In an effort to draw attention away from his own history of voting repeatedly against renewable energy tax incentives and for billion dollar tax breaks for big oil companies, Pat Roberts’ latest attack ad tries to pinpoint the rising gas prices on one person – his opponent.

“The last thing Pat Roberts can afford is to have voters asking questions about his record. But the pattern is clear. Pat Roberts will always vote for Big Oil and then use their campaign contributions to attack his opponent so he doesn't have to defend his own actions,” said Kansas Democratic Party Executive Director Mike Gaughan.

In just the last three years:

Roberts Voted Against Ending Market Speculation to Lower Gas Prices. In July 2008, Roberts voted against strengthening the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, limiting speculation by traders who are not trading actual physical petroleum products, closing the "London Loophole" for energy commodities trading, and enhancing transparency and accountability in the energy commodities market. Passage of the bill would have been a major first step in reducing the price of gas at the pump. [Vote 184, 8/25/08]

Roberts Helped Protect $5 Billion Big Oil Tax Windfall. Tax loopholes that saved the oil industry $5 billion were removed from the original Senate version of the GOP tax reconciliation bill in February 2006, but after heavy lobbying by the industry, Congressional negotiators reinserted them into the final bill. The $5 billion tax break for big-oil could have been used instead to partially offset the increase in middle class taxes. Roberts voted for the final tax bill with the big-oil tax breaks. [Republican Policy Committee, 2/7/06; Washington Post, 4/26/06; Joint Tax Committee, 5/9/06; Vote 118, 5/11/06]

Roberts Voted to Gut Big Oil Tax Package And Let Big Oil Keep Their Billions. In June 2007, the Senate considered a bipartisan package to provide tax incentives for alternative energy development by taxing big oil and gas companies. But Roberts voted to impose a trigger that would gut the package and let the big oil companies keep the $29 billion they would have been forced to give up to fund alternative energy. [Senate Finance Committee Markup, 6/19/07; Dow Jones, 6/19/07; AP, 6/19/07; Chicago Tribune, 6/21/07; Vote #222, 6/21/07]

Roberts Voted Against Imposing Windfall Profits Tax On Oil Companies. In 2005, Roberts voted against an amendment that would have imposes a temporary windfall profit tax on crude oil and to rebate the tax collected back to the American consumer. Under the amendment, when taxes spiked above $40 per barrel, a 50% tax on oil company profits would have been imposed with the revenue returned directly to American drivers. [Vote 331, 11/17/05]

Roberts has also lined the pockets of his campaign with money from Big Oil interest groups, taking in more than $300,000 in the last two years and earning him 9th place in the list of Senate candidates who have profited most from Big Oil contributions.

“During his last 40 years in Washington, Sen. Roberts has ignored struggling Kansas families and instead favored $4 gas and Big Oil billionaires – the same billionaires who have been lining the pockets of his campaign,” Gaughan said.