Progress Illinois

Today 11th District congressional candidate Marty Ozinga will be working the pumps at a Gas City gas station in Mokena. Described as a "four hour shift" in a campaign press release, the event is intended to highlight his conservative approach to the energy crisis. While Ozinga places the blame for high fuel prices on "career politicians," his policy reads like it was written by the oil industry. To save you the trip to Mokena, here are some highlights from the Ozinga plan:

- Drill the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

- Drill the Outer-Continental Shelf

- Drill the Gulf of Mexico

- Drill "other U.S.-controlled areas"

Once we've run out of places to drill, Ozinga proposes we construct more oil refineries and expand the ones we have. Hey, you gotta do something with all that extra crude!

Then he wants to lift the Illinois state gas tax. If you recall, this is a ploy that has been tried by other "career politicians" to disastrous effect. Even many conservatives admit it would deliver meager savings to U.S. consumers and wreaks havoc on state finances. Indeed, Ozinga offers no proposal for how to offset the revenue generated by the tax, which is largely used to maintain the state's crumbling infrastructure. (It's also not clear how Ozinga plans to affect Illinois state policy from a federal post.)

But fear not. On the second page of the press release, the Republican candidate goes into what he calls his "second energy priority." That's right, alternative energy is a secondary priority for Ozinga. If you're in Mokena today and driving by the Gas City, you might want to swing through and ask him why.