Senate panel to OK ANWR drilling bill by mid-May (GOP put in Budget)

[UpInArms]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=615&e=8&u=/nm/20060317/pl_nm/energy_congress_oil_dc

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will approve legislation by mid-May to open Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling, according to the panel's chairman.

The U.S. Senate late on Thursday approved in a close 51-49 vote a $2.8 trillion budget bill that calls for the government to raise $6 billion over 10 years in leasing fees from allowing oil companies to drill in ANWR. The revenue would be split between the federal government and the state of Alaska.

The budget bill instructs the Senate's energy panel to draft legislation to open the refuge to drilling in order to raise the required $6 billion.

<snip>

Republican leaders, with White House support, used budget legislation to give oil companies access to the refuge, because budget bills can't be filibustered under Senate rules.

Opening ANWR is a key part of the Bush administration's national energy policy. The White House says tapping the refuge's potential 16 billion barrels of crude would boost domestic petroleum supplies and help reduce U.S. reliance on foreign oil imports.

...more...

[Charlie Brown]

1. This is one issue where the filibuster could actually work n/t

[MadMaddie]

4. Yea it could work...but ...the Dems won't do it...

they have to wait...Alito...wait...censure....wait...

Never gonna happen...the right time will never emerge for them!!! The keep getting windows of opportunity but the blow them...

[liberalnurse]

2. This is a common repug trick that

I have seen in the Ohio General Assembly....To tack on an Amendment to the Budget Bill which must pass.

[Rex]

3. $6 billion over 10 years? Chump change.

We give China 2 billion a day. This 6 billion is the gateway for massive destruction of the ANWR. The energy companies that OWN Congress will make 10 times that amount! Keep pissing on nature you RW morans. It's just gonna get worse.

[rodeodance]

5. but no quaranttee oil would even come to US--as it is sold on

the open market.

Opening ANWR is a key part of the Bush administration's national energy policy. The White House says tapping the refuge's potential 16 billion barrels of crude would boost domestic petroleum supplies and help reduce U.S. reliance on foreign oil imports.

[cosmicdot]

6. was ANWR added to the Budget Res. via Domenici Amendment No. 3128?

"To provide funding for implementing the Energy Policy Act of 2005 from ANWR."
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=2&vote=00072 (Vote 0072)

Akaka, Inouye, Landrieu voted WITH the Republicans/FOR this amendment; and, 6 Republicans voted against it: Chafee, Collins, DeWine, Ensign, Smith, Snowe; plus, Independent Jeffords.

Why in heaven's name did those 3 vote for this amendment, when they could've help to defeat it? The amendment vote was 51-49. Landrieu could've still betrayed us (I know she thinks she voted for the budget resolution because of the trick of putting Katrina aid into the scenario) by her eventual vote FOR the budget, but couldn't she have voted against this amendment??? Was she 'amendment blackmailed', i.e. 'if you don't vote for the ANWR amendment, we'll pull the Katrina Gulf Coast funds'?

Akaka and Inouye ended up voting Nay to the Budget Resolution, but voted FOR Domenici's amendment re ANWR. What's their excuse?

Sure, Cheney was standing by to break the 50-50 vote Landrieu could've caused; and, the Budget Resolution would've passed ... but, the ANWR amendment would've lost.

Of course, certain folks want to blame Sen. Feingold and censure in re this latest ANWR situation when Sen. Reid and other Senate Democratic caucus leadership could've gotten those 3 votes in line ... especially with 6 GOP and Jeffords there to help defeat it. It's painfully mindful of the 11 Democrats helping pass the Medicare Rx mess when 9 Republicans voted AGAINST it virtually handing the Democrats a chance to win one for the people/defeat it.

~snip~An expected Democratic amendment to strip ANWR from the bill never materialized, and ANWR got hardly a mention on the Senate floor. It wasn't for lack of interest. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., who led the anti-drilling battle last year, decided to try another tactic this time.

"What it came down to was an overall assessment today that if we offered the amendment we would have lost again and that we should try to get the overall bill killed," Cantwell's spokeswoman, Charla Neuman, said.

It didn't work. Murkowski said two amendments helped win the bill's passage. One provides $10 billion for Gulf Coast restoration. That was especially important to Louisiana's senators, and Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., crossed party lines to vote for the budget. Another provides $3.3 billion for low-income heating assistance. That seemed to satisfy Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, who usually votes against ANWR drilling but voted yes Thursday. http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7537792p-7449459c.html

the Amendment vote

YEAs ---51
Akaka (D-HI)
Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Allen (R-VA)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burns (R-MT)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Enzi (R-WY)
Frist (R-TN)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Inouye (D-HI)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lott (R-MS)
Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Roberts (R-KS)
Santorum (R-PA)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Specter (R-PA)
Stevens (R-AK)
Sununu (R-NH)
Talent (R-MO)
Thomas (R-WY)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)

NAYs ---49
Baucus (D-MT)
Bayh (D-IN)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Carper (D-DE)
Chafee (R-RI)
Clinton (D-NY)
Coleman (R-MN)
Collins (R-ME)
Conrad (D-ND)
Dayton (D-MN)
DeWine (R-OH)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Ensign (R-NV)
Feingold (D-WI)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Harkin (D-IA)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Kohl (D-WI)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Obama (D-IL)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Sarbanes (D-MD)
Schumer (D-NY)
Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Wyden (D-OR)

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=2&vote=00072

the final Budget Resolution vote, Vote 0074:

YEAs ---51
Alexander (R-TN)
Allard (R-CO)
Allen (R-VA)
Bennett (R-UT)
Bond (R-MO)
Brownback (R-KS)
Bunning (R-KY)
Burns (R-MT)
Burr (R-NC)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Craig (R-ID)
Crapo (R-ID)
DeMint (R-SC)
Dole (R-NC)
Domenici (R-NM)
Enzi (R-WY)
Frist (R-TN)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hagel (R-NE)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Isakson (R-GA)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lott (R-MS)
Lugar (R-IN)
Martinez (R-FL)
McCain (R-AZ)
McConnell (R-KY)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Roberts (R-KS)
Santorum (R-PA)
Sessions (R-AL)
Shelby (R-AL)
Smith (R-OR)
Snowe (R-ME)
Specter (R-PA)
Stevens (R-AK)
Sununu (R-NH)
Talent (R-MO)
Thomas (R-WY)
Thune (R-SD)
Vitter (R-LA)
Voinovich (R-OH)
Warner (R-VA)

NAYs ---49
Akaka (D-HI)
Baucus (D-MT)
Bayh (D-IN)
Biden (D-DE)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Boxer (D-CA)
Byrd (D-WV)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Carper (D-DE)
Chafee (R-RI)
Clinton (D-NY)
Coleman (R-MN)
Collins (R-ME)
Conrad (D-ND)
Dayton (D-MN)
DeWine (R-OH)
Dodd (D-CT)
Dorgan (D-ND)
Durbin (D-IL)
Ensign (R-NV)
Feingold (D-WI)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Harkin (D-IA)
Inouye (D-HI)
Jeffords (I-VT)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kennedy (D-MA)
Kerry (D-MA)
Kohl (D-WI)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (D-CT)
Lincoln (D-AR)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Obama (D-IL)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Salazar (D-CO)
Sarbanes (D-MD)
Schumer (D-NY)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Wyden (D-OR)

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=2&vote=00074

linke to all U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 109th Congress - 2nd Session (2006)
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/vote_menu_109_2.htm