ACTION ALERT: All about ANWR (How we win and the GOP moderates and enviro extremists lose)

If the last month or so have demonstrated anything, with the withdrawal of Harriet Miers and the sudden GOP actions to cut federal spending, it shows that when the Republican Party hears from conservatives and Americans they can suddenly develop the backbone to do the right thing.

Now the Republicans, particularly a cadre of "moderates," need to hear from us in no uncertain terms that we want to fight terrrorism by drilling for oil in Alaska and want to at least try to move toward more energy independence.

In this post, I have three main items: 1) The names of the 25 GOP representatives who are blocking drilling for oil and gas in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. I have phoned four of them already (the Capitol switchboard number is 202-225-3121 -- and then you can ask for their offices) and told them I will make no contributions until the GOP passes drilling for oil in northern Alaska. For the record, a bill to allow drilling in ANWR has passed the Senate (a huge and impassable hurdle in the past) and is being held up in the House by these 25 members of Congress. PLEASE let these people hear from all of America!!! Then also phone the House leadership -- Speaker Dennis Hastert, Acting Majority Leader Roy Blount, and previous Majority Leader Tom DeLay -- and let them know we want this bill.

The second item in this e-mail are two letters to the editor that I've written to the San Jose Mercury News -- one in March and one in November -- that they have refused to print. The Mercury News has been dishonest and deceptive on the issue of ANWR. In March, they ran a cartoon of a caribou mounted on President Bush's White House wall...and in November they ran a picture of the caribou. The implication is clear and plain -- oil drilling threatens the well-being of these animals. That is absolutely laughable -- and it shows the bankruptcy of the anti-ANWR side. Here are my best stats, from Wednesday's Wall Street Journal: When drilling started in Prudhoe Bay in 1977, there were about 5,000 caribou in the area. The most recent count shows there are more than 31,000 caribou.

The third item is the BLOCKBUSTER. It is a copy of a Jan. 16, 2002 speech delivered to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Human Rights Conference in Florida by Tara Sweeney. Tara is an Inupiat Eskimo, whose people own the title to 92,000 acres on the coastal plain of ANWR and want to drill for oil ON THEIR LAND. The dirty little secret of ANWR is that the Inupiat Eskimos want to use the oil revenues of their land to provide money for education and health care. It is pathetic that Democrats and the liberal media want to stop these people from providing education and health care for themselves and their children. (For the record, Tara Sweeney was interviewed on my radio show in June 2002).

Let's fight terrorism by drilling for oil in America -- and let's let these members of Congress hear from us until they have to beg for mercy. Do you remember the House check bouncers? Let's give them the same kind of noise.

1) The Republicans, who are blocking America from using the 10.4 billion barrels of oil in ANWR, the largest oil find in North America in three decades and enough oil to replace our imports from Saudi Arabia for 20-30 years, are:

1) Rep. Charles Bass, New Hampshire; 2) Sherwood Boehlert, New York; 3) Jeb Bradley, New Hampshire; 4) Mike Castle, Delaware; 5) Vernon Ehlers, Michigan; 6) Mike Ferguson, New Jersey; 7) Mike Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania; 8) Rod Frelinghuysen, New Jersey; 9) Jim Gerlach, Pennsylvania; 10) Wayne Gilchrest, Montana; 11) Bob Inglis, South Carolina; 12) Nancy Johnson, Connecticut; 13) Tim Johnson, Illinois; 14) Sue Kelly, New York; 15) Mark Kennedy, Minnesota; 16) Mark Kirk, Illinois; 17) Jim Leach, Iowa; 18) Frank LoBlondo, New Jersey; 19) Jim Ramstad, Minnesota; 20) Dave Reichert, Washington; 21) Jim Saxon, New Jersey; 22) Jim Sensenbrenner, Wisconsin; 23) Chris Shays, Connecticut; 24) Robert Simmons, Connecticut; 25) James Walsh, New York

It was pathetic to read the Mercury News' inaccurate ANWR editorial (March 17) and its dishonest exploitation of the caribou wildlife issue.

The truth is that since oil drilling started in Prudhoe Bay in the 1970's the number of caribou has soared from about 3,000 to more than 25,000. In minus 70 degree below zero winter temperatures, caribou huddle by the oil pipeline for warmth; the pipeline is tall enough for caribou to walk underneath and ramps over the pipeline are provided for caribou who prefer that route for passage.

ANWR is the largest oil find in North America in the past three decades and could replace Saudi Arabian oil for 20 to 30 years. And the people who live on the coastal plain want the oil revenues for schools and health care.

There was a time when Democrats and liberals supported minorities like the Inupiat Eskimos. Today the Big Environmental Lobby cited by Michael Crichton comes first.

Throughout 2005, with graphics and editorials in March and November, the Mercury News has spun the yarn that drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will harm caribou.

That isn't true -- and anyone who has studied this issue and is honest knows that since drilling started on the North Slope in the 1970's, the number of caribou have mushroomed from 3,000 to more than 25,000.

If oil and gas drilling are incompatible with wildlife preserves, why did the National Audubon Society (which opposes ANWR drilling) allow oil and gas drilling in its 26,000-acre Rainey Wildlife Sanctuary in Louisiana -- and reap more than $25 million in royalties? There's more than irony here; there's media bias and environmental hypocrisy, but let's keep it a secret.

THE RIGHT TO FREEDOM INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS CONFERENCE ON HUMAN RIGHTS

I am Tara Katuk Sweeney. I am a lifelong Alaskan, raised in the Arctic region of Alaska. I am also the sister of a Teamster in local 959. My people are Inupiat Eskimos. We comprise 8,000 of the over 90,000 Alaska Natives that are indigenous to the State.

In my professional capacity I work for the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, or ASRC, as its shareholder and government relations manager. ASRC is an Alaska Native corporation established through federal legislation in 1971. Instead of the commonly known Indian reservations prevalent throughout what we Alaskans call the lower 48 states, Congress mandated that Alaska establish regional corporations based on aboriginal, ethnic and linguistic boundaries.

My people, the Inupiat, comprise the membership of ASRC. We hold title to 92,000 acres of privately owned land in the middle of the controversial Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, also known as ANWR. We believe that responsible development of this area is our fundamental human right to economic self-determination.

However, before I get started, I wanted to say that it is an honor for me to share the podium today. My familiarity with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters began ten years ago as a student in Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. More recently I have had the honor of working with Jerry Hood in supporting a crucial plank of our President’s national energy policy, which is the responsible development of our homeland, the Coastal Plain of ANWR. This issue strikes to the very core of my Inupiaq people and our country’s future. Thankfully, we, along with a majority of Alaskans are on the side of the Teamsters.

Through the leadership of Mr. Hoffa, President Bush’s energy policy has traveled far. Working with the Teamsters on the national energy policy, doors that would otherwise have remained closed to us were opened. Mr. Hoffa’s leadership was a key element in forging the alliance of Alaska’s Native people, the majority of Alaskans, organized labor and common sense people nationwide. Through this alliance I believe we have been brought together to fight for the same human right. That human right is freedom.

Freedom means recognition of certain rights: the right to choose religion, free speech, to bear arms, even the right to organize. These rights and others are embodied in our country’s declaration of independence, constitution and bill of rights. The familiar documents are naturally called to mind when Americans ponder the subject of freedom. Who in here can think of freedom, of America’s great history, without thinking of the great westward expansion that accompanied the birth of our nation? Images come to mind: the open country, trails westward, a relatively remote government, plentiful game, clean water and the feeling of boundless opportunity.

For America’s indigenous people, the Indians of North America however, the same image invokes far different feelings. To the Indians of the Lower 48, America’s westward expansion represents-to paraphrase author Dee Brown-not how the west was won, but how it was lost. Where other Americans see the birth of the nation, the Indians see the taking of the land, broken treaties and the establishment of reservations.

For my people, the Inupiat, the effects of America’s westward expansion are far different. We’ve had no wars against expansion, and we have no treaties. We do not have reservations. Our land has never been ceded to anyone in battle.

Truly our history was different. Yet we still struggled for freedom. Our struggle was not on the battlefield or on the ripped pages of broken treaties. Our struggle was in courtrooms and capitol buildings and it continues to this day. It is not a struggle of Eskimos against the world. Our struggle, happening as we speak, going on nationwide, is between the informed and the uninformed, and it is happening today in the halls of Congress.

Within those halls there is a debate on the most controversial element of the President’s national energy plan. This element is the responsible development of oil and gas on a tiny parcel of land within my region; it is the Coastal Plain of ANWR. Again, my people hold title to 92,000 acres of land within the Coastal Plain. We cannot develop our privately owned land unless Congress authorizes development within the Coastal Plain.

The uninformed will tell you that the Coastal Plain is untouched by man; that it is America’s Serengeti; the last great wilderness on earth; or that it cannot be developed responsibly. I am here to tell you the truth. In short, the Coastal Plain of ANWR is not untouched by man, nor is it the last great wilderness on earth. Finally, we believe that ANWR can be developed responsibly.

For thousands of years the Inupiat people have occupied the Arctic region of Alaska called the North Slope. This area is 89,000 square miles in size, equivalent to the size of the state of Minnesota. We have eight villages scattered throughout the North Slope. One of our villages is Kaktovik, the only village within the recognized boundaries of the entire 19.6 million acres of ANWR.

Kaktovik is situated within the 1.5 million acres of the Coastal Plain. To put this in perspective for you, Kaktovik is the only village within the boundaries of an area the size of the state of South Carolina. The Inupiat people of Kaktovik own the surface rights to the 92,000 acres while ASRC owns the subsurface rights to that land.

Kaktovik residents support responsible ANWR development, as do 75% of all Alaskans and the Alaska Federation of Natives, an organization that represents all Alaska Natives.

To allege the Coastal Plain, or ANWR as a whole, is untouched by man is incorrect. Kaktovik has a population of roughly 260 people. Personally, I know the Coastal Plain is far from untouched because my great grandfather was commissioned by the U.S. Government in 1920, to conduct a census along 400 miles of coastal tundra between my hometown of Barrow and Demarcation Point which is on the U.S./Canadian border. When pressured to join the ministry he packed up his family and moved to a riverbank on the Coastal Plain just outside of Kaktovik.

This area is not the last great wilderness on earth. ANWR, especially the Coastal Plain, was utilized by my ancestors and it is currently inhabited by only my people; the U.S. Government even established DEW line radar sites within the Coastal Plain; and, in the southern portion of ANWR where development is strictly prohibited, nor desired, America’s wealthy and elite disrupt wildlife when they charter their helicopters in to hike the mountains or float the river. An average of 100 Americans a year visits the southern portion of ANWR that will never be open to development.

The decision of my people to support development was not made in haste, nor were we pressured by the industry. Our decision is rooted in our knowledge of the environment, stewardship of the animals and history with the Prudhoe Bay development.

The Prudhoe Bay oil fields lie within our regional boundaries. When oil was discovered in our region in the late 1960’s, we were fearful of development. It represented the abolishment of our traditional way of life; we feared development would drive out the caribou that we depended on for sustenance. Concerns of the care for the environment were raised, and the industry was viewed as an incompetent steward of our homeland.

Those issues were and still are very important to my people. The land and sea bear the fruits of our garden. We depend on both to provide us with food, to carry on our ancient traditions, to live, to exist. Safeway, Wegmans or Kroger stores are not present in our region. Therefore, we feared development threatened our very existence. To exist without the bounties of both land and sea was to not be Inupiaq at all. So, we opposed development.

Over thirty years later we have changed our opinion. Development has not adversely impacted our ancient traditions or our food supply. The caribou population that we feared would be abolished as a result of development has thrived since the Prudhoe Bay discovery. What was once a meager population of 3,000 caribou in the late 1960’s, is now flourishing to numbers over 27,000. The population increase is a result of our careful stewardship over the land. Not because of lack of predators, as the environmental industry would have you believe. Our regulatory powers over the oil industry safeguard our wildlife and protect the environment.

When oil was first discovered our great leader Eben Hopson, Sr., had some foresight to organize our people and form a home-rule government called the North Slope Borough. Eben Hopson, Sr., represents to our people what James R. Hoffa is to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The North Slope Borough has broad powers of permitting, taxation, zoning and education. It is the country’s farthest north municipality, all in a land with no agriculture, no commercial fishing, minimal tourism, no road system, and weak federal and state programs. The industry was moving into our region, despite our objections. We chose to organize a government to help our people.

From the outset, the North Slope Borough took strong local control of the growing development industry. The goal was to protect the environment and our traditional lifestyles while balancing the nation’s need for energy.

The North Slope Borough allowed development within the region, but had the power to regulate when and how. Today, development activity occurs only in the winter, when few animals are present. To minimize impact on the land, the industry is required to create ice roads. When the ice melts in the spring, all activity ceases. The pipeline was built to accommodate the migration of the caribou, high enough for them to cross under and ramps for those who feared the pipeline overhead. The same restrictions, if not more, would apply to ANWR. What we’ve learned is the caribou will cross either way.

The uninformed proclaim that at least 400 oil spills occur on the North Slope each year. What qualifies as an oil spill? Thanks to the environmental standards enforced by the North Slope Borough, the industry is required to report and clean up an oil spill when one tablespoon of oil spills on the ground. If the industry fails to report a spill, they run the risk of having heavy fines levied against them.

In addition to the strict environmental regulations enforced by the North Slope Borough, our own residents and the workers in Prudhoe Bay are trained to respond to any accidents that may occur. Similar to a fire department, we are available to respond twenty-four hours a day.

My people were the aboriginal environmentalists of our region, long before it was trendy to become a member of the Sierra Club. We would not support responsible development if it compromised our ancient traditional practices and values that make up who we are as a people.

We believe, as illustrated with the current Prudhoe Bay production, that development and wildlife can co-exist. It is with that belief that we are fighting for our human right to survive. Responsible ANWR development means energy for America, roughly 750,000 jobs for Americans and a healthy existence for my people.

As stated earlier, the living conditions on the North Slope were harsh. With no heat in our homes, children were forced out into the cold to gather driftwood to burn—all in a land with no trees. Diseases were high as the living conditions were unsanitary with no running water or flush toilets. People perished due to lack of localized health care. Children were sent thousands of miles south for school because we did not have local high schools, and some villages did not have elementary schools. Therefore, some children were sent away as early as six years old.

The taxation powers exercised by the North Slope Borough over the oil industry created a revenue base for our people. As a result of Prudhoe Bay development, we now have heat in our homes, most villages have running water and some even flush toilets. The water and sewer project in Kaktovik will be the last for our region but the project start date is not scheduled for another two years. All villages now have local health clinics, with one hospital in the entire 89,000 square miles of our region. Fortunately, each village has both an elementary and high school to educate our children.

However, as the production in the Prudhoe Bay fields decline so do our financial resources to maintain our infrastructure and social programs. Responsible development of the Coastal Plain of ANWR is our only hope in sustaining the luxuries of heat in our homes, running water and flush toilets, health care facilities, schools, police and fire protection, as well as social programs needed for a healthy, thriving society.

As Inupiat people we are proud and hard working. We want to become productive members of society, independent of state and federal programs. We want to determine our own future, instead of having uninformed politicians over three thousand miles away champion our causes to boost their public approval ratings.

Due to the remoteness of my region, the cost of living is almost unimaginable. A gallon of milk costs just under $6.00, a box of cereal costs $7.00, a pound of fresh bananas costs $10.00 and when the finally arrive they’re not so fresh. Gasoline prices are roughly $2.50 per gallon in Barrow and higher in the other villages.

We are fighting for our human right to economic self-determination. This is our image of freedom. This freedom was not put in history books or written down on paper. It was inscribed in the hearts of my Inupiaq people.

Although our reasons for forging ahead may be different, we can agree that responsible ANWR development not only makes sense for my people, but for the nation as a whole. We are humbled by the support of the teamsters and grateful that you have joined the battle. Our people usually carry this message of gratitude in our Native language.

Quyanaagivsigin Uummatiptiinnin Ikayugavsigut. Siggaqutikput Uvagut Innunailuataqluta Nunaptinni. Teamstaruasi Sanigaptinni Ittuasi QUYANAPIAGATAGIVSIGIN.

Thank you. From our hearts we thank you for helping us. We, who are striving to live right on our land, to you Teamsters we thank you for being by our side. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

All phone numbers are in area code (202).
Room numbers with 3 digits are in the Cannon HOB, 4 digits beginning with 1 are in the Longworth HOB,
4 digits beginning with 2 are in the Rayburn HOB, numbers beginning with H2 are in the Ford HOB.
Capitol room numbers begin with SB, ST, HB, HT with 2 digits and with H or S with 3 digits.
Note spelling correction for Frank LoB[i]ondo.

EXAMPLE: The Honorable James T. Walsh,2369 Rayburn HOB,Washington,DC,20515-3225

Name / State / State Abbrev. / District / Phone / Office

Rep. Charles F. Bass, New Hampshire; NH 2nd 225-5206 2421
Sherwood Boehlert, New York; NY 24th 225-3665 2246
Jeb Bradley, New Hampshire; NH 1st 225-5456 1218
Michael N. Castle, Delaware; DE At Large 225-4165 1233
Vernon J. Ehlers, Michigan; MI 3rd 225-3831 1714
Mike Ferguson, New Jersey; NJ 7th 225-5361 214
Mike G. Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania; PA 8th 225-4276 1516
Rod Frelinghuysen, New Jersey;NJ 11th 225-5034 2442
Jim Gerlach, Pennsylvania; PA 6th 225-4315 308
Wayne T. Gilchrest, Montana; MD 1st 225-5311 2245
Bob Inglis, South Carolina; SC 4th 225-6030 330
Nancy L. Johnson, Connecticut; CT 5th 225-4476 2409
Tim V. Johnson, Illinois; IL 15th 225-2371 1229
Sue W. Kelly, New York; NY 19th 225-5441 2182
Mark R. Kennedy, Minnesota; MN 6th 225-2331 1415
Mark Steven Kirk, Illinois; IL 10th 225-4835 1717
James A. Leach, Iowa; IA 2nd 225-6576 2186
Frank A. LoBiondo, New Jersey; NJ 2nd 225-6572 225
Jim Ramstad, Minnesota; MN 3rd 225-2871 103
Dave G. Reichert, Washington; WA 8th 225-7761 1223
Jim Saxon, New Jersey; NJ 3rd 225-4765 2217
James F. Sensenbrenner Jr., Wisconsin; WI 5th 225-5101 2449
Chris Shays, Connecticut; CT 4th 225-5541 1126
Robert Simmons, Connecticut; CT 2nd 225-2076 215
James T. Walsh, New York; NY 25th 225-3701 2369

Full list of addresses is at http://clerk.house.gov/members/ASCIImemberlabels.txt

"1) The Republicans, who are blocking America from using the 10.4 billion barrels of oil in ANWR"

There is nothing in the bill to insure that the oil recovered in the ANWR will be sold only on the U.S. markets! The oil companies will sell said oil on the international oil market to maximize their profits as demanded by their shareholders.

It is estimated by U.S. government energy dept. agencies that it will be ten years until any oil from the refuge will be available on any market.

There is nothing in the bill to insure that the oil recovered in the ANWR will be sold only on the U.S. markets!

The sentate just passed a bill sponsored by Wyden that requires the oil from ANWR to be sold in US markets.

But the Senate adopted an amendment offered by James M. Talent (R-Mo.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) that bans exports of any oil produced in ANWR by a vote of 83-16.

http://ogj.pennnet.com/articles/article_display.cfm?Section=ONART&C=GenIn&ARTICLE_ID=240660&p=7

So what if it takes 10 years before we get our first oil from ANWR. If Clinton hadn't vetoed this measure in 1995, we would have oil flowing from ANWR today -- more than 1 million barrels per day, ENOUGH to cover what we lost during Katrina.

You are wrong on the issue of where the oil will go. "The oil won't necessarily go to the U.S." story is an old yarn. Some people used to claim the North Slope oil went to Japan. That was bunk. About 90-95 percent of the North Slope oil went to the U.S. and I assume you didn't hear about the amendment added to the ANWR legislation not to sell the oil abroad.

My response (in retrospect) does seem to be a bit harsh, my apologies.

If we don't start producing more we don't get to have a say, so the only way that we wean ourselves off of dependency is to produce, even if it goes somewhere else, we will have the trade and the infrastructure in place.

I just wish we could slap the enviro weanies down, let them ride bicycles and live in mud huts, I have better things to do.

TT

TO CORRECT THE RECORD: I said the San Jose Mercury News did not run either of my letters-to-the-editor (the ones in the thread). Well, yesterday I had called them to complain about both my letters being blocked. Today's SJ Mercury News contains the November letter, so one of my letters did make it. I wanted to correct the record because when the MSM gets one right, I'll give them credit.

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