Tom Udall: “I rise today to oppose this flawed, shortsighted energy bill, which does not give us a national energy policy, and…”

“I rise today to oppose this flawed, shortsighted energy bill, which does not give us a national energy policy, and provides more than $22 billion in taxpayer dollars to the private industry. I'm not sure what era the authors of this bill think we're living in, but this bill does not reflect our present or future energy needs in the 21st Century. High gas prices are on the minds of many Americans right now, and this bill does nothing to change that. The Energy Information Administration has said that this will actually increase gas prices by three cents and will have almost no effect on production, consumption, or prices. I suspect my constituents in New Mexico who are paying $2.32 a gallon will be concerned about that. But this is only one of the several reasons why I oppose this legislation. One of my great concerns is the provision that allows drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, ANWR. I have been to Alaska and I've seen the tremendously diverse wildlife that will be hurt if drilling occurs in the area. In addition, there are native tribes who depend on this wildlife, and they have asked Congress and the state of Alaska to stand up for them and oppose drilling. The environmental costs of this provision are sky-high, and benefits are little to none--six month's supply of oil. Opening ANWR would have no effect on our dependence on foreign oil. It is simply not worth it.…”