Oil Company Profits Up 50%

House Republicans, worried about political fallout from the high-profit figures that oil companies are expected to release later this week, will demand that companies pour those profits into refining more oil for the U.S. market in order to lower prices.
At a press conference today, Republicans led by House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert will tell the companies to explain why they are making so much money and what they will do to bring down the cost of gasoline.
"Big Oil needs to do its part. Increasing capacity and improving refineries will do much to boost supplies so that consumers do not feel such a big pinch," Mr. Hastert said in prepared remarks obtained last night by The Washington Times.
"These are extraordinary times that call for extraordinary measures. We expect oil companies to do their part to help ease the pain American families are feeling from high energy prices," he said.
Oil companies begin releasing figures on their third-quarter financial performances this week, and analysts expect the major corporations to show a nearly 50 percent increase in profits from the same period in 2004.

(Perhaps I'm missing something but won't more refineries just enable the oil companies to gouge us faster? Seems to me if there is shortage of refineries -- the places where oil is turned into gasoline -- then there would be a glut of oil out there because we can't refine it fast enough. Its a simple law of economics that a glut causes the prices to fall - so the price for oil should be free falling and gasoline should be cheaper than $2.50 a gallon. But I'm not an oil man like those calling the shots - what do I know?)