HOFFA on Hardball: KERRY Now Supporting drilling in ANWR and everywhere in the US

STATEMENT OF SENATOR JOHN KERRY
Regarding: Tom DeLay's comments on ANWR as a “precedent”

Thursday, September 25, 2003

WASHINGTON, DC – Roll Call newspaper reported today that, on Tuesday, during a closed-door session of the House GOP leadership, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) said that the battle in Congress to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil exploration is a fight over whether energy exploration will be allowed in similarly sensitive areas in the future. Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) issued the following statement in response:

“When the Bush Administration needs a partisan attack dog, they roll out Tom DeLay to do their dirty work. So it should come as no surprise that in their headlong rush to attack one of America's pristine national treasures, they would trot out Tom DeLay to preview their assault on the environment.

“Congressman DeLay has shown himself to be little more than a bully, but I will not let him bully the United States Senate into allowing the oil industry supporters of this Administration to establish a toehold for drilling in ANWR. Their goals are clear, but so is mine: I led the last fight to stop them from drilling in ANWR and I will do so the next time and every time after that. Because, as Tom DeLay so aptly pointed out, their agenda is not to establish a footprint in ANWR; it is to trample on America's environmentally sensitive areas in an effort to keep America dependent on the oil produced by their campaign contributors.

“We cannot continue to rely on the energy policies of the past. It is only by developing technologies that advance our energy, environmental, and economic needs that we will truly free ourselves from our dependence on foreign oil.”
ROLL CALL DeLay: ANWR a 'Precedent' By John Bresnahan, Roll Call Staff September 25, 2003 [Excerpt]

On Tuesday, during a closed-door session of the House GOP leadership, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) said that the battle in Congress to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil exploration is a fight over whether energy exploration will be allowed in similarly sensitive areas in the future, a statement that surprised even Republicans in the room.

According to several GOP sources, DeLay insisted that backing down on ANWR would be a mistake for those who support the measure, popular with the oil industry, although DeLay also acknowledged that the provision was likely to fare poorly in the Senate because of opposition from Democrats and GOP moderates.

“It's about the precedent,” DeLay told the assembled Republican leaders while making several references to the “symbolism of ANWR,” according to GOP sources.

John Kerry on Energy & Oil

Voted NO on drilling ANWR on national security grounds.

Raise CAFE standard to 26 mpg by 2015
Q: Would you increase the required automobile fleet average of 27.5 mpg; and SUVs and pickups averaging 20.7 mpg?
A: I support updating CAFE standards to 36 miles per gallon by 2015. This proposal will reduce America's dependence on oil by saving 2 million barrels of oil per day -- almost as much as we currently import from the Persian Gulf. It will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, smog and ozone pollution.

Source: Associated Press policy Q&A, "Fuel Efficiency" Jan 25, 2004

Ban MBTE and sue companies who make it
Q: MTBE in gasoline is linked to water pollution, but adding ethanol is costly. How would you balance between the environment and the economy, as it pertains to MTBE?
KERRY: It needs to be banned, taken out. And the companies that have put it in need to be held responsible for it. One- sixth of the lakes of New Hampshire are polluted with MBTE. Now, Tom DeLay and his friends in Congress have been busy protecting those companies from their responsibility, trying to give them liability immunity for what they've done. This is the worst environmental administration that I've ever seen in all my time in public life. They're going backward on clean air, backward on clean water, backward on forest policy.

As president, I will balance between jobs and the economy, but I'm not going to give people a phony choice that says, "It's either the jobs or the economy." Cleaning up the environment is jobs. And we're going to create 500,000 of them for Americans in the first years.

Source: Democratic 2004 Primary Debate at St. Anselm College Jan 22, 2004

20% renewable energy by 2020
Q: How would you get the US to become more self-reliant for our energy needs?
A: We have to encourage the use of hybrid vehicles and invest in research and development. We have to set a goal by 2020 that 20 percent of our energy will come from renewable fuels. I am going to create an energy efficient trust fund to look for news sources of energy and we are going to create tens of thousands of jobs doing that. We can't drill our way out of this.

Source: Concord Monitor / WashingtonPost.com on-line Q&A Nov 7, 2003

ANWR won't provide any oil for 20 years
Q: On one hand you say there is a national security need to reduce dependence imported oil, while on the other hand you oppose drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska?
KERRY: The Arctic Wildlife Refuge won't provide a drop of oil for 20 years. And the total amount of oil, if it were to come through at the level that some people in the oil industry predict, will amount to about a 1% to 2% reduction in the total dependency of the United States on oil.

Source: Debate at Pace University in Lower Manhattan Sep 25, 2003

Invent our way out of oil dependency-don't drill our way out
We only have 3% of the world's oil reserves. There is no physical way for the US to drill its way out of this problem. We have to invent our way out of this problem. The sooner that we commit America to the science & discovery of renewable alternatives, the better off America will be, the better our health will be, the more effective our economy would be, the better our national security will be, and the better world citizen we will be. We need to commit ourselves to energy independence now.
Source: Debate at Pace University in Lower Manhattan Sep 25, 2003

Invest in advancing secure forms of energy instead of oil
Q: What is your view on our dependence on fossil fuels?
A: Today we have an energy policy of big oil, by big oil, and for big oil. With common-sense investments in advancing and speeding breakthroughs, we can harness the natural world around us to light and power the world we live in with secure forms of energy at reasonable costs for a modern economy. I recently unveiled a plan to increase America's security and improve the environment, by ending our dependence on foreign oil within 10 years.

Source: MoveOn.org interview Jun 17, 2003

Led effort to try to raise fuel efficiency standards
KERRY [to Gephardt]: I led an effort in 2002 to raise fuel efficiency standards in the country. And just yesterday, they reported they are at a 22 year low. You're the one member of Congress here who doesn't support raising fuel efficiency standards. How do we get to energy independence when 50% or more of our fuel is in oil for transportation? How are we going to break out without raising fuel efficiency?
GEPHARDT: I agree that we need to do it. However, we need to put together an energy program that includes an increase in the CAFE standards, but also includes setting a 10-year goal of not only mileage requirements and pollution requirements, but also moves us to hybrid cars in the interim and hydrogen fuel cells in the long-term. I would put the auto companies, the oil companies and the environmental groups at a table and I would work out a 10-year plan. I'd call it an Apollo 2 program, and I believe we could pass it, have everybody committed to it and get this done for the country.

Source: [X-ref to Gephardt] Democratic Debate in Columbia SC May 3, 2003

Create new energy sources to end Mideast dependency
We must invest again in America and put our ingenuity to work to unclog our highways, to build a modern transportation network we can be proud of. We must harness the creative genius of our entrepreneurs, laboratories and universities to create the energy sources of the future, to liberate us from dependence on Middle East oil and do all of this while protecting our precious resources like the Arctic Wildlife Refuge.
Source: Speech at Massachusetts Democratic Convention May 31, 2002

Voted YES on targeting 100,000 hydrogen-powered vehicles by 2010.
Dorgan Amdt. No. 865; To require that the hydrogen commercialization plan of the Department of Energy include a description of activities to support certain hydrogen technology deployment goals. Part of S 14 Energy Omnibus bill; this vote would pass an amendment that would call for the Department of Energy to set targets and timelines to maintain the production of 100,000 hydrogen-powered vehicles by 2010, and 2.5 million vehicles annually by 2020. It also would call for the department to set targets for the sale of hydrogen at fueling stations. The bill would require the Energy secretary to submit a yearly progress report to Congress.
Bill S.14 ; vote number 2003-212 on Jun 10, 2003

Voted YES on removing consideration of drilling ANWR from budget bill.
Boxer Amdt. No. 272.; To prevent consideration of drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in a fast-track budget reconciliation bill. S Con Res 23 Budget resolution FY2004: Vote to pass an amendment that would strike (remove) language in the resolution that would permit oil drilling and exploration in part of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska. [Voting No favors drilling for oil in ANWR].
Bill SConRes 23 ; vote number 2003-59 on Mar 19, 2003

Voted NO on drilling ANWR on national security grounds.
Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Murkowski Amendment No. 31323; To create jobs for Americans, to reduce dependence on foreign sources of crude oil and energy, to strengthen the economic self determination of the Inupiat Eskimos and to promote national security. Would allow gas and oil development in a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge if the president certifies to Congress that production in the area is in the nation's security and economic interests (qwhich Prsident Bush would). If the cloture motion is agreed to, debate will be limited and a vote will occur. If the cloture motion is rejected debate could continue indefinitely and instead the bill is usually set aside. A yea vote for this bill was one in favor of drilling in the reserve. Three-fifths of the total Senate (60) is required to invoke cloture.
Bill S.517 ; vote number 2002-71 on Apr 18, 2002

Voted NO on replacing CAFE standards within 15 months.
Levin Amendment No. 2997; To provide alternative provisions to better encourage increased use of alternative fueled and hybrid vehicles. Vote to pass an amendment that would remove the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standard (CAFE) and instead establish a new automobile efficiency standard in 15 months. Congress could veto any CAFE increase and would be allowed to increase the standard if no changes are made with 15 months. The bill would overhaul the nation's energy policies by restructuring the electricity system and providing for $16 billion in energy-related tax incentives.
Bill S.517 ; vote number 2002-47 on Mar 13, 2002

Voted NO on preserving budget for ANWR oil drilling.
Vote to preserve language in the Fiscal Year 2001 Budget Framework that assumes $1.2 billion in revenue from oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge [ANWR] in Alaska.
Bill S Con Res 101 ; vote number 2000-58 on Apr 6, 2000

Voted YES on keeping CAFE fuel efficiency standards.
Senators Feinstein (D-CA) and Bryan (D-NV) introduced a resolution expressing the sense of the Senate towards ending CAFE Standards. Senator Gorton motioned to table this amendment. [A YES vote is considered pro-business].
Status: Amdt Rejected Y)40; N)55; NV)4
Reference: Gorton Amdt # 1677; Bill H.R. 2084 ; vote number 1999-275 on Sep 15, 1999

Voted NO on defunding renewable and solar energy.
In June of 1999, Senator Jeffords (R-VT) was prepared to offer an amendment which would have added $62 million to the Energy Department solar and renewable energy programs. This action was blocked by Senator Reid (D-NV).
Status: Motion Agreed to Y)60; N)39; NV)1
Reference: Motion to table the recommital; Bill S. 1186 ; vote number 1999-171 on Jun 16, 1999

Voted NO on approving a nuclear waste repository.
Approval of the interim nuclear waste repository.
Status: Bill Passed Y)65; N)34; NV)1
Reference: Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1997; Bill S. 104 ; vote number 1997-42 on Apr 15, 1997

Voted NO on do not require ethanol in gasoline.
Funding a mandated percentage of market share for the use of ethanol in gasoline, to be funded b reducing NASA budget b $39 million..
Status: Table Motion Agreed to Y)50; N)50; VP decided YES
Reference: Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1995; Bill H.R. 4624 ; vote number 1994-255 on Aug 3, 1994

Supports tradable emissions permits for greenhouse gases.
Kerry signed the manifesto, "A New Agenda for the New Decade":
Modernize Environmental Policies
National environmental policies, mostly developed in the 1970s, have been remarkably successful in improving the quality of our air and water. But we face a new set of environmental challenges for which the old strategy of centralized, command-and-control regulation is no longer effective.

The old regime of prohibitions and fines levied on polluters is not well equipped to tackle problems such as climate change, contamination of water from such sources as farm and suburban runoff, loss of open lands, and sprawl. Without relaxing our determination to maintain and enforce mandatory national standards for environmental quality, it is time to create more effective, efficient, and flexible ways of achieving those standards.

For example, a system of tradable emissions permits would give factories, power plants, and other sources of air pollution and greenhouse gases a powerful incentive not only to meet but to exceed environmental standards. Decisions about solving local environmental problems should be shifted from Washington to communities, without weakening national standards. Finally, to empower citizens and communities to make sound decisions, government should invest in improving the quality and availability of information about environmental conditions.

Goals for 2010
Create a domestic emissions trading system to reduce greenhouse gases by 10 percent.
Promote innovative agreements for community and regional partnerships to achieve national environmental goals and standards through local strategies.
End government subsidies for sprawl.

A match made in ANWR:
The touching love story of the GOP and the Teamsters
by Arianna Huffington
03.07.02
It's a match made in heaven. Actually, not quite that far north -- in Alaska. With the Senate scheduled to begin debating the administration's energy bill this week -- including its plan to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge -- the president is expending a great many kilowatts of his own energy to guarantee its passage. His partner in this oily scheme is none other than the Teamsters Union. Yes, the very same Teamsters who endorsed Al Gore and who, in the last election cycle, funneled 93 percent of their PAC donations to Democrats... In another show of devotion to their newly beloved, the Teamsters have put a distinctive spin on a time-honored romantic tradition. Instead of carving their initials on a tree, they've expressed their deep affection by carving their initials into the forehead of Sen. John Kerry with a vicious -- and wildly inaccurate -- newspaper ad... which proudly bears the Teamsters' union seal, claims that Kerry supports drilling off the coast of Florida. Which would be true -- if he did. But he doesn't and, in fact, he voted against it.

He voted against it, but he supports it now.

It also distorts his position on drilling in Alaska. Who needs chocolates, when you can buy your sweetie a full-page hatchet-job? "The truth is," Kerry told me, "investing in renewable energy sources will create a lot more jobs than drilling in ANWR. The Teamsters ought to be fighting for the jobs of the future, not the jobs of the past." But there is more to this dangerous Beltway liaison than meets the eye. It turns out that Hoffa's romantic agenda is the most suspect since Anna Nicole Smith fell head over heels for her octogenarian billionaire. The "jobs bill" rhetoric notwithstanding, Hoffa's real objective is the removal of the federal oversight of the Teamsters that was imposed in 1989 as a result of the long history of corruption within the union... But the very nature of Hoffa's support for Arctic drilling proves otherwise. "Clearly, we can explore ANWR without harming the environment," claimed Hoffa -- a statement that, along with the bunk he and his cronies are peddling about Kerry, shows that this is a man who is willing to do and say pretty much anything to curry favor, and cannot, therefore, be trusted. Drilling in the Arctic Refuge is a lousy idea. At best, it will only produce enough oil to meet six months of America's energy needs -- and it will take ten years to do even that.

cross-posted in a couple of older topics.

George W. Bush will be reelected by a margin of at least ten per cent

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