Posted on 12/21/2005 1:05:43 PM PST by EagleUSA
WASHINGTON — The Senate blocked the defense spending bill Wednesday in order to force out provisions on oil drilling in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge. The measure had been put into a must-pass defense spending bill in an attempt to get the drilling through the Senate despite opposition.
Drilling supporters fell four votes short of getting the required 60 votes to avoid a threatened filibuster of the defense measure over the oil drilling issue. Senate leaders were expected to withraw the legislation so it could be reworked without the refuge language. The vote was 56-44.
Click here to see how your senators voted.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist was among those who for procedural reasons cast a "no" vote, so that he could bring the drilling issue up for another vote.
The vote was a stinging defeat for Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, who for years has waged an intense fight to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He had thought this time he would finally get his wish.
Stevens called the refuge's oil vital to national security and bemoaned repeated attempts over the years by opponents using the filibuster to kill drilling proposals.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
So it's dead because they don't have the votes to beat a "threatened filibuster". What guts these Republicans have.
Frist is now on my short-list of RINOs...amongst others. There is going to be a strong anti-incumbent vote in 2006.
Have a happy Holiday with your filibuster, Senators. In your chambers.
the cloture vote failed, its that simple.
How are these guys gonna face the voters and say, "We saved ANWR from oil and gas exploration!" when those voters are paying $2.50 to $3.50 a gallon to fill up their SUVs?..........
Why? The only reason he voted NO on that vote is so that he can bring a vote on it up again. Its procedural. He voted yes then right before it ended when they saw they lost he went no.
They can't very well claim that as the truth when there is already a well drilled in ANWR.
Yep. President Bush needs to tell them to get their butts working to pass that legislation, agreed to by the House and Executive branch. I'm sick and tired of the Senate pretending they are the sole governing body of the USA.
Correct about Frist's vote. He did it for the right reason.
We had a very good week, despite a couple of setbacks. The silver lining on ANWR is that it's like money in the bank. The longer we wait to drill, the more valuable the oil becomes to us. We should be drilling today, of course, but we need 6 more Republicans with a spine, and we don't have them at this time.
Do you have a link/source for your mention on an oil well in ANWT? Thanks.
This will continue as long as there are not more Republicans in Congress from blue states. The only way to make that happen is with money.
And that assumes we manage to hold the House despite an overwhelming effort by the Dems to take it. If they succeed, impeachment is guaranteed.
Donate to your Congressman, and more important donate to the RNC's congressional fundraising. Without that, we will face impeachment on TV in 2007.
I think the key here is that BOTH of Alaska's senators want drilling in THEIR state. All other 98 senators should fall in line and not exercise power in a state they were not elected to represent.
There might be, but I don't know of such. The well was drilled some time ago. At present there is zero activity in ANWR, but there is plenty of activity at Prudhoe and points west. A suit was filed Monday, Port Authority v. Exxon/BP, claiming monopolistic practices because Exxon and BP won't sell the necessary natural gas to Port Authority so Port Authority can get around the Stranded Gas Act. Exxon and BP claim the Port Authority pipeline is non-viable anyway. Lots of things happening, right on schedule.
The vote reflects (supposedly) the fact Democrats ( and a few pubs too) want "more" debate on the subject of ANWR.
Cloture is the end ( or at least a limit) to debate. Cloture vote is required to spawn an up or down vote.
The ANWR issue has been an ongoing 'debate' for over 25 years. I would like to point out that ANWR issue has been tagged onto multiple bills over the years and has been ended up being dropped from them eventualy prior to a straight up or down vote. As a stand alone issue or in combination with others, a direct yes or no, up or down, vote never seems to come thru.
This in effect gives the nay sayers exactly what they want even though they are in the minority. That being the 'defeat' of actual drilling. This is not how our nation is supposed to operate. LACK of voting is not supposed to make policy. Voting is supposed to make policy.
57 people out of a hundred voted to take this up or down after such a long time. ( Frist being the 57th and only voting NO so he could bring the bill back up in the future).
It is all fine and dandy that some oppose drilling in ANWR, it is their right to take that position. What I find so wrong is that they abuse the power they hold when they refuse to allow an up or down vote on the subject in order to get their way. This is indeed an example of fascism. They impose their will on the majority thru the supression of the voting process.
The truth is not that the opposition wants more debate on this subject, after all it has been debated for an excess of 25 years. The real point here is that the opposers to drilling in ANWR will use any tactic they can to get what it is they want regardless of what the majority wants.
Although in a bit of an odd place, a DOD spending bill, I would pose that drilling our own available supply of oil is directly related to our defense.
It is time for the American people to see what the real goal here is and it damn sure isn't more debate. The real goal of the opposition to drilling ANWR is to hold the majority hostage and force the minority view down the throats of the majority.
This is the best and longest running example of how poorly our Congress is representing us and people need to take that into account when they go to the polls in 06. It is time for 60 senators to be on the same page over this issue.
Lets take a new path and hand the power of the Senate to the Pubs in a 60 vote fashion.
When 60 votes, if attained, up or down votes will happen. This is a good thing regardless of which side of the aisl you come down on in any given situation. Either you will be happy with the resutls of the vote or you will not. I will offer that having an actual vote and disagreeing with its outcome is more valuable that not having a vote to reflect upon at all. Finger pointing and gridlock will end when 60 votes is attained.
I watched the vote this morning and I watched over 30 minutes pass for 100 people to say YES or NO. I find this abhorant and utterly rediculous! That action should take no more than 5 minutes total. They play a political game every minute in Washington and we the people suffer.
I request that we the people take back our government and demand that things get done. The best way we start out on this path is to habd the Seante in all its glory to the Pubs with 60 positive votes. They will either do the right thing and make the people happy, thus retaining their control, or they will go balistic and piss everyone off. I would bet the farm that they call the votes and they press forward, something I think will see most people happy with their performance in the short term.
I support ANWR drilling. Moreover I support actual votes happening. Using cloture vote to stall an up or down vote simply to avoid losing a vote is downright underhanded. It is time to hold the party of NO accountable for their actions. Vote em OUT every chance you get!
The cloture vote failed, so it is no longer a threat. It is a reality. There cannot be a vote. "Guts" have nothign to do with this.
If you are a conservative NEVER EVER donate to the RNC or the Senatorial committee or any of those groups that collect $ and dole it out to individuals running for office. All that $ goes to RINOs because conservatives can raise their own $, but RINOs can't and are only saved by YOUR $. That's why 70 Republican senators will not yield 60 who will vote with conservatives.
Although in a bit of an odd place, a DOD spending bill, I would pose that drilling our own available supply of oil is directly related to our defense...
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We all know that this is a political football that is totally indicative of the libs obstruction of ANY COMPREHENSIVE ENERGY POLICY that would represent a win for Bush. Plain and simple. The "debate" over ANWR is a JOKE! We all know that. The libs are so determined to prevent any wins for Bush, they are hurting our country AT ANY COST AND IMPACT to do so. These maggots are so screwed-up in their politics-of-power and hate, they are killing every chance we have to pull away from dependence on the freakin' Arabs. The libs have notably been TOTAL FAILURES at any comprehensive policies (including energy) for this country. Their entire agenda revolves around POWER AND CONTROL and totally ignores the needs of this country and its people.
Plain and simple, for several decades now....
Perhaps when our troops stop getting paid they'll help the people take back Congress from the scoundrels now occupying it.
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