By Edward Epstein, CQ Staff

The cameras and the microphones were off, but that didn’t stop a small group of Republicans from taking over the floor after the House adjourned to attack Democrats for leaving town without doing something to lower gas prices.

“Madame Speaker, Where art thou?’’ Ted Poe , R-Texas, shouted from the well of the House. “This room is vacant of most members of Congress. Where, oh where, has Congress gone?” he yelled to about a dozen other Republicans, tourists in the gallery, some House pages, and Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio, the lone Democrat who witnessed the unusual proceeding.

Republicans want President Bush or Speaker Nancy Pelosi , D-Calif., to call the House back into session during the five-week recess to vote on the GOP’s energy plan, which seeks an end to a long-standing moratorium on drilling along the outer continental shelf and also seeks to boost conservation and research on alternative energy sources.

“Bring the Congress back. Let’s have a real up or down vote,” Minority Leader John A. Boehner said after coming into the chamber from a press conference. “The American people expect Congress to represent the will of the American people,” the Ohio Republican added, to the cheers of the group.

Pelosi and other Democratic leaders oppose GOP efforts to end the offshore ban or permit drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. They say tens of million of acres of federal land and ocean floor are already available for drilling and have proposed “use it or lose it’’ legislation to force oil and gas companies to use their leases or give them up. They have also proposed a series of other steps, including forcing President Bush to release tens of millions of barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a step the Democrats say would lower world oil prices quickly by increasing supply.

The GOP talk-a-thon started before noon and stretched on for five hours and 45 minutes. For awhile, the Republicans got the bright lights turned back on and got the sound system operating. They dragged big flip charts to make their points about energy.

At 4:30 p.m., the visitors gallery closed on schedule. But the GOP lawmakers continued talking to an audience of members, staffers, interns and some visitors brought on the floor by members.

Tom Price , R-Ga., finally declared an end to the demonstration and led the group in an a capella rendition of “God Bless America.”

The talk-in was more spontaneous than planned. Mike Pence , R-Ind., said that as the House’s regular session neared its end Friday morning, he and Price were talking about staging more than 100 five-minute special order speeches when Price said that if the House adjourned, “We should just stay.’’

So that’s what they did.

Adam H. Putnam , R-Fla., said “This band of brothers here is staying late to make a point to the American people: We want to work,” he said. The Republicans in the chamber then clapped and chanted “Work, work, work.’’

Pelosi didn’t seem inclined to do anything to bring the GOP’s off-the-books filibuster to an end.

But her staff did try to minimize the amount of attention the rump filibuster was getting. They ordered the staff of the press gallery to lock the doors to the balcony overlooking the chamber, as is the usual practice when the House is not in session.