Byron Dorgan: “as we look ahead, aside from the wrench in the crankcase here in Congress that prevents any kind of movement to get…”

“as we look ahead, aside from the wrench in the crankcase here in Congress that prevents any kind of movement to get things done, one of the significant challenges for us both now and in the months ahead is this issue of energy. What is happening to energy prices? What is happening to the supply of energy? I want to talk for a minute about where we are. Go back a year, or maybe a year and a half, and the price of oil was $10 a barrel. In fact, in North Dakota it was $6 to $7 a barrel. The price of gasoline at the gas pumps was about 90 cents a gallon. The price of natural gas was about $2 per million cubic feet. Now, fast forward: What has happened is the OPEC countries have cut their production of oil. We have seen a circumstance in this country where the price of oil has spiked up on the spot market to $36 and $37 a barrel. Gasoline is anywhere from $1.50 to $2 a gallon. Natural gas prices have more than doubled from $2 per mcf, and in some cases $5 to $5.50. We have people frightened to death with the reports that home heating fuel costs are spiking way up. Those in my State and others-- particularly in the Northeast as they enter what could be a cold winter--are trying to figure out how they, on limited incomes, will pay for home heating fuel that is going to double, and in some cases triple in price. These are significant and serious issues. The question is, What do we do about it? What is causing all of this? And what can we do about it?”