On Feb. 23, the satirical TV show "Saturday Night Live" aired two sketches which buoyed Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign. One mocked the media for what it perceived as fawning treatment of Sen. Barack Obama, while another allowed host Tina Fey to endorse Sen. Clinton from the Weekend Update desk.

Last night, "SNL" did all it could to shut down Clinton's campaign for good.

The night's opening sketch had cast member Amy Poehler playing Clinton as an admitted "sore loser" with no ethical standards who will do anything to win.

Ouch.

Poehler, talking sweetly through a frozen smile, addressed the nation over who should be the Democratic presidential candidate. Superdelegates will ultimately pick her party's nominee, the faux Clinton reminded us, and she remains the more electable candidate for pragmatic reasons.

"I'm just not going to lose gracefully. … It's just a fact," Poehler said. And while Sen. Barack Obama will campaign hard for her if she wins the nomination, she won't return the favor. If she does campaign for him, she'd do so "in a resentful, halfhearted way ensuring his defeat so I can run again in 2012."

Poehler's Clinton was just warming up. She said her supporters are racist and will refuse to vote for him, a twist on her recent comments to USA Today where she spoke about her strong support among whites.

"I'm not bragging about that. It's just the way it is," Poehler's Clinton purred. While Obama has been reluctant to play the race card, she intends to double down on both the race and the gender card.

"Anyone who doesn't vote for me is a racist and a sexist," she said, adding she will be getting the endorsement of a premier African-American leader, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright. If a white person playing the race card makes no sense, "then you don't know me," she said, her smile never wavering.

"Unlike Sen Obama, I have no ethical standards," she said. "Once I get the nomination, I'll stop at nothing, absolutely nothing to win."

Can "SNL" do what political pundits and party elders like former Sen. George McGovern couldn't, convince Clinton the race is officially over?

Funnier things have happened in politics.

— Christian Toto, The Washington Times

Today's top story in the newsroom is rising gas prices, which have now hit $126 a barrel.

Another must-read is Christina Bellantoni's look at how the superdelegates are shaping the Democratic race to the White House. So far, many superdelegates from Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's recent state primary wins have kept silent on their endorsements.

Also, be sure to check out Stephen Dinan's look at how the Democrats are going after the conservative group Freedom's Watch for its multimillion-dollar ad campaigns. The article has drawn the attention of the folks at the Web site Memeorandum.com.

There is also continuing coverage on Burma. Despite this week's devastating cyclone disaster, the military junta will press ahead tomorrow with a referendum designed to entrench its grip on power. Relief supplies continue to slowly arrive. The military has allowed the United States to fly over one plane on Monday with supplies for victims of the disaster.

— The Washington Times editors

Our top story looks at memos detailing Sen. Hillary Clinton's involvement in the Whitewater scandal. It's been picked up by places like Time magazine and is a favorite on Digg.com.

From the campaign trail, George McGovern, who inspired Clinton to enter public life, is calling on the candidate to bow out of the presidential race for the good of the Democratic Party.

Defense reporter Bill Gertz brings us the story of a man who was held at Guantanamo Bay for more than three years and later traveled to Mosul, Iraq, where he detonated a suicide bomb.

From our Metro desk, our top piece looks at how the D.C. police are following a national trend of arming officers with assault rifles.

— The Washington Times editors

The top story today is the aftermath of yesterday's presidential primaries. Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama defeated rival Sen. Hillary Clinton by 15 points in North Carolina while Clinton beat Obama by about two points in Indiana. This means the future of the Democratic nomination rests largely in the hands of the superdelegates.

In a sitdown with The Washington Times yesterday, the Iraqi ambassador to the United States, Samir Sumaida'ie, said his country had created a committee to investigate evidence showing Iran is supplying weapons to Iraqi insurgents.

We're also following the aftermath of the recent cyclone in Burma. U.N. officials are having trouble obtaining visas to enter the country, causing tons of aid from around the globe to be delayed.

In homeland security news, U.S. officials are attempting to unlink the words "Islamic" and "terrorism," hoping this will improve relations with millions of peaceful Muslims who do not advocate terrorist activities.

— The Washington Times editors

North Carolina state senator Kay Hagan defeated her four Democratic rivals to secure her party's nod during today's primary elections.

Hagan will face Sen. Elizabeth Dole, North Carolina Republican, who has outraised her newly named Democratic opponent thus far by a nearly 9-to-1 margin.

Sen. Charles Schumer, New York Democrat, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), which oversees campaigns for Democratic senators, touted Hagan's prospects tonight.

"North Carolina Democrats chose a nominee for Senate today who will make the state proud," Schumer said in a statement. "Kay is smart, energetic and dedicated to making people's lives better, and as voters get to know her better over the next six months they will see that she can bring the change to Washington that the country needs."

The DSCC pointed out that registered Democrats outnumber Republicans, according to figures from the North Carolina State Board of Elections. There are 2.6 million registered Democrats in North Carolina, compared to over 1.9 million registered Republicans.

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Edward Kennedy, Massachusetts Democrat, applauded news that Robert Battista, President Bush's pick for chairman of the National Labor Relations Board, was withdrawing his name for consideration by the Senate.

Bush re-nominated Battista in January for a second term as chairman after the expiration of his five-year term overseeing the nation's labor laws.

"Mr. Battista's tenure on the Board made clear that he was not going to stand up for the nation's workers," Kennedy said in a statement. "I urge the president to send us a new nominee who will reverse the board’s anti-worker, anti-union, anti-labor bias. In these difficult economic times, it is more important than ever for employees to have a board that protects their rights."

Battista withdrew his name after it became clear his nomination would be stymied indefinitely in the Senate, the body which must approve presidential nominees.

"With no guarantee of a timely confirmation hearing, and the economic pressures that are generated with no earned income and 2 children in College, it has become necessary to again return to employment in the private sector," Battista wrote in a letter to Bush last Thursday. Battista wrote in the letter that effective yesterday he will be working as a labor lawyer in the D.C. law firm of Littler Mendelson.

White House spokeswoman Emily Lawrimore condemned partisan wrangling in the Senate.

"President Bush has accepted Bob Battista's request to withdraw his nomination with regret," Lawrimore said in a statement sent to the Times. "It's unfortunate that the country has lost another devoted public servant because the Senate failed to act on important nominations in a timely manner. Inaction in the Senate discourages highly qualified people from serving their country because they cannot place their families in limbo and their lives on hold indefinitely. It also sets a bad precedent for future administrations. President Bush continues to call upon the Senate to provide all pending nominees with a fair and swift confirmation process."

— Carrie Sheffield, Web Editor, The Washington Times

A House Judiciary subcommittee today approved a subpoena for David Addington (pictured at right), chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney, calling for the aide to testify during a hearing on the Bush administration's rules for interrogation techniques.

By a voice vote, members of the House Judiciary Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee approved the subpoena after hearing from witnesses who testified that today's national security threats did not warrant the interrogation techniques approved by the Bush administration.

"In future hearings we plan to hear from other key players in this process — including the vice president's chief of staff David Addington, former Attorney General [John] Ashcroft, and the author of several key legal memos, Professor John Yoo," said House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Michigan Democrat. "The subpoena that the subcommittee has just authorized for David Addington is thus a very welcome step and I look forward to hearing further testimony in this very disturbing matter."

— Carrie Sheffield, Web Editor, The Washington Times

The top story we're following today is the primaries in Indiana and North Carolina. Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton, New York Democrat, is retooling her delegate math to ensure the race continues on through June.

We're also following the aftermath of a cyclone that ripped through Burma. At least 22,000 people have been killed and 41,000 more are missing.

Our investigative unit brings us the story of Coast Guard ships sitting idle because of a design flaw. Cost payers are footing the bill of some $100 million for these ships.

Also from the campaign trail, Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain is wooing Hispanic voters, particularly on the issue of immigration. Our piece on the topic has been picked up by CNN's political ticker blog. In a speech this morning, McCain condemned liberal judges, who he said legislate from the bench.

— The Washington Times editors

Freshly elected Don Cazayoux, a Louisiana Democrat, will be sworn into his House seat tomorrow afternoon, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said today.

He'll have his mock swearing-in and photo-op at 1:30, and the time of his actual swearing-in will depend on the flow of House business.

On Saturday, Cazayoux narrowly defeated Republican Woody Jenkins to fill the 6th district seat vacated by former Rep. Richard Baker, who left to take a lobbying job with the Managed Funds Association earlier this year.

— Carrie Sheffield, Web Editor, The Washington Times

Rep. Rham Emanuel, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, today one-upped the competition for Cinco de Mayo outreach to Hispanic voters.

He issued a Spanish-language press release.

"Este Cinco de Mayo, todos americanos se unen para celebrar las contribuciones que los mexicanos-americanos y todos hispanos hacen a la prosperidad, diversidad y fuerza de nuestra nación," Mr. Emanuel of Illinois said in the press release.

(The English translation: "On Cinco de Mayo, all Americans come together to celebrate the contributions Mexican Americans and all Hispanics make to the prosperity, diversity, and strength of our nation."

Mr. Emanuel does not speak fluent Spanish.

He also does not speak Polish but issues Polish-language statements in his Chicago district.

— S.A. Miller, Capitol Hill correspondent, The Washington Times

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, today said she was concerned about the Burma government's slow response to this weekend's cyclone, which killed nearly 4,000 people this weekend and left tens of thousands missing.

"The regime must show leadership to provide for the basic survival needs of the Burmese people," Pelosi said. "The United States and international organizations are moving rapidly to provide assistance to those suffering but a stronger international effort is needed."

She said Congress would work closely with the administraiton to provide aid to cyclone victims.

"The thoughts of the world are with the people of Burma as they struggle to recover from the catastrophic cyclone this weekend," Mrs. Pelosi said. "It is our hope that the worst in Mother Nature can bring out the best in human nature."

She continued, "Tragedies such as this one remind us of our shared humanity — and that tragedy anywhere affects us all."

— S.A. Miller, Capitol Hill correspondent, The Washington Times

House Minority Leader John Boehner, Ohio Republican, and Rep. Lamar Smith, Texas Republican, ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, today wrote to Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Michigan Democrat, urging him to look into the trial lawyer scandal involving the firm Milberg Weiss.

Boehner and Smith called for a committee hearing by May 19. That's the date that former Milberg Weiss leader William Lerach is slated to enter prison after pleading guilty for his part in paying plaintiffs to join class action lawsuits against corporations.

Here's the full text of their letter:

Congress of the United States
House of Representatives

May 2, 2008

The Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
Committee on the Judiciary
2138 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Chairman Conyers:

On May 19, 2008, trial attorney William Lerach is expected to report to federal prison to begin serving the prison term he received after pleading guilty to charges of criminal conspiracy in conjunction with a class action scheme involving his former law firm, formerly known as Milberg Weiss. This development will be the latest milestone in a steadily unfolding scandal that points to a cancerous growth within our nation's economy — an economic threat the United States Congress has a responsibility to address at a time when middle class families and small businesses are struggling.

According to federal investigators, Milberg Weiss officials masterminded a $250 million illegal kickback scheme involving their clients, and then lied in court about their actions. "The scope and the breadth of this conspiracy was breathtaking," said U.S. District Judge John Walter, who sentenced Mr. Lerach, adding that the crimes involved go "to the core of our judicial system."

More disturbingly, Mr. Lerach himself told the Wall Street Journal his illegal conduct and that of his law partners was an "industry practice." At his sentencing, one of his supporting letters quoted Mr. Lerach as saying, "Everybody was paying plaintiffs so they could bring their cases."

The Milberg Weiss trial lawyer scandal has implications for every American, particularly at a time when our economy is struggling and the triple threat of excessive regulation, taxation, and litigation is pushing jobs overseas. The costs of the crimes involved in the Milberg Weiss scandal are ultimately borne by innocent American taxpayers, workers, and employers — the very Americans being tossed about in the current economic storm. If in fact Mr. Lerach's crimes are an "industry practice," then the Milberg Weiss scandal has revealed a clear and present threat to our nation's prosperity. The United States Congress has an obligation to take action — by holding hearings to determine the extent of the trial lawyer scandal and the threat to our economy, identifying appropriate legislative remedies, and sending them to the President without delay.

It has already been documented that securities class action lawsuits such as those that bankrolled Milberg Weiss are cheating American taxpayers by disproportionately clogging the court system and consuming a wasteful share of judicial resources. Federal securities class actions are brought more than four times as often as any other single type of federal class action, and account for almost half of all such class actions in the United States (Comm. on Capital Markets Regulation, Interim Report 74, Nov. 2006). Securities class action lawsuits are also on the rise, with the number of filings in 2007 increasing 58 percent over the previous year's number (Stephanie Plancich et al., NERA Econ. Consulting, Recent Trends in Shareholder Class Actions: Filings Return to 2005 Levels as Subprime Cases Take Off; Average Settlements Hit New High 2; Dec. 2007).

Evidence also exists that the threat of such litigation has been preventing the creation of new American jobs and pushing them instead to other nations. International employers with the potential to invest and create high-paying jobs in the United States have been turning elsewhere, driven away from America's shores by the fear of becoming ensnared in the sort of bogus, predatory litigation perfected by Milberg Weiss during its rise to power. A recently-released study by the London-based firm Lovells found that international employers believe the threat of becoming embroiled in frivolous, job-killing litigation is greater in the United States than in any other major nation (Lindeman, Ralph; "In-House Counsel for EU Companies Cite Disputes in U.S. as Key Concern," Bureau of National Affairs' Daily Report for Executives; March 20, 2008). The study, according to BNA, indicated international employers are troubled by "the complex relationship [in the United States] between state and federal courts, legal costs, the time involved, the extreme and demanding discovery process, the inability to recover costs even if one is successful and the potential for punitive damages." Respondents also cited the "multiplicity of courts, prosecutors and regulators at the state and federal levels as well as a tradition of targeting corporations as well as individuals in criminal cases — effectively using criminal investigation and prosecution as a form of regulation," according to BNA.

Even the far-left publication "Mother Jones" has written that "[l]arge corporations have long argued that class action lawyers are nothing more than extortionists who shake down big companies every time their stocks fall, forcing them to settle or risk fiscal ruin from a big jury verdict. Given what's known now about how Lerach operated his law firm, it's hard to say that the perception is only spin." (Mencimer, Stephanie; "The Fall of a Corporate Crime Fighter," Feb. 14, 2008)

The Republican-led Congress responded aggressively to the Enron and WorldCom scandals earlier this decade. Now the Democrat-led Congress needs to do its job and examine the scandal at Milberg Weiss, which potentially has deeper and more far-reaching implications. Nearly three months have passed since Mr. Lerach was sentenced, but this Congress has yet to conduct even a single hearing to determine the extent to which crimes such as his are occurring in the rest of the industry.

If in fact the crimes committed by Mr. Lerach and his colleagues are an "industry practice," as Mr. Lerach himself confessed, then the United States Congress is sitting idle while criminal behavior in the trial lawyer industry threatens American jobs and feeds like a parasite on the prosperity of working families. The American people deserve answers.

How many of these cases are brought as a result of illegal payments to plaintiffs?

What other types of conflicts exist between trial lawyers and the injured investors they purport to represent?

What reforms should Congress enact to eradicate these abuses from our judicial system?

We respectfully request that the House Committee on the Judiciary schedule a hearing by May 19 to begin the process of answering these questions in a complete and bipartisan way. Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

Sincerely,


Rep. John Boehner (R-OH)
Republican Leader

Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX)
Ranking Republican
Committee on the Judiciary

cc: The Honorable Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
Speaker of the House

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times

Our top story looks at how President Bush has asked Congress to authorize $770 million to fight global hunger. The White House denied the rise in corn prices is linked to federal ethanol subsidies.

In follow-up on Tuesday's breaking news, Sen. Russ Feingold, Wisconsin Democrat, is demanding answers on why the names of federal air marshals matching those of suspected terrorists continue to be shut out from the airplanes they are sent to protect.

Check out Christina Bellantoni's write-up of of how Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is steadily climbing in his tally of superdelegate pledges.

In business news, Exxon Mobil posted profits of $10.9 billion for the first quarter of 2008. This figure nearly sets a record, but it falls short of the company's projections.

— The Washington Times editors

Rep. Vito Fosella, New York Republican, was arrested last night for driving while intoxicating, according to the Staten Island Advance.

Fosella was arrested in Alexandria, Va., and is scheduled to appear May 12 in the Alexandria General District Court.

Click here to see AP video: "N.Y. congressman arrested for drunken driving"

Fosella's spokesman, Craig Donner, e-mailed The Washington Times a statement issued yesterday by the congressman.

"Last night I made an error in judgment," Fosella said in the statement. "As a parent, I know that taking even one drink of alcohol before getting behind the wheel of a car is wrong. I apologize to my family and the constituents of the 13th Congressional District for embarrassing them, as well as myself."

Fosella is facing an election battle with Democrat Domenic M. Recchia, Jr. He defeated Democrat Stephen Harrison in 2006 by a margin of 57 to 43 percent after outspending him by more than 10 to 1.

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times

House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers, Michigan Democrat, threatened to subpoena Karl Rove, former deputy chief of staff for President Bush, if he continues to refuse to testify before Conyers' committee about the firing of former U.S. attorneys.

Here is the letter Conyers and several other members of the committee sent to Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin at Patton Boggs. (You can also view the letter Luskin sent Conyers yesterday here.)

May 1, 2008

Via Fax and U.S. Mail
Mr. Robert D. Luskin
Patton Boggs LLP
2550 M Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20037-1350

Dear Mr. Luskin:

We were very disappointed to receive your April 29 letter declining the invitation to Karl Rove to testify voluntarily before the House Judiciary Committee concerning the politicization of the Department of Justice, including allegations regarding the prosecution of former Governor Don Siegelman. Particularly since your client has made a number of on-the-record comments on this subject to the media, and in light of your (now modified) statement that Mr. Rove would be willing to testify, we can see no justification for his refusal to speak on the record to the Committee. We urge you and your client to reconsider this refusal no later than May 12, or we will have no choice but to consider the use of compulsory process.

Mr. Rove has previously spoken to the media and on the record concerning both the Siegelman case and the firings of U.S. Attorneys in 2006. Your letter, however, offers to make Mr. Rove available only for a non-transcribed staff interview, not under oath, and limited only to the Siegelman matter. This offer is completely unacceptable.

Initially, an interview conducted without a transcript and not under oath would frustrate a full and fair inquiry. An interview without a transcript is an invitation to confusion and will not permit us to obtain a straightforward and clear record, as several of us have explained in response to a similar offer by White House counsel Fred Fielding in the U.S. Attorney matter. As Republican former Congressman Mickey Edwards has written, "[n]o Congress, indeed no lawyer, would ever agree to such an outrageous" proposal. We simply do not understand why anyone who is prepared to tell the truth would object to an oath and a record of what is said. This is particularly true in this case, where Mr. Rove has already spoken on the record on this subject.

Indeed, your proposal is even more restrictive than Mr. Fielding's offer, since you would explicitly exclude any questioning concerning the U.S. Attorney firings. As your own letter appears to recognize, the Siegelman and other selective prosecution matters and the U. S. Attorney firings are clearly related as part of the concerns our Committee has been investigating on the politicization of the Justice Department under this Administration. It would further impede our inquiry to seek artificially to separate these issues. We can see no reason why Mr. Rove would be willing to testify as to whether he put improper pressure on a federal prosecutor to bring a prosecution, but would not be willing to testify on whether he improperly sought to retaliate against federal prosecutors by having them fired.

Your letter also raises concerns about possible executive privilege claims with respect to Mr. Rove's testimony. The proper way to address such concerns, however, is on a question-by-question basis as current Administration officials have done in testifying before the Committee, not by a blanket refusal to testify.

We hope you and your client will reconsider the decision not to testify on a voluntary basis. Please direct any questions and your response to the Judiciary Committee office, 2138 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515 (tel: 202-225-3951; fax: 202-225-7680).

Sincerely,

John Conyers, Jr.
Chairman
____________________________________

Linda T. Sanchez
Chair, Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law

____________________________________

Artur Davis
Member, Committee on the Judiciary

____________________________________

Tammy Baldwin
Member, Committee on the Judiciary

cc: Hon. Lamar S. Smith
Hon. Chris Cannon

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times

Our top story looks at how North Korea has offered to give the United States volumes of information about its nuclear program. The new data will help further supplement an ongoing deal between the two nations.

Another popular story looks at how lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are scaling back their support of ethanol subsidies.

We've also got a write-up of CIA Director Michael Hayden's warning that Russia's slowing population growth could lead to an influx of foreign laborers.

On the campaign trail, reporter Christina Bellantoni documents how Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has shed her tough, no-nonsense image and is showing us her softer, gentler side.

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times

The group some label the conservative counterpart to MoveOn.org is using the Web to hit House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, for underestimating the cost of a gallon of gas during an interview last week with CNN's Larry King.

During the interview, Pelosi says gasoline increased threefold since President Bush took office and has risen to $2.56 a gallon. However, gasoline costs $3.60 per gallon nationally, according the Department of Energy. The conservative group Freedom's Watch took that snippet from the interview and is circulating it online via YouTube. So far it's got nearly 6,000 views and a pick up on the site RedState.org.

Politicians walk a careful line to ensure they don't appear out of touch with voters. Failed Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani came under fire during his campaign for underestimating the cost of a gallon of milk and a loaf of bread. Former president George H.W. Bush came under fire for being impressed with a long-implemented grocery store item scanner.

"When the Speaker of the House can't remember what a gallon of gas costs, it suggests she is painfully out of touch," Freedom's Watch spokesman Ed Patru told The Washington Times. "We don't know whether she's oblivious to the price of gas or had a momentary lapse in the middle of an interview with Larry King. … But what we do know is this Congress promised it had a plan to lower gas prices, gas prices have gone up about a $1.25 since she's been Speaker and the only substantive thing this Congress has done on the issue is to pass an energy bill that raises energy costs."

Update: A spokesman for Pelosi writes in to explain what happened.

"That Freedom's Watch video is obviously edited to take it out of context," wrote Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly. "Of course she knows the price of gas. She just misspoke. That is clear from her response to Larry King, when he said $3.50, she replied, '$3.50, oh, down six cents. It's higher where I'm from in California, sad to say.' Clearly, she thought she had said $3.56."

You can watch the group's video below:

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times

Kudos to The Washington Times' Joe Curl, whose story on Republican Sen. John McCain's superstitious tendencies was mentioned on last night's Colbert Report.

Here's video from the segment:

Reporter Christina Bellantoni's story on Freedom Fries was mentioned on the show in 2006, and her voice once made a cameo in a clip from a Nancy Pelosi press conference.

Facing a wide disparity with their Democratic counterpart, the House Republican campaign arm said it hopes to raise $7 million during its annual President's Dinner June 18 in Washington.

Rep. Tom Cole, Oklahoma Republican, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), set his goal today for the fundraiser, a joint effort with the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC).

"This event will help raise the funds necessary to combat the radical liberal agenda that the Democrats have for America," Cole said in a statement. "Our members are showing an unprecedented interest in our success and it is because of them that we will have every resource we need to be competitive in November."

The NRCC ended last month with $7.1 million in cash on hand, far below the Democratic Congressional Campaign Commitee's $44.3 million.

Cole said Rep. Jeb Hensarling, Texas Republican, will will be chairman of the dinner.

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times

House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Michigan Democrat, said today he wants to understand why gas prices are on the rise.

Conyers plans to hold a series of hearings with oil executives beginning May 7 under the watch of the committee's Task Force on Competition Policy and Antitrust Laws. Conyers sent a letter to Abdalla Salem El-Badri, Secretary General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, asking him to testify before his committee May 22 either in person or via teleconference.

"As consumers face rising gas prices in excess of $4.00 a gallon in some areas, oil companies are reporting record profits," Conyers said in a statement. "In the past few days, British Petroleum announced a 63 percent rise in profits for the first quarter of this year, Shell announced a 25 percent rise in earnings, and ConocoPhillips is up 17 percent. At the same time, OPEC announced that oil prices could hit $200 a barrel. Americans are forgoing planned vacations, paying higher prices for food, and struggling to pay for their daily commutes — all because of gas prices. They deserve to know why."

— Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times