July 24,2008 - The U.S. House of Representatives rejected legislation on Thursday to sell 70 million of barrels of light, sweet crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and replace it with heavy, sour crude.



The bill would have required the sale of 10 percent of the emergency stockpile's holdings, or 70 million barrels, on the open market over six months. Proceeds from the sales would have been used to buy an equivalent amount of heavy crude, which is cheaper.
Democrats pushed the legislation, hoping to lower surging oil prices by putting more of the reserves light sweet crude, sought by refiners, on the market. Sweet crude is desirable because it has less sulfur and is more easily refined into gasoline, diesel fuel and other petroleum products.
The House voted 268 to 157 in favor of the legislation, but the measure fell short of obtaining a two-thirds "yes" vote that is required when the chamber suspends its rules to quickly act on a bill.
Under the suspension of the rules, Republicans were blocked from amending the bill. Republicans say they had enough votes to pass the bill with an amendment lifting the ban on offshore drilling, which the Democratic leadership opposes.

the no votes were:
Akin
Alexander
Bachmann
Bachus
Barrett (SC)
Bartlett (MD)
Barton (TX)
Biggert
Blackburn
Blunt
Boehner
Bonner
Bono Mack
Boozman
Boustany
Brady (TX)
Broun (GA)
Brown (SC)
Burgess
Burton (IN)
Buyer
Calvert
Camp (MI)
Campbell (CA)
Cannon
Cantor
Carter
Coble
Cole (OK)
Conaway
Crenshaw
Culberson
Davis (KY)
Davis, David
Davis, Tom
Deal (GA)
Dent
Doolittle
Drake
Dreier
Ehlers
English (PA)
Everett
Fallin
Feeney
Ferguson
Flake
Forbes
Fortenberry
Foxx
Franks (AZ)
Frelinghuysen
Gallegly
Garrett (NJ)
Gingrey
Gohmert
Goodlatte
Granger
Graves
Hall (TX)
Hastings (WA)
Heller
Hensarling
Herger
Hobson
Hoekstra
Hunter
Inglis (SC)
Issa
Johnson, Sam
Jordan
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kirk
Kline (MN)
Kuhl (NY)
Lamborn
Latham
LaTourette
Latta
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (KY)
Linder
Lucas
Lungren, Daniel E.
Mack
Manzullo
Marchant
McCarthy (CA)
McCaul (TX)
McCotter
McCrery
McHenry
McHugh
McKeon
McMorris Rodgers
Mica
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller, Gary
Moran (KS)
Murphy, Tim
Musgrave
Myrick
Neugebauer
Nunes
Pearce
Pence
Peterson (PA)
Pickering
Pitts
Platts
Poe
Price (GA)
Pryce (OH)
Putnam
Radanovich
Regula
Rehberg
Reichert
Renzi
Reynolds
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Roskam
Royce
Ryan (WI)
Sali
Saxton
Scalise
Schmidt
Sessions
Shadegg
Shimkus
Shuster
Simpson
Smith (NE)
Smith (TX)
Stearns
Sullivan
Terry
Thornberry
Tiahrt
Turner
Upton
Walberg
Walden (OR)
Walsh (NY)
Weldon (FL)
Weller
Westmoreland
Wilson (NM)
Wilson (SC)
Wittman (VA)
Wolf
Young (AK)
Young (FL)