Commending the Arizona State University softball team for their victory in the 2008 Women's College World Series.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1323) commending the Arizona State University softball team for their victory in the 2008 Women's College World Series.

Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days during which Members may revise and extend and insert extraneous material on H. Res. 1323 into the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise today to congratulate the Arizona State University softball team for their victory in the 2008 NCAA Division I tournament.

On June 3, softball fans were treated to an exceptional game as the Arizona State Sun Devils defeated the Texas A&M Aggies and clinched their first national title.

The resounding 11-0 defeat is the largest margin of victory for a championship game in Women's College World Series history.

I want to extend my congratulations to Head Coach Clint Meyers and Assistant Coaches Kirsten Voak and Robert Wagner. This talented coaching staff was named the NFCA's NCAA Division I Coaching Staff of the Year for their outstanding leadership during the 2008 season. Coach Meyers returned to his alma mater 3 years ago and picked up his first Pacific-10 Coach of the Year honor this season. He has now led the school to its first conference championship and national title in softball.

Congratulations are also in order for pitcher Katie Burkhart who was named the Most Valuable Player in the Women's College World Series. Burkhart, a senior from San Luis Obispo, California, also struck out an impressive 53 batters during the World Series and posted a perfect record of 5-0. In her tenure at Arizona State, Burkhart has amassed 15 shutouts and 3 saves in her 32 career starts.

And for Kaitlin Cochran, a junior from Yorba Linda, California, who hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning of the final game to give the Sun Devils a 4-0 lead. In fact, Cochran was such a big offensive force this season that she was intentionally walked a record 29 times. Cochran was also named the Pac-10 conference Softball Player of the Year and earned the Conference's batting title for the third year in a row.

The extraordinary achievements of this year is a tribute to the skill and dedication of the many players, coaches, students, alumni, families and the fans that have helped to make Arizona State University a premiere softball program. Winning the National Championship, finishing the season with a 66-5 overall record, and winning the Pac-10 Conference championship has brought national acclaim to Arizona State University. I know the fans of the university will revel in this accomplishment as they look forward to the 2009 season.

Mr. Speaker, once again I congratulate the Arizona State University softball team for their success, and I reserve the balance of my time.

I wasn't sure that we were here to discuss energy. But since the subject has been broached, let me say that the messaging continues. The messaging clearly is to blame the Democrats for a problem that, in fact, grows out of legislation that was pushed by the Republican majority.

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 that was passed in this Chamber, most Democrats voted against it. Most Republicans voted for it. It is an energy policy that was written by the secret energy task force convened by the Vice President. And at the time that was written in 2005, the Energy Information Administration predicted that it would do absolutely nothing to reduce the price of gasoline at the pump, and would most likely result in an increase in the price of gas at the pump. And guess what? Here we are 3 years later and that is exactly what has happened as a result of the policy that was put in place by the Republican leadership of this chamber and the Republican White House.

And so what the messaging is about is about blaming Democrats for a policy and a situation that exists as a result of Republican-enacted legislation.

Let me say one other thing, and that is, that what the American people deserve is a short-term solution and a long-term solution, and increased drilling provides neither. If the President and the Republicans were truly interested in a short-term solution they would join the Democrats in this Congress and they would urge the President to release 70 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, something that would almost undoubtedly immediately bring down prices at the pump. And if they were interested in a long-term solution, they would join us in embarking on a policy that would give us a clean and independent energy future that would reduce our demand on foreign oil.

With that, I would like to yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Mitchell).

We have no further speakers, Mr. Speaker, so I yield back the balance of my time as well.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Delaware for yielding me some time. I want also to congratulate the Arizona State University softball team for its championship. And I think a lot about what is happening to American families this year, this summer, as they want to go out and watch their children play softball, watch their children play baseball, get involved in other sports, and realize how the price of gasoline is impacting that opportunity, those opportunities that they would like to have. They want to be able to do all those things they have been doing for years.

We live in the greatest and freest country in the world, but we are in danger right now because we are not energy independent. We are very dependent on importing oil and gas. But the American people understand we don't have to do that; that we can be energy independent. And what they want us to do is what the Republicans have said we should do, which is develop an all-of-the-above strategy.

There is poll after poll after poll to show that the American people want access to more American-made energy which will help alleviate the pain at the pump.

What is stopping us from doing that? One group of people, Washington Democrats, the leadership of this House of Representatives and the Senate. They alone stand in the way of exploration for new domestic resources that will immediately bring down the price of gasoline and allow these families to pursue their summer pursuits.

I want to quote from some polls that have recently been done, again, which back up what House Republicans want to do, all of the above. We want conservation, we want increased use of alternative and renewable energy, and we want environmentally sound production of American resources.

Fox News Poll: 76 percent of Americans ``support immediately increasing oil drilling in the United States. More than seven in 10 Democrats hold this view.''

CNN/Opinion Research Poll: ``73 percent of the more than 1,000 Americans surveyed from June 26 to June 29 said they favored offshore drilling for oil and natural gas in U.S. waters.''

The Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg Poll: ``When all registered voters were asked whether they support increased exploration for oil and natural gas, 68 percent responded in the affirmative.''

Rasmussen Reports: ``According to Rasmussen, 67 percent of Americans support oil drilling off the Nation's coast, 64 percent think it will lower gas prices.'' We all know the minute we announce we are going to drill, we are going to see lower gas prices.

The IBD/TIPP Poll: ``Support for offshore drilling and oil shale development is also broad-based, with the former favored by 64 percent of respondents and the latter by 65 percent.''

Reuters/Zogby Poll: ``Most Americans support more U.S. oil drilling. 59.6 percent of Americans surveyed in that poll released June 18 said they favor government efforts to boost domestic drilling and refinery construction to cool record prices.''

Again, I want to congratulate the Arizona State University softball team on their national championship. And I want to say to the Democrats, give us more American-made resources and let Americans pursue going to baseball games, going to softball games, and taking their families to all their summer entertainment this summer.

Let's lower the price of gasoline and make it possible. Stop standing in the way.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend the Arizona State University softball team for their championship victory in the 2008 Women's College World Series.

On June 3, 2008, the Arizona State University Sun Devils won the 2008 NCAA Women's College World Series after trouncing Texas A&M Aggies 11- 0. Not only did this win mark the first national title for Arizona State University in softball, but the Lady Sun Devils also set a record for the highest margin of victory in a championship game in the NCAA Women's College World Series history.

Arizonans and a national television audience shared in the excitement, pride and sportsmanship ASU players displayed, both on the field and in the dugout during this inspiring victory.

Furthermore, the ASU softball team played an excellent season, winning an impressive 66 games. Under the leadership of Coach Clint Meyers, the Sun Devils went 56-5 during the season, and 10-for-10 in the post season. This team succeeded with the hard work, grit and determination of the players, coaches and staff.

Outstanding players in the Women's College World Series include super slugger, Kaitlin Cochran, who set a new NCAA single season record by drawing 29 intentional walks.

Star pitcher Katie Burkhart earned Most Valuable Player honors in the Women's College World Series with 53 strikeouts and a perfect record of five wins and zero losses.

Six of the lady Sun Devils were also named to the Louisville Slugger National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Pacific Region team. Five of these players, Katie Burkhart, Mindy Cowles, Krista Donnenwirth, Kaitlin Cochran and Jackie Vasquez, advanced to earn Louisville Sluggers/NFCA All-American honors.

This team of course owes a great deal of its success to the superb ASU coaching staff, including Head Coach Clint Meyers and Assistant Coaches Kirsten Voak and Robert Wagner, who have been named to the NFCA's NCAA Division I National Coaching Staff of the year.

As an alumnus of ASU, I am honored and excited to see a team from my alma mater accomplish this feat. This is truly a victory for Sun Devils everywhere. The championship title has been a long time coming for this team, and these women showed that true dedication and persistence can, indeed, pay off.

I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the remarkable success of this team whose achievements and camaraderie should be models for other teams across the country.

Go Devils.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) such time as she may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I would also like to congratulate the Arizona State University softball team. I watched some of the softball on television, and these are dynamic athletes doing a wonderful job of dealing with what has become a very fast sport.

This team was extraordinary. Their victory against Texas A&M in the World Series, 11-0 victory shows just how great they really are.

Beyond that though, I would just like to say that the Arizona State softball is not only an inspiration to student athletes in Arizona and across the United States, but a beacon of higher education as well. Arizona State University is a knowledge and discovery enterprise advancing teaching and research focused on the most pressing challenges that confront global society. A comprehensive public metropolitan research university enrolling more than 60,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional students on four campuses. ASU is a federation of unique colleges, schools, departments and research institutes that comprise close-knit but diverse academic communities that are international in scope. ASU champions intellectual and cultural diversity and welcomes students from all 50 States and more than 100 nations across the globe.

I congratulate everybody who had anything to do with the softball victory this year, and I congratulate Arizona State University on being an outstanding university in our country.

I yield back the balance of our time.

Madam Speaker, due to Georgia's primary elections, I was absent from the House of Monday, July 14, and Tuesday, July 15, and missed several rollcall votes. Had I been present I would have voted in the following manner: H. Res. 1067--``Yes''; H. Res. 1080--``Yes''; H. Con. Res. 297--``Yes''; H. Res. 1259--``Yes''; H. Res. 1323--``Yes''; Passage, Objections of the President Notwithstanding, of H.R. 6331-- ``Yes''; Motion To Refer Kucinich Privileged Resolution--Yes; H.R. 5803--``Yes''; and H. Res. 1090--``Yes.''