Angie Craig: “I speak today of my strong concern over what I believe are troubling movements in the Western Hemisphere in relation to…”

“I speak today of my strong concern over what I believe are troubling movements in the Western Hemisphere in relation to U.S. energy independence, energy security, and competitiveness of the U.S. oil and gas industry in the region and this country's political and economic influence in our own backyard. For all the right reasons, in the past few years we have been appropriately focused on developments in the greater Middle East as we have engaged in a global war on terror and fought in Afghanistan and Iraq. Again, we are absolutely right to be engaged in conflicts in that region. But it is dangerous for any region to have a monopoly on this country's attention. At home, in this Senate, we have engaged in many debates regarding U.S. energy independence. This issue was first recognized in World War I, when Winston Churchill stated that the answers to energy security ``lie in variety and variety alone.'' Energy security is becoming a hot topic, and many Senators--Democrats and Republicans--have been on the floor the last few days talking about tight oil markets, high oil prices, threats of terrorism, instability in some of the exporting nations, nationalistic backlashes in other fiercely competitive areas and supplies, geopolitical rivalries, and all countries' absolute need for energy to power their economic growth. We have no time to waste to move forward on a sound national energy policy. Many of us in this body have taken the first step.…”