Democrats block GOP effort on ANWR

[ProSense]

Senate GOP effort on ANWR falls short
By Jonathan Allen

Senate Republicans were dealt a second significant setback today when they worked to stall progress on a $453.5 billion defense appropriations bill that included a controversial provision opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling.

Many Democrats and a handful of Republicans oppose the drilling measure.

"The Senate today stood up against a dangerous abuse of power and made it clear it's unacceptable to put oil companies ahead of our troops," said Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), who opposed cloture. "We won't be bullied, we won't be blackmailed. The lines have rarely been drawn so clearly between right and wrong."

The underlying defense-spending measure provides fiscal 2006 appropriations for the Pentagon, including a $50 billion fund for ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

snip...


Even some of the Republicans who supported cloture said they were displeased with the process by which ANWR was included in the annual spending bill for the Pentagon.

"I find it deeply regrettable that we were faced with this choice due to the inappropriate inclusion of the ANWR measure in the Defense Appropriations bill, which I believe discredits the integrity of the legislative process in the Senate," said Olympia Snowe (R-Maine).

more...
http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/122005/anwr3.html

[marmar]

1. We all know Repugs are slimy...

but their attempts to slither this ANWR bill through have been particularly galling. I believe one of the provisions would have cut off funding to Katrina victims if the defense bill wasn't passed. How low can they sink? They are subhuman organisms.