Sep 9, 2008 9:53 pm US/Central
In The Know: Keeping Tabs On Oil, Politics
(WCCO)
The U.S. Congress is about to take up its energy bill. Renewable energy will be the centerpiece, but offshore oil drilling will be included. Don Shelby said the Democrats have been listening to the polls, too.
House Democrats hope to have a bill on the floor by Thursday. Speaker Nancy Pelosi says the Republicans must set aside what she calls their "drill only" policies.
While John McCain says he favors drilling the outer-continental shelf, he's been clear that the answer to the country's energy security is a combination of the drilling and renewables. He calls it an "all of the above" approach.
His challenger, Barak Obama, has said that he would consider offshore drilling if it was part of a compromise.
Speaker Pelosi hinted that the bill would expand offshore drilling in four southeastern states, but Blue-Dog Democrats are calling for allowing even more states to drill off their shores. Surprisingly, Representative Ed Markey, the Democrats' environmental leader, has given his blessing to expanded drilling.
Now keep in mind, Congress will not have the last say. The states must give permission to drill off their own coasts, and two Republican-led states have said "no" to that.
In these days of high gasoline prices, you need a scorecard to keep track of who's who in politics.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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