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| Latest Enron
revelations should motivate voters By Roxanne Evans |
| Americans should not be
surprised by news that recently released Enron documents show the company sought to
manipulate power prices in California that exacerbated that state's energy crisis.
Americans should, however, show they are not going to tolerate corporate predators. The
best way to make that statement? At the ballot box, of course. The disclosure by federal energy regulators is historic: this may be the first time a company's own internal documents have provided clear evidence of market manipulation, critics said, which contributed to soaring prices and blackouts in California. That is a level of arrogance most ordinary folks can't understand. Residents of California, who experienced six days of blackouts during the height of the crisis, should think back to the meeting between Gov. Gray Davis and George W. Bush early in the Bush Administration. Bush traveled to the Golden State and, in Rambo-like fashion, basically said that California's energy crisis was California's problem. Now, it appears that Bush buddies at Enron may have been part of the reason for the crisis. California voters should not let this go unpunished. They should support their Democratic governor and send a message that they do not espouse the Republican values of corporate greed at the expense of others. California Democratic Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein have both called for a Justice Department investigation, with Boxer saying the documents "confirm what I've been saying for months, that Enron manipulated the California energy market and needs to be held accountable. It is high time we see some indictments handed down in this case." Indictments? Certainly. In the meantime, the November gubernatorial election should allow California residents to voice their displeasure. Gov. Gray Davis is not the reason for the energy crisis as his Republican detractors complain. His Republican opponent, Bill Simon, deserves to be defeated on just his right-wing philosophy alone. But voters can extract even more satisfaction from his defeat by voting for Davis and thus denying Republicans victory in that state in November. If that is accomplished, that will make it harder for Bush to get elected in the 2004 election. The loss of the electoral-rich California would deal a severe blow to his campaign. And, if additional evidence suggests that the Bush appointees to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission had any knowledge of this Enron tactic as it relates to the California energy crisis, that is even more of a reason to dethrone Bush and send him packing. |
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