Max Baucus: “I rise to support the Roth amendment, which expresses the sense of the Senate that we should maintain the longstanding…”

“I rise to support the Roth amendment, which expresses the sense of the Senate that we should maintain the longstanding ban on oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. We have heard a lot of concern lately about the cost of gas at the pump. I share that concern. I represent Montana. The Big Sky State. Vast open spaces. We often drive long distances just to get to the grocery store. Prices at the pump in Billings have gone from $1.18 in April of 1999 to $1.59 today. We need to get the price down. The administration has made some progress, with the OPEC countries. We may need to do more. For example, we may need to use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. But we should not respond to high gas prices by opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. That would be shortsighted, ineffective, and environmentally harmful. Proponents of oil drilling make three main arguments. They imply it will lower the price at the pump. They argue that it will enhance our energy security. And they argue that it won't really pose a significant environmental risk to the refuge. I disagree.”