[PolishProud]

How can I find the names of the 24 GOP Congressmen that signed this letter? As I understand it, if drilling in ANWR was included in the budget debate, it would become law should the buget be approved.

[conservativecorner]

So now we have the House with numerous RINOS!! Unfrigging real!!

[Corporate Law]

I have been looking for this list as well.

[DoctorMichael]

".........House GOP Members Urge Delay on ANWR........"

Why? We've delayed enough already.

[Truth29]

More GOP spines need to be ordered. This group knows that if this provision is subject to filibuster, it will never make it into law.

[u57896]

With the price of gas, ANWR should look like Swiss cheese!

[KarlInOhio]

And they bring this up less than a week after the energy bill, where ANWR should have been, was passed. Couldn't they have made their complaints known a few weeks ago when it could have been put in and fought over.

[RobFromGa]

"We believe the debate on opening this unique land to oil and gas exploration should be done outside the budget process," says the group led by Rep. Jeb Bradley, R-NH (full text below)

---

House Republicans Oppose ANWR Drilling Provision In Budget

August 11, 2005 11:00 a.m. EST


Yvonne Lee - All Headline News Staff Reporter

Washington, DC (AHN) – Two dozen House Republicans are opposing the inclusion of a provision in the budget that authorizes oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.

They sent a letter to Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-IL saying that the budget process "is an inappropriate venue to be debating this important environmental issue" and warned that it would further complicate already difficult budget issues.

"We believe the debate on opening this unique land to oil and gas exploration should be done outside the budget process," says the group led by Rep. Jeb Bradley, R-NH, in an Aug. 4 letter made public Wednesday.

The letter also was sent to Budget Committee Chairman James Nussle, R-Iowa, and Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo, R-CA. Pombo strongly supports opening the 1.5 million acre coastal plain of the Alaska refuge to oil development.

Under congressional rules, drilling could be authorized if the Resource Committee decides to rely on an expected $2.4 billion from potential oil lease sales in the refuge to meet budget targets.

The House has repeatedly approved ANWR drilling in recent years only to have the matter die in the Senate where opponents have used filibusters to block the legislation. The budget reconciliation document, which has the force of law if approved and signed by President Bush, is not subject to filibuster.

[RobFromGa]

Two dozen House Republicans, including freshman Washington state Rep. Dave Reichert and three committee chairmen, have asked Speaker Dennis Hastert not to use a budget procedure to clear the way for oil drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

[cotton1706]

Delay for what?? To empanel a committee to do a study?? Here's the procedure: Vote, dig a hole, get the oil.

[kellynla]

Refineries, refineries, refineries...

We haven't built a new refinery in America in 30 friggin' years...

[RobFromGa]

WASHINGTON Two dozen House Republicans have asked Speaker Dennis Hastert not to use a congressional budget procedure to clear the way for oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. House Science Chairman Sherwood Boehlert from New York is among them.

The congressmen say the budget process is not the right forum for debating the drilling issue.

House leaders say they haven't decided to include a provision authorizing oil lease sales in the Alaska refuge in a so-called budget "reconciliation" document.

The document isn't open to filibuster, which the Senate has used to block legislation approving Alaska drilling.

The 24 G-O-P lawmakers who signed the letter did not all say they would vote against the budget if a drilling provision were included.

[Rockitz]

These guys are undoubtedly RINOS and muuch like their RAT cousins the only thing important to a RINO is getting reelected.

[Vaquero]

Does any of these friggin morons realize we are at WAR and the location of the place we are at war at is in nations that compromise the worlds richest petroleum producers....

Were these RINO's born with their heads up their collective asses.....

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Gutless.

[kittymyrib]

WHO ARE THESE IDIOTS??? What are they waiting for...$75/bbl oil? NONE of these "representatives" deserve re-election in '06 and those of us in their districts need to tell them this in no uncertain terms!

[CharlesWayneCT]

Fortunately, ANWR isn't (yet) an entirely party-line vote. There are democrats who will vote for ANWR.

However, they won't vote for the Budget, because that IS a party-line vote. And the republicans will vote for the budget, for the same reason.

And here is the political problem. These republican congressmen have probably run campaigns as being against drilling in ANWR. If they vote for the budget, their opponents will say they voted for drilling, broke their promises, and it will make it hard for them to get re-elected.

I further speculate that the reason Tom Davis (virginia) is in this list is because he is responsible for getting reublicans elected, and he sees a problem here.

The democrats who say they are for ANWR but vote against the budget could theoretically have the same problem, but they can probably point to things in the budget to justify their no vote (easier then justifying yea votes).

That said, I'm writing my congressman (Tom Davis, ugh) to express my strong displeasure. These republicans should argue that they WERE against ANWR, but the democrats obstructionism required this budgetary maneuver.

I don't care if we never get a drop out of ANWR, we should explore and drill it if the oil companies think it is worth their time. There is NOTHING about ANWR that justifies shutting it off to exploration. Nothing at all.

Environmentalists should support ANWR because each barrell we pull out of thier using our best, cleanest technology is one less barrel we buy from another country, where they don't care about the environment and are destroying it.

[R.W.Ratikal]

Again the RINOs (Republicans In Name Only) have raised their two heads to oppose what should have been done long ago, drill for oil in Alaska.

Higher energy prices do not bother these elite rich. One also suspects that Arab money might just be the motive for putting more obstacles in the way of lower fuel prices and less dependence on Middle East oil.

[R.W.Ratikal]

Again the RINOs (Republicans In Name Only) have raised their two heads to oppose what should have been done long ago, drill for oil in Alaska.

Higher energy prices do not bother these elite rich. One also suspects that Arab money might just be the motive for putting more obstacles in the way of lower fuel prices and less dependence on Middle East oil.

[Thom Pain]

Raise your hand if you think that you or anyone in your family will ever visit ANWR.

Raise your hand if you think that we will soon be held hostage by Wahabbi control of Saudi oil.

I thought so.

[RightWhale]

the debate on opening this unique land

Unique doesn't mean anything but worthless in this case.