Senate's Daschle says has votes to pass energy bill

[salin]

Senate's Daschle says has votes to pass energy bill

Reuters, 03.02.04, 4:43 PM ET

By Chris Baltimore and Tom Doggett

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle Tuesday said there are enough votes in the chamber to pass a slimmed-down $16 billion energy bill, which Republicans could set for a vote later this month.

Senate Republicans have cut the price tag of a massive $31 billion energy bill in half and dropped controversial language to protect makers of the polluting fuel additive MTBE from lawsuits to win broader support for measure.

--------- snip

The revised bill faces opposition in the Republican-led House of Representatives. House leaders have criticized the new Senate bill because it eliminated a provision to protect oil companies from liability lawsuits for methyl tertiary butyl ether, or MTBE, a water-polluting gasoline additive.

House Republicans from oil refining states, including House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and Rep. Joe Barton of Texas, have pledged to oppose the Senate bill in its current form.

more: http://www.forbes.com/business/newswire/2004/03/02/rtr1283520.html

[mac2]

1. The energy thugs are lose in the country!! Where is our Congress who

swore to protect and defend? For the common good, etc.?

At Enron headquarters celebrating?

[pmbryant]

2. Hmmm

I note that "DeLay and Barton ... have pledged to oppose the Senate bill in its current form".

Sounds good to me. As long as the Dems oppose one version and the GOP opposes another version, this thing will stay bottled up, where it belongs.

:shrug:

Peter

[salin]

4. I am still confused about the process

would bet that they have to go back to conference... where things will all be made the way the GOP wants (and watch the price tag escalate)... with heavy hitting/armtwisting to follow. And for extra benefit ... if gas prices keep escalating - the creation of a "we must act now!" atmosphere to ram it through.

Best hope is that it keeps getting "worked on" til time runs out.

[UpInArms]

3. do you know if drilling in ANWAR is still in this bill?

and what in the hell is this?

"I believe ... that we have more than 60 votes, should there be any effort to delay final passage," Daschle told reporters. He said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist plans to hold a vote on the bill in late March, when the Senate returns from its week-long spring recess.

[salin]

5. no Anwr

but other controversial drilling proposals in Alaska and elsewhere.

[madfloridian]

6. Is eminent domain for power companies still in it?

Haven't heard a thing about that in awhile.
:shrug:

Just imagine power companies having eminent domain powers.

[salin]

8. haven't read

but I would guess yes - it wasn't a high cost item ... but gives advantage to corps (i.e., we don't have to pay ala a taxbreak... but we let the corporation get the rightofway which helps there bottom line.)

When anything is known about it - we should look specifically for this.

[depakid]

7. Daschle is selling us out yet again-

There is almost NOTHING in the entire energy bill- NOTHING- that any responsible Senator or Representative should even consider. Just because a few of the most onerous provisions have been weeded out doesn't mean that the rest of the bill is in any way positive.

Things like this are exactly why charges like "there's not a dimes worth of difference between the parties" ring true all too often.

Frankly, I'm appalled at this- but not in the least bit surprised, given the Democratic party's track record over the past 10 years. :grr:

[dusty64]

9. I'm REALLY tired of this,

I guess its time to contact the Senators once again. Glad to see, as always daschle is doing the regime's dirty work for them. One can always seem to count on that.