Day 4--GOP Floor Revolt Escalates

Today is Day 4 of the GOP-led floor revolt in the U.S. House of Representatives, protesting the inaction of Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic leadership on offshore oil drilling.

The revolt is escalating.

GOP leaders in the House have sent memos to Republican representatives encouraging them to show up at least once this week to speak concerning lifting the decades-old ban on offshore oil drilling here in the U.S.

According to The Hill, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) sent a letter to House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Tuesday criticizing the GOP protest.

Pelosi has stated publicly on several occasions that she will continue to block any up or down vote on offshore oil drilling.

But GOP leaders insist they are prepared to continue with the floor revolt throughout the 5 weeks of vacation the Democrats voted to give themselves instead of dealing with the nation's oil problem.

The GOP said that leaders will meet with former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich concerning strategy. Gingrich has praised the GOP revolt, stating that it has been the most energizing thing that's happened in Congress since the early 1990s.

In addition, the revolt has inspired some rather hard-hitting criticism of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV. U.S. Senator Jim DeMint, R-SC, ripped Senate Democrats on their intent to keep the ban on offshore drilling in the 2009 budget resolution and further suggested that the GOP will shut down the government rather than vote for a budget that prevents drilling in the rich crude oil fields just off the U.S. coastline.

Some observers fear, however, that the revolt will run out of steam long before the 5-week vacation is over. One political analyst suggested that GOP leaders need a strategy that keeps the momentum going, perhaps building up to a road-trip to certain House districts across America, culminating in a massive photo-op at an oil rig.

But with 70% of the American public supporting offshore oil drilling here at home, the GOP certainly has an issue that is resonating with voters--a fact that has Democrats clearly worried.