U.S. Congress starts break with no gas price fix

By Thomas Ferraro and Richard Cowan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress began a five-week recess on Friday, leaving unresolved how to ease the surge in gasoline prices that is certain to be an issue until the November elections and beyond.

Lawmakers will resume wrangling over how to bring down the cost at the pump and move the United States toward energy independence when they return from vacation on September 8.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, has agreed to a bipartisan request for a summit of energy experts in September to try to end the legislative stalemate.

Yet any solution may be put off until after the elections on November 4, when Democrats are expected to expand their majority in Congress and may also win control of the White House.

"There are some (Democrats) who think things are going to look a lot different in the makeup of the next Congress and 'Why don't we just wait until we are more advantaged?"' said Stephen Hess, a congressional scholar at the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank.

Soaring energy prices are a top concern for American voters, along with record home foreclosures, rising unemployment and an overall sluggish economy.

In recent weeks, Democrats and Republicans have blamed each other for failure to find common ground on comprehensive energy legislation.

With President George W. Bush leading the charge, Republicans have pushed for expanded drilling while Democrats have sought to rein in oil speculators who have been blamed for helping fuel the increase in gas prices.