-shore drilling bill ... and Bath County's Democrat Sen. Creigh Deeds was one of them.

Del. Saxman's bill proposed pouring badly needed financial resources into transportation for the Commonwealth, estimated by some to be $200 a year for 40-50 years.

As reported by the Harrisonburg Daily News Record, the Saxman bill failed 18-16 in a Thursday morning Senate vote after passing in a late Wednesday night House session 56-39.

Sen. Mark Obenshain and Sen. Emmett Hanger both supported the bill. But Sen. Creigh Deeds voted with his Democrat companions and said "no."

Sen. Deeds, who reported wants the Democrat nomination for governor in 2009, said there was "no rush" to drill for oil and natural gas.

Deeds said Thursday that the bill did not advance the state policy that was adopted in 2006 to look at drilling if the federal government lifted the offshore ban. Deeds said Virginians shouldn't be misled into believing that approving the proposed legislation would have had an immediate impact on gasoline prices. Even if the ban was gone, he said, it would be years before oil or natural gas would reach the market.

"There's no rush to put that distribution formula in place," said Deeds, who has announced he will seek the Democratic nomination for governor next year.

The democrat talking points seem to be that it will be "years" before anything occurs ... often citing it will be "10 years" before we notice any difference.

They said that 10 years ago.

At least by making a move and trying to solve the problem, we could be in a better position 10 years from now. But it will never happen as long as the "say no" democrats continue to block oil exploration on U.S. land and off-shore.

Drill here. Drill now. Pay less. Join one-and-a-half million of your fellow Americans and sign the petition.