Pence sees progress on the issue but continues to be one of the more vocal protestors.

"I think Speaker Nancy Pelosi's movement on this issue is the greatest evidence of the success of the gas price protest on the house floor," said Pence.

It now seems likely that pro-drilling legislation will come up in some form when Congress comes back from vacation next month. Whether it will be something both sides can agree on, in the heat of a Presidential campaign, is another question.