As often happens after an election, the political landscape of Washington has shifted. In January, the Democrats will control both houses of Congress by wider margins and also control the White House. I will discuss the election outcome in greater detail, but first there are a few matters of consequence to report on from the current session of Congress.
MORATORIUM NO MORE
The moratorium on oil drilling along our Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), which ironically remained preserved under Republican control of Congress and the White House, was allowed to quietly expire at the stroke of midnight on September 30. The politics of high gasoline prices had trumped environmental concern over offshore oil drilling.
Democratic leaders, under election year political pressure from Republicans and poll results that favored drilling, caved on the OCS moratorium. With a majority of Republicans favoring lifting it, along with many “Blue Dog” Democrats, the moratorium could not be saved.
This happened primarily because the public still does not understand the geologic realities we face with respect to oil. Until they do, they will continue to support more domestic drilling in response to high energy costs. Politicians, be they Democrat or Republican, will be tempted to agree with their constituents.
With gas prices down under $2.00 per gallon, there is a good chance that some limits will be enacted to keep drilling farther offshore and protect some critical fishery habitat, but the moratorium itself is not likely to return.
MISSING THE OMNIBUS
Senate and House action on a package of over 150 public lands, water and resources bills, known as the Omnibus Public Lands Act of 2008, will have to wait until 2009. The plan was to vote on the bill during the November lame duck session, but wrangling over an auto industry bailout pushed it off the table.
The bipartisan package would protect nearly two million acres of wilderness and a thousand miles of Wild and Scenic Rivers, including special places in California’s White Mountains and Sierra Nevada, Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park, Idaho’s Owyhee Canyonlands, Oregon’s Mount Hood, the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and West Virginia, and the Wyoming Range.
Also included in the package is a provision to permanently establish the National Landscape Conservation System (NLCS), which currently only exists administratively. REP has lobbied extensively for two years on behalf of NLCS, because it would help ensure that some of America’s best multiple-use lands are promoted and managed more effectively.
The package does contain one bad item: a proposal to build an unnecessary road through Alaska’s Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, to connect the town of King Cove to an airport in Cold Bay.
Senate Majority Leader Reid (D-NV) has vowed that the legislation will be reintroduced in January and considered under “Rule 14,” which means that it will be immediately placed on the Senate calendar and can be brought to the floor at any time without the need to go through the committee process. Passing it in the Senate will require 60 votes because Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) has placed a hold on the bill.
THE 2008 ELECTION
The biggest disappointment this year for REP was that Senator John McCain’s bid for president fell short. It was the first time that a REP-endorsed candidate for president had won nomination, and we put a huge amount of effort into both the primary race and the general election. But in the end, the head wind caused by President Bush’s unpopularity and the financial crisis proved too much to overcome.
Still, it is important to recognize that Senator McCain’s nomination has significantly advanced REP’s mission. Not only did the greenest Republican win the nomination, but that win resulted in a dramatic shift in the tone and substance of the GOP platform with respect to energy and the environment. (To see the differences, you can access the McCain-influenced 2008 platform and the Bush-influenced 2004 platform.)
I’m pleased to report that despite the loss of 22 House seats and 7 Senate seats, only one of REP’s 18 endorsed congressional candidates was defeated. The race of one REP-endorsed candidate, Senator Norm Coleman, triggered a recount. We’re still waiting for the results. The one good friend who lost was Congressman Chris Shays (CT). Throughout his tenure he was a true champion of the environment. Shays was the last remaining Republican congressman in New England... an area that once was solidly GOP. In early Green Elephants, we routinely praised the “New England Patriots” —green Republicans all.
As of this writing, the Democrats have a 58 to 40 advantage in the Senate with two races still in limbo, and a 255 to 175 margin in the House.
BLUE ISN'T ALWAYS GREEN
For anyone who thinks that the fight for environmental protection will get significantly easier because of the additional Democrat gains, let me inject a dose of realism.
This election increased the number of “Blue Dog” Democrats in the House from 47 to at least 51. The so-called Blue Dogs tend to place a lower priority on environmental protection than other Democrats do.
In the Senate, many of the Republican seats that were lost were held by Republicans who had supported addressing climate change. Senators John Warner (VA-retired), Elizabeth Dole (NC-lost), John Sununu (NH-lost) and Gordon Smith (OR-lost) were either cosponsors of the Lieberman-Warner climate bill or voted correctly when the bill was being considered last summer.
North Carolina state Senator Kay Hagan, who won Dole’s seat, favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, as does Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich, who defeated Ted Stevens (R-AK).
Obviously, this presents a whole set of new dynamics that we must watch carefully. It also means that the way Republican senators and representatives vote will still be critical in the outcome of many environmental issues.
REP will still have a vital role to play—as will your calls and letters to your own Members of Congress.
