Jeff Bingaman: “shortly I will be voting for cloture on the motion to proceed to S. 3711. I will be urging other colleagues to do as…”

“shortly I will be voting for cloture on the motion to proceed to S. 3711. I will be urging other colleagues to do as well. I am not casting my vote for cloture because I support the bill in its current form. On the contrary, I think the bill that has been brought before the Senate is seriously flawed on several grounds. I am voting for cloture on the motion to proceed because I want to have a chance to propose amendments to the bill, propose improvements to the bill. I want this bill to represent good, long-term energy policy and good, long-term fiscal policy for the country. I am aware of statements made by some that once the Senate is on the bill, there will be an attempt to frustrate the ability of Senators to offer legitimate energy amendments. I will certainly oppose any attempt to prematurely invoke cloture on the bill. Our energy problems in the country are serious business. They cry out for thoughtful responses. They also deserve a process in the Senate that is serious and is thoughtful. In this Congress, we made great progress on energy because we adopted an open, inclusive, and bipartisan approach on the issues. In my view, that record is at risk if we adopt a process on this bill that is a closed process. I hope the Senate consideration of this bill will be in the vein of the consideration we gave to the last Energy bill. Americans want positive, forward-looking solutions to our energy problems.…”