Daschle Says Ethanol Dead
Here's the whole thing (more soon):
US Sen Daschle: Energy Bill Dead Unless Changes Adopted
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
May 4, 2004 3:15 p.m.
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., said Tuesday that passage of the energy bill won't happen, unless some major compromises are struck.
"I think it's probably clear that the energy bill is dead as a result of last week, unless some changes are made," he said, speaking to the media after the weekly closed policy luncheon on Capitol Hill.
"It's disappointing," he said. "I would've voted for final passage, but we didn't have the votes."
The Senate last week rejected an effort to attach parts of, and then the entire, energy bill onto an Internet tax bill.
Senate Republicans have so far failed on two separate occasions to get the 60 votes needed to pass the energy package, and calls are growing for separate, stand-alone legislation that would tackle energy efficiency, modernization of the electricity grid, building a natural gas pipeline from Alaska down to the lower 48 states and measures to encourage renewable energy.
The latest attempt to get a procedural vote on mandating the use of ethanol in a motion sponsored by Daschle failed by a 19-vote margin.
Ethanol is an important issue in Daschle's state, where the three-term senator is running for re-election.
House and Senate Republicans differ on provisions for granting liability protection to makers of a gasoline additive, MTBE, which is also stalling passage of the legislation.
Earlier Tuesday, U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said passage of the energy bill remained the foremost antidote for high crude and gasoline prices.
"Congress had another opportunity to do the right thing last week to pass the energy bill, but the fact that there was inaction sends a message to the world that we still aren't ready to make the tough choices," Abraham said.
He said he didn't know how high prices needed to go before Congress acted.
"With gasoline prices at the level they are today, the summer driving season coming up, I would hope to see Congress pass the energy bill," Abraham said, adding that such a move would be a "confident signal" to markets.
Abraham also said he didn't favor splitting up the provisions of the bill.
"As soon as you start taking it apart, it becomes less effective," he said.
But the legislative vehicles for moving the energy provisions forward are limited during this session of Congress. There are few bills, if any, that are expected to pass the Senate this session, including a corporate tax bill and appropriations legislation.
Daschle said the government should "open" the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to cool gasoline prices and use "whatever leverage we've got with our allies" to boost global supply.
He didn't specify whether opening the SPR meant using the supply stored in underground caverns or merely halting deliveries to the SPR as a means to temper price rises.
The Senate minority leader also said he hoped the pending November election would help Republicans to focus on passage of the energy bill.
- By Debra Marks, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-9291; debra.marks@dowjones.com
daschlevthune.typepad.com |
