Energy/Environment

In a 42-57 vote, the Senate fell 18 votes short of proceeding with legislation opposed by the White House. 

Freshman Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said on Wednesday that he would vote against a Senate Republican energy bill that seeks to increase offshore lease sales for oil-and-gas exploration.

"The truth is, I would love to sink my teeth in and vote for this measure, but I simply can't," Manchin said on the floor. "I do not believe this legislation strikes the right common-sense balance between our energy demands, responsible regulation, the economy and our environment."

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) on Wednesday called on her Senate colleagues to approve a Senate Republican energy bill that would restart offshore oil leases, just one day after the Senate failed to advance a Democratic bill.

"If there is one word that should be used to describe this bill, it would be 'modest,'" she said on the floor. "Everything within it is straightforward. Nothing is outlandish, nothing goes too far, there's no poison pills in it."

The Senate voted not to advance the Democratic bill that would cut billions in tax breaks for big oil companies.

Four Senate Democrats this week asked the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate whether U.S. oil refineries are purposefully cutting back capacity levels in order to keep gasoline prices high.

Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu (La.) said Tuesday's planned Senate vote to raise taxes on oil companies is mere "entertainment," and accused her fellow Democrats of picking on companies that already pay a higher proportion of taxes than many other industries.

The Obama administration on Tuesday said it "strongly supports" a Senate bill that would increase taxes on oil companies, which the Senate was debating Tuesday afternoon but was expected to reject in a vote Tuesday evening.

In a Statement of Administration Policy, the White House said it has put forward a plan to cut U.S. oil imports by one-third by 2025 and increase domestic production. "It is also clear that there are much more responsible ways to utilize the billions in taxpayer dollars provided to oil and gas companies through unwarranted tax breaks," it said.

Pelosi qualified that how Medicare was funded was  "on the table" but not its elimination which, she said, Republicans advocate.

The House on Thursday approved H.R. 1231, a bill that sets oil-and-gas production goals for the U.S. and requires increased offshore drilling in the most productive regions as a way of getting there.

The bill was approved in a 243-179 vote with 21 Democrats joining all but nine Republicans in support of the bill.

The House Wednesday evening rejected three Democratic amendments to a bill that sets oil and gas production goals for the U.S. and requires increased offshore drilling as a way of getting there.

In successive votes that ended at about 6:30 p.m., the House rejected an amendment from Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) that would have made sure that offshore drilling does not conflict with naval military operations. Republicans said this language is redundant, and the amendment was defeated in a 193-228 vote.