On a day when Exxon Mobil and Shell announced record earnings, the Bush-McCain Republican contingency in the senate have decided that they will fillibuster every single bill until they can get a provision that allows Big Oil to drill off American shores

Among the bills that Republicans have blocked to placate their billionaire buddies in the oil industry is:

1 . A Department of Defense Authorization bill that would, among other things, include a 3.9 percent across-the-board pay raise for military personnel; major funding increases for research into traumatic brain injury treatment and troop suicide prevention efforts; $26 billion for the Defense Health Program, and $500 million for Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles.

2. Allocated $25 million for research on spinal cord injuries, rehabilitation and measures to improve the quality of life for paralyzed Americans. The effort is backed by the Paralyzed Veterans of America, which claims 19,000 members. Some 200,000 Americans suffer spinal cord-related injuries.

3. A bill that would extend tax incentives for wind, solar and other forms of renewable energy, and would renew a host of expired tax cuts, such as the research tax credit and the state-sales-tax deduction. It would also protect most taxpayers from the alternative minimum tax in 2008.

4. Disaster relief for Midwestern states.

5. A requirement that health plans cover mental illnesses on par with physical diseases.

6. A provision to protect journalists from being forced to disclose their confidential sources

McCain once again sided with Big Oil and gave a big fuck you to hard working mericans and our troops............