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But legislators are eying the tax for just about every pet project. Even the White House no longer seems wedded to spending the money solely for energy development. As one top Administration official told TIME Washington Correspondent Richard Hornik: "The tax is going to raise more money than is needed. Our concern now is to see that the money is not tied up." Translation: Spending it to cut the budget deficit would be best, but shoveling out the money on almost anything will do. That sort of attitude, which treats the levy as a windfall bonanza for politicians, makes a cruel joke of the tax. If the proceeds are not devoted to helping the U.S. out of its energy bind, then the nation would be better off with no such tax at all.