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THE PRESIDING OFFICER: THE
SENATOR FROM ALASKA.
MS. MURKOWSKI: THANK YOU, MADAM
PRESIDENT.
A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT ENERGY
GOING ON.
THE PRESIDENT SPOKE ABOUT IT
THIS MORNING.
IT'S NICE TO HEAR US ALL SAYING
THE SAME THING, THAT THIS
CONGRESS SHOULD HAVE AN ALL OF
THE ABOVE ENERGY POLICY.
IT'S A PHRASE THAT I HAVE USED
FOR YEARS NOW AND I SUPPOSE THAT
IT'S THE HIGHEST FORM OF
FLATTERY TO HAVE THAT SCOOPED UP
BY OTHERS AND CARRIED, BUT I
THINK IT IS IMPORTANT FOR US TO
REMEMBER THAT POLICIES HAVE TO
TRANSLATE FROM MERE WORDS INTO
ACTIONS.
WITH THE PRESIDENT'S COMMENTS
TODAY, UNFORTUNATELY, I AM NOT
CONVINCED THAT HE IS INTENDING
TO HELP TURN OUR ALL OF THE
ABOVE POLICY INTO REALITY.
I THINK IF HE WAS REALLY SERIES
ABOUT DOING THAT, -- SERIOUS
ABOUT DOING THAT, HE WOULD HAVE
ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THERE IS FAR
MORE THAT OUR COUNTRY CAN DO TO
INCREASE OUR SUPPLY WHEN IT
COMES TO OIL AND OIL PRODUCTION.
I THINK HE WOULD ADMIT THAT WITH
OIL PRICES THAT ARE ABOVE $100 A
BARREL, GASOLINE INCHING UP
EVERY DAY, CLOSE TO $4 A GALLON,
MADAM PRESIDENT, THIS IS NOT A
POLITICAL OPPORTUNITY FOR
ANYONE.
THIS IS A LEGISLATIVE
IMPERATIVE, A LEGISLATIVE
IMPERATIVE FOR ALL OF US.
SO THE QUESTION THAT NEEDS TO BE
ASKED IS WHAT CAN WE DO?
I WOULD AGREE WITH THE PRESIDENT
THAT THERE IS NO ONE SILVER
BULLET, THERE IS NO ONE QUICK
FIX.
WE CAN'T SNAP OUR FINGERS AND
HAVE THE PRICE AT THE PUMP GO
DOWN.
BUT I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO
TALK HONESTLY ABOUT WHAT'S GOING
ON WITH SUPPLY AND WITH
PRODUCTION HERE IN THIS COUNTRY.
MUCH DISCUSSION OVER THESE PAST
SEVERAL MONTHS ABOUT THE
KEYSTONE PROJECT OUT OF CANADA
AND THAT PIPELINE.
IT CONTINUES TO AMAZE ME.
IT MAKES ME CRAZY TO THINK THAT
WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE
OUR CLOSEST NEIGHBOR AND OUR
BEST TRADING PARTNER TO SUPPLY
US WITH OIL INSTEAD OF RECEIVING
OIL FROM OPEC.
KEYSTONE TO COME ONLINE VERY
QUICKLY, BRING OIL TO OUR
REFINERIES AND TO OUR GAS TANKS.
IF THE ADMINISTRATION SUPPORTS
CONSTRUCTION OF A PIPELINE FROM
OKLAHOMA TO TEXAS, AS THEY HAVE
SUGGESTED, I DON'T SEE WHY WE
CAN'T ALLOW CONSTRUCTION OF A
PIPELINE FROM ALBERTA AND NORTH
DAKOTA AND THEN ALL THE WAY
DOWN.
I'M CONFIDENT THAT THERE ARE
ENOUGH CONSTRUCTION WORKERS THAT
ARE READY AND WAITING TO START
ON BOTH ENDS.
WHEN YOU SAY WELL, IT NEEDS MORE
CONSIDERATION, MORE REVIEW, I
WOULD REMINDED PEOPLE THAT THIS
HAS BEEN A PROJECT THAT HAS BEEN
AT LEAST FOUR YEARS OF
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW.
SO THIS IS ONE OF THOSE -- THOSE
CHOICES.
I THINK IT'S PRETTY CLEAR,
PRETTY STARK.
MOST AMERICANS I BELIEVE WOULD
MUCH, MUCH RATHER GET THEIR OIL
FROM CANADA THAN FROM OPEC.
AND YET, THE -- SOME OF WHAT WE
ARE SEEING COME OUT OF THIS
CONGRESS FROM MEMBERS OF THE
SENATE HERE, THE SUGGESTION IS
INSTEAD OF GOING TO CANADA, WE
SHOULD GO TIN CUP IN HAND TO
SAUDI ARABIA AND ASK THEM FOR
INCREASED PRODUCTION.
I CAN'T IMAGINE, I CANNOT
IMAGINE WHY IT WOULD BE MORE
PREFERRABLE TO PRODUCING MORE
AMERICAN OIL OR ALLOWING MORE
OIL FROM CANADA.
THIS IS A PRETTY CLEAR CHOICE
FOR ME.
BUT AGAIN, IT'S AN ARGUMENT THAT
WE CONTINUE TO HAVE AND WE DON'T
SEEM TO BE MAKING THE NECESSARY
HEAD WORK ON IT.
EARLIER THIS WEEK, THE PRESIDENT
SAID THAT THE BEST THING WE CAN
DO ABOUT GAS PRICES IS TO REDUCE
OUR DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN OIL
WHICH WILL REDUCE THE PRICE OF
GASOLINE OVER TIME.
ONE YEAR AGO, HE SAID PRODUCING
MORE OIL IN AMERICA CAN HELP
LOWER OUR OIL PRICES, BUT AGAIN
THAT'S -- THAT'S TALK THAT'S
GOING ON RIGHT NOW, AND TALK
THAT'S NOT NECESSARILY MATCHING
REALITY.
YESTERDAY, I WAS INVOLVED IN TWO
HEARINGS OF THE APPROPRIATIONS
SUBCOMMITTEES.
IN ONE, WE HAD A DEPARTMENT OF
INTERIOR OFFICIAL WHO CONFIRMED
THAT THE OIL PRODUCTION ON
FEDERAL LANDS IS DOWN AND NOT
UP.
THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF
CONVERSATION, A LOT OF
DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW IN THIS
COUNTRY ARE SEEING MORE OIL AND
GAS PRODUCTION THAN EVER BEFORE.
BUT THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS,
MADAM PRESIDENT, WE ARE SEEING
AN INCREASE IN OIL.
WE ARE SEEING AN INCREASE IN
NATURAL GAS, BUT WE'RE NOT
SEEING IT ON OUR FEDERAL LANDS.
WE'RE SEEING THESE INCREASES ON
STATE LANDS AND ON PRIVATE
LANDS.
WHEN IT COMES TO ONSHORE OIL, WE
HAVE ACTUALLY GONE DOWN BY 14%
FROM LAST YEAR.
WHEN IT COMES TO OFFSHORE OIL,
WE HAVE GONE DOWN FROM 17% LAST
YEAR.
SO TO SUGGEST THAT SOMEHOW WE'RE
DOING ASTONISHING WHEN IN FACT
THE AREA WHERE THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT DOES HAVE SOME
ABILITY TO INCENSE SOME
PRODUCTION HERE, WE'RE SEEING
PRODUCTION DECREASE.
WE ALSO HEARD CONFIRMATION IN
THE HEARING YESTERDAY THAT
PRODUCERS ARE LEAVING THE
FEDERAL LANDS, WHICH ARE --
AGAIN, THESE ARE THE ONLY LANDS
THAT THE ADMINISTRATION HAS
CONTROL OVER -- NOT BECAUSE THE
RESOURCES ARE NECESSARILY
GREATER SOMEWHERE ELSE BUT
BECAUSE OF FEDERAL TAXES, OF THE
FEDERAL ROYALTIES, THE
BUREAUCRACY, THE PERMITTING
PROCESS THAT MAKE STATE AND
PRIVATE LANDS MORE ATTRACTIVE.
IT WAS -- IT WAS QUITE CLEAR IN
THE TESTIMONY THAT IT DOES
INDEED COST MORE TO PRODUCE ON
FEDERAL LANDS, AND THEY DO WORRY
ABOUT THAT MIGRATION TO GO TO
STATE LANDS AND PRIVATE LANDS.
THIS IS A CHART HERE THAT I HAVE
ABOUT THE NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS
FOR PERMITS TO DRILL ON FEDERAL
LANDS.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE TIMELINE
HERE, WE'RE GOING UP AND UP AND
UP.
THIS IS 2001.
THIS IS DURING THE BUSH
ADMINISTRATION WHEN IT INCREASED
92%.
AND WE HIT 2008, THE NUMBER OF
PERMITS TO DRILL THAT HAVE BEEN
APPROVED DURING THIS
ADMINISTRATION IS DOWN 36%.
AND AGAIN, THIS IS IN THE AREA
WHERE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS
CONTROL.
SO PLEASE, I THINK WE NEED TO
GET BEYOND THE IDEA THAT WE ARE
ALLOWING DRILLING EVERYWHERE.
AMERICA'S LARGEST UNTAPPED OIL
FIELDS ONSHORE AND OFFSHORE,
QUITE HONESTLY, ARE STILL
OFF-LIMITS.
IN ALASKA, WE HAVE GOT MORE THAN
40 BILLION BARRELS OF OIL THAT
ARE TRAPPED BENEATH FEDERAL
LANDS, AND THE ADMINISTRATION IS
MAKING CLEAR THAT THEY INTEND TO
KEEP MUCH OF THAT OFF-LIMITS TO
DEVELOPMENT.AGAIN, WE'VE GOT MO,
READY, ABLE, AND WILLING NOT
ONLY TO ADVANCE AMERICAN ***
SHORTCHANGES BRINGING THE JOBS,
BUT ALSO BRINGING IMPORTANT
REVENUES TO OUR TREASURY.
I THINK IT IS KUWAIT PARNTS THAT
SUPPLY -- I THINK IT IS QUITE
APPARENT THAT SUPPLY MATTERS.
I MENTIONED THE REQUEST FROM ONE
OF OUR COLLEAGUES HERE THAT WE
GO TO SAUDI ARABIA FOR 2.5
MILLION BARRELS PER DAY.
I DON'T THINK THAT THAT IS AN
APPROPRIATE POLICY THAT WE
SHOULD EMBARK ON.
SINCE AT LEAST THE MID-1990'S,
OUR COLLEAGUES ON THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE AISLE HAVE CLAIMED THAT
SINCE OIL EXPLORATION TAKES A
LONG TIME TO BRING ONLINE THAT
WE JUST SHOULDN'T DO IT.
IT WAS THE SENIOR NOR FROM
MASSACHUSETTS -- THE SENIOR
SENATOR FROM MASSACHUSETTS WHO
SAID IN 2002, "IF YOU OPEN THE
REFUGE TODAY, YOU'RE NOT GOING
TO SEE OIL UNTIL ABOUT 2012,
MAYBE A COUPLE YEARS EARLIER."
WELL HERE WE ARE AT 2012.
IF WE HAD STARTED THEN, WE
WOULDN'T PERHAPS BE HAVING THIS
DISCUSSION NOW.
THIS ARGUMENT HAS GONE ON FOR SO
LONG THAT EVEN JAY LENO IS
MAKING JOKES ABOUT IT ON TV.
IT IS AMAZING TO ME THAT WE
CONTINUE TO SAY, IT'S GOING TO
TAKE TOO LONG TO BRING ON, SO WE
SHOULDN'T START TODAY.
I HAVE TWO SEPARATE BILLS, MADAM
PRESIDENT, THAT ALLOW ACCESS TO
THE NONWILDERNESS SECTION OF
ANWR -- THIS IS THE 1002 AREA --
TO BE CAREFULLY OPENED FOR
DEVELOPMENT.
THAT FIELD WOULD BRING ON
ROUGHLY 1 MILLION BARRELS OF OIL
TO MARKET EACH DAY RIGHT NOW.
HAD THIS NOT BEEN BLOCKED BACK
IN 1995.
THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN GOOD FOR
AMERICAN WORKERS, GOOD FOR THE
PRICE OF OIL GOOD FOR THE
FEDERAL TREASURY, AND I BELIEVE
IT COULD HAVE BEEN CONDUCTED AND
COMPLETED WITHOUT IMPACT TO THE
ENVIRONMENT.
WHEN WE TALK ABOUT OUR ABILITIES
HERE, I THINK IT IS FAIR TO SAY
WE DO HAVE A LOT OF OIL HERE IN
THIS COUNTRY, AND WE CAN BRING
MORE OF IT TO MARKET.
IF WE WERE TO INCREASE OUR
DOMESTIC PRODUCTION BY 2.5
MILLION BARRELS A DAY THAT HAS
BEEN SUGGESTED THAT WE GET FROM
SAUDI ARABIA, IF WE WERE TO
ACCESS ALASKAN OIL ALONG WITH
THE KEYSTONE OIL, THAT WOULD
DOUBLE WORLD SPARE CAPACITY AND
INSULATE US ALMOST ENTIRELY FROM
OPEC.
SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT A WAY THAT
WE CAN MOVE OURSELVES AS A
NATION AWAY FROM THE
STRANGLEHOLD THAT OPEC HOLDS
OVER US, I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT
TO CONSIDER WHAT OUR OPTIONS
ARE.
MADAM PRESIDENT, I KNOW WE'LL
HAVE MORE TO ADD ON THIS LATER.
I KNOW SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES ARE
COMING TO THE FLOOR LATER TO
SPEAK ON THIS.
BUT, AT THIS TIME, I WILL YIELD
THE FLOOR TO MY COLLEAGUE FROM