Congress locked in partisan dispute over energy legislation

WASHINGTON (CNN) - Congress is locked in a nasty partisan dispute over energy legislation that has produced plenty of combustible debate but is not likely to produce a bill to help lower gas prices anytime soon.

On Thursday, House Republicans defeated a Democratic measure that would have released millions of barrels of oil from the nation's strategic petroleum reserve. Republicans said the plan would not significantly lower prices and argued that Congress instead needs to approve new off-shore drilling, something most Democrats oppose.

"Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and Barack Obama refuse to allow a vote because they worship at the alter of radical environmentalism," said House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio, referring to the speaker of the House, the Senate leader and the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate.

Top Senate Democrats, who are pressing this week for passage of a bill to curb what they consider to be excessive speculation in the oil market, said Republicans are more interested in helping the oil companies than finding solutions to high gas prices.