Politics

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) criticized the relationship between the Bush Administration and oil companies, and discussed its negative effects on the country on This Week with George Stephanopoulos yesterday.

We need a bunch of things being done, which this administration doesn't want to do. Number one is conservation. We have the worst conservation program in the world. China, a country that doesn't even believe in the environment, has much better oil -- gas mileage standards than we do.

Then we need a Manhattan Project to become independent of fossil fuels and, particularly, imported oil. We have to drop our exports in half in 10 years, and we can do it. But what happens is, because this administration believes what's good for Exxon/Mobil is good for America, they simply do what the oil companies want. The oil companies are happy with high prices and record profits.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) spoke of the benefit of oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) on Face The Nation with Bob Schieffer yesterday.

I'm talking about sensible exploration and drilling in the coastal plane. We've got an opportunity up there for perhaps the largest find in North America that we have seen. We've got an opportunity up there for a million barrels a day coming into this country. A million barrels a day is what we saw when Katrina and Rita took us offline.

Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) spoke about what the Bush Administration must do to address the genocide in Darfur at a rally in the National Mall today.

I've seen the Janjaweed outside the refugee camps, walking through the camps. I talked to the women who had been raped while collecting firewood. I've seen the brutal killings, I've been to the camps...I call on the administration to do as much as they can do. We need to deploy the special envoy...We need to put sanctions on the government of Sudan. We need to put a travel ban on the government of Sudan.

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) discussed the need for a more effective approach to ending the genocide in Darfur at a rally in the National Mall this afternoon.

Today, we know what is right and we know what is wrong. The slaughter of innocents is wrong. Two million people driven from their homes is wrong. Women, gang-raped while gathering firewood is wrong. Silence, acquiescence, paralysis in the face of genocide is wrong...If you take a poll of senators and representatives, they will tell you that they too are against genocide. (The Bush) administration, unfortunately, has been better than many European nations in acknowledging the facts on the ground, which is a sad testimony to what is happening around the world. But for all that, not enough has been done and the facts on the ground remain the same.
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Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) discussed the President's role in recent gas price surges on Meet The Press this morning.

But let's be very honest about this. When we put up the Maria Cantwell amendment, on the floor, of the energy bill (which) said America should reduce its dependence on foreign oil by 40% over the next 20 years, it was opposed by this administration, opposed because they said that would force higher CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards, higher fuel economy for cars and trucks. That has to be part of the solution in America. And now the president recently has said he wants to revisit that issue, but that has to be part of any sound energy policy.  

 

Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) criticized Republicans for responding to gas price concerns with calls for increased oil drilling and tax breaks for oil companies during the weekly Democratic radio address this morning.

Last year Exxon-Mobil posted $36 billion in profits, the largest for any corporation in United States history. Thursday the top four oil companies reported a first-quarter profit of $20 billion and oil executives, like former Exxon-Mobil CEO Lee Raymond, retire with $400 million retirement packages. Meanwhile, gas prices keep skyrocketing, and in Washington Republicans continue to turn to a blind eye to the oil industry's activities.

From this Republican-controlled Congress, we hear more of the same: let's just drill our way to energy independence, sacrifice our environment, and provide big tax breaks to big oil. Democrats, on the other hand, want to implement bold changes that ease consumers' pain today and in the longer term wean America from its addiction to foreign oil. 

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Sens. Pat Leahy (D-Vt.) and Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, citing media reports that  Gov. Haley Barbour (R-Miss.), former chair of the Republican National Committee, was involved in unlawful campaign tactics during the New Hampshire elections of 2002.

The media reports that Haley Barbour, a former National Republican Party chairman, arranged a quarter-million dollar loan to provide startup financing for the telemarketing company implicated in the scheme.

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Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz) discussed the need for the U.S. and Europe to create a common approach to Iran's nuclear program.

I’m not saying that military force is necessary at this moment; indeed, military action is always the last option we should consider, and moving toward sanctions will help forestall the need for greater coercion. But to preemptively forswear options is to weaken our diplomatic hand. In the end, there is only one thing worse than military action, and that is a nuclear armed Iran. By standing united on this issue, we can block Iran’s efforts to split the great powers and increase the chances of a peaceful resolution.

And as in so many other issues, the U.S. and Europe must define their policy not just by what we stand against, but also by what we stand for.

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Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.) introduced an amendment to the emergency supplemental appropriations bill that would eliminate tax cuts in order to pay for the war effort in Iraq. Biden attacked the President's tax policies.

It is a record of indifference to the price our children and grandchildren will pay to redeem our debt when it comes due. It is time for us to call a halt to this irresponsibility. It is time for us to pay for the choices we make. It is time to pay our bills.

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Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) today said that Iran's nuclear program must be addressed and accused Congress for failing to act.

The IAEA report released today provides overwhelming evidence that Iran continues to defy the international community by advancing their nuclear program. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad must be stopped. To date, the Congress has failed to act on the growing threat in Iran.

I went to the floor of the United States Senate yesterday to encourage my colleagues to join me in making a strong statement against the government of Iran and their nuclear ambitions, and to support additional funding for the support of democracy in Iran. I introduced an amendment to the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act that would provide an additional $25 million to fund pro-democracy efforts in Iran. This amendment is vitally important to our national security. We must support efforts to transition to democracy so that the government of Iran can no longer continue to bully the rest of the world. Iran is a threat to America, our allies, and to the stability of the international community.