Byron Dorgan: “there has been a lot of helium in this Chamber in recent hours. I have been watching and listening and heard a lot of…”

“there has been a lot of helium in this Chamber in recent hours. I have been watching and listening and heard a lot of discussion about why we cannot produce more energy. Well, in fact, we are producing more energy. I announced about two months ago, with the U.S. Geological Survey, their assessment of the largest assessment of recoverable oil they have ever announced in the lower 48. That is called the Bakken shale, which underlies eastern Montana and western North Dakota. They say it has up to 3.65 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil in it. The fact is, we are producing more oil and gas. My colleagues who talk about the need to produce more should understand that I and three others, two Democrats and two Republicans, from the Senate who lead the effort to open what is called lease 181 in the Gulf of Mexico in the 109th Congress. Substantial oil and gas reserves exist there, and we have opened a portion of that--not nearly enough by the way. I notice that, in the Republican offshore proposal offered by my colleagues on the other side, they carve out opening the area in eastern Gulf of Mexico where there is substantial opportunity to achieve new oil and gas reserves. In fact, companies from India and companies from China are now exploring for oil in Cuban waters. Our companies want to go there, but American companies are not allowed access in that area. They are not allowed to drill in waters off of Cuba because of the embargo against Cuba.”