Republican Column

I have said time and again that the elections in the United States this year are 'for all the marbles.' This presidential election will be historic in many ways, but in part because I predict it will be the largest voter turnout ever in our nation.

My number one goal this year is to help U.S. Senator Saxby Chambliss win reelection. Saxby does an outstanding job for Georgia in the U.S. Senate and we are going to need his conservative voice there more than ever with a new president next year. Saxby and I work together very well together in Washington and I hope Georgia voters will help send Saxby Chambliss back to the Senate.

My other goal this year is to help John McCain become president and I ask you to help, too. One of the biggest issues for this presidential campaign and for all of us in Georgia and across the nation is high gas prices. Paying more than $4 a gallon for gas is hurting the family budget and having negative repercussions for our schools, police departments, tourism industry and small businesses. I recently wrote an article for The Atlanta Constitution outlining what I believe must happen to address this issue and I want to share those ideas with you.

No matter where you look in the United States today, you can see the effects of out-of-control gas prices on the American economy and the family budget. In Georgia and across the country, the trickle-down effect of these unprecedented gas prices is spreading financial misery to our schools, local governments and small businesses. We are paying more for gas and energy than ever before, and there is no end in sight.

Enough is enough. It is long past time for Republicans and Democrats to put aside their partisan biases on energy and join together in declaring war on spiraling gas prices and high energy costs. Right now, the Congress of the United States is sitting on top of a ham sandwich starving to death. The solutions are right under our nose if we will work together to embrace them all.

Republicans must be willing to embrace conservation initiatives as well as alternatives such as solar and wind energy. Democrats must be willing to embrace nuclear energy for electricity and responsible exploration of our oil and gas resources in Alaska, Colorado, Montana and North Dakota, as well as in the Gulf of Mexico and off the Atlantic coast. Congress must pass and the president must sign legislation that removes current restrictions on these resources and their rapid development.

The rising costs for the future delivery of oil are in part based on the belief that America is not serious about reducing its dependence on imported oil or exploring its own resources at home. Unless we act decisively, the speculators will only push the price of oil higher.

Today, our challenge on energy supply and cost is no less daunting than the space race of the 1960s, but unlike the challenge of the space race, we do know how to reduce the cost and expand the supply of energy today. It is time for the president and the Congress to put aside their differences. We must act now and we must act boldly to expand and encourage the exploration and development of all our resources at home.

U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson is a Republican who represents Georgia in the U.S. Senate.