"It does not include Bush's desire to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil exploration."
That says it all! What a bummer!
ANWR is a sure thing attached in another bill that liberals can not filibuster.
BUSH GETS ANWR TOO!!
But drilling advocates have a backup plan that is expected to unfold in mid-September.
Domenici said he will include a provision authorizing ANWR drilling as part of a budget procedure that is immune to filibuster. A similar maneuver is being planned in the House, although the final strategy is still being worked out.
Unlike normal legislation, the budget process is not subject to filibuster, so only 51 votes will be needed in the Senate for it to clear Congress and be signed into law by the president. Just such a tactic was used a decade ago when Congress approved ANWR drilling as part of the budget process, only to see the measure vetoed by then-President Clinton, a drilling opponent.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said her state's delegation is determined to push for opening the refuge, calling it "the final component" of a national energy plan that she hopes will be put in place later this year.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/08/07/arctic.refuge.ap/index.html?section=cnn_latest