The Democrat-controlled House has given Republicans the chance to act once again as though they believe in the fundamentals of their party. It has passed two energy bills so breathtakingly at odds with US needs that the job of discrediting the nonsense should be easy. But are Republicans up to it?The gasoline price increases that have agitated US energy politics into near hysteria send a simple message that federal officials must heed: The US needs a strong increase in its supply of affordable energy. The country is part of a world in which rising demand has encountered physical limits on systems-natural and mechanical-that deliver energy in useful forms. The strains have been aggravated ...