Thomas Daschle: “we have now been debating how best to reshape our Nation's energy policy for 24 days. Time and again, we have heard our…”

“we have now been debating how best to reshape our Nation's energy policy for 24 days. Time and again, we have heard our Republican colleagues say that opening Alaska's arctic wilderness is the cornerstone of their energy policy. Time and again, we have said, if that is the case, then offer an amendment to that effect. Time and again, they declined. I am mystified as to why it has taken us so long to get to this point, but now that we are here, I want to talk about the substance of this amendment, because I support policies that will encourage domestic production of oil and gas. I also believe that we need a comprehensive and balanced energy policy that will help to meet our Nation's critical energy needs. But, given the fact that drilling in the Arctic Refuge won't increase our energy independence, but will have an adverse impact on the wildlife refuge--I believe that it does not belong as part of our Nation's energy policy. America's appetite for energy continues to grow each year. Over the next 10 years, the United States is expected to consume roughly 1.5 trillion gallons of gasoline. At the same time, the United States holds only 3 percent of the known world oil reserves. Even if we drilled in everybody's back yard, we could never meet our own demand with our own supply. That is not to say that we shouldn't drill for oil and gas in the United States--to the contrary, we can and we should.…”