Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, I rise during this Christmas season to share with the Senate and the Nation an inspirational story from my home State of Montana. As a former public school teacher myself, I have known for a long time how amazing Montana's young people can be. This story is a story of triumph over tragedy that serves as the latest reminder.

Early on the morning of September 18, Montanans in and around Yellowstone County woke up to learn the tragic news that the Huntley Project

school in Worden, MT, was on fire--an act of arson. Despite the valiant efforts by crews from the Worden, Shepherd, Lockwood, and Billings fire departments, the school burned to the ground.

Although sad and angry about the fire, teachers, parents, students, and the whole community rallied to support the student body. As the Billings Gazette reported at the time:

Huntley Project High was still burning when people in the

tight-knit community vowed that the loss wouldn't affect

their spirits.

Montana's Superintendent of Schools, Linda McCulloch, put out a request statewide for schools and businesses to donate school supplies and books and backpacks and computers. Montana's business community and citizens opened their hearts and their wallets, even in this tough economic time, to help these students.

Billings School Superintendent Jack Copps arranged for classes to continue in the Billings school district at Skyview High School and at other facilities to help them get through the first days after the fire. Later, temporary trailers were brought to the Huntley campus to help during the rebuilding process. The 230 Huntley High School students soldiered on in the spirit of their homecoming theme--that being warriors. They simply refused to give up. I met with Superintendent Dave Mahon last month and toured the burned campus.

The Huntley Project Red Devils have long been a power in Class B football. After the fire, the whole community rallied to cheer the team that symbolized Huntley's toughness in the face of an unbelievable challenge. The principal said it well: ``We're red and black and we're back,'' as Huntley beat the Townsend Bulldogs in their first game after the fire. There would be many more victories as the team finished a perfect season with a record of 12-0. Last month, Huntley beat the powerful team from Fairfield 41 to 28 to win the Class B State championship in football as players from both teams played their guts out and left it all out on the field. It was the first State championship for the project since 1998.

I wish to congratulate head coach Jay Santy, as well as assistant coaches Rick Dees, Mark Wandle, and Lenny Brown, all of the players and their parents, their teachers and friends and supporters throughout the Huntley community.

America faces some tough challenges today. Last month, more than a half a million American workers lost their jobs. Many parts of the country are suffering from the foreclosure crisis in the housing market and the domestic automobile industry teeters on the brink of collapse. As we work here to tackle those tough challenges, I suggest we follow the example of perseverance of these tough young Montanans. I suggest we lace up our cleats, strap on our helmets, and go out and get the job done.

As we approach the Christmas season, I urge the Senate to look at Huntley Project school and the greater community and look to the future with hope and grit.

Thank you, Senator Baucus. General Mosley really does embody what the National Guard is all about--the citizen soldier. For 35 years he wore the uniform of his country with great pride and honor. But he also takes tremendous pride in being from the State of Montana.

General Mosley's leadership also has been recognized well beyond Montana's borders. He worked with United States Central Command for over 14 years to develop Montana's partnership with the country of Kyrgyzstan. The partnership has blossomed. Leaders in Kyrgyzstan have learned many of the skills and knowledge they need to secure their country's democratic future. General Mosley also worked to help the Kyrgyzstan military develop a noncommissioned officer cadre. These leaders will help Kyrgyzstan train and lead their soldiers now and in the future. Montana's partnership with Kyrgyzstan helped their leaders improve the cooperation between military and civilian authorities. In large measure because of General Mosley's efforts, Kyrgyzstan's military has developed strong ties with our military and has rapidly advanced to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

General Mosley's career reminds us all of the value of public service. We Montanans are deeply indebted to him. He is an outstanding ambassador for the citizens of Montana and the men and women of the Montana National Guard. He will be deeply missed, but we wish him well in retirement and we thank him for a lifetime of service to our State and our Nation.

Mr. President, I first wish to thank the Senator from North Dakota for his comments. I think it is particularly important, as we get the news day after day about what is going on in the financial markets of this country, that we don't panic. The fact is, I think the investments we have in our banks are secure. There is no doubt about that. But the truth is, we have gotten here by an administration that, quite honestly, has not done its job with commonsense oversight, and greed has stepped in. The bottom line is that it is costing the Government a lot of money--$85 billion yesterday--to basically nationalize AIG. So I thank the Senator from North Dakota. I think his comments are on point.

Today, I want to talk about something that has been on our minds for some time and will be on our minds for some time; that is, the cost of energy. It is an incredibly pressing issue, and it is long past due for a commonsense energy policy with short-term and long-term solutions-- critically important. America deserves no less, and Americans deserve no less. It is a matter of national and economic security.

Securing our energy future will free America from being held hostage by foreign producers, and quite honestly, most of them don't like us much--countries such as Russia, Venezuela, and Saudi Arabia. Renewable energy projects will generate good new jobs here in America while creating a sustainable energy supply at affordable prices for American consumers.

I have spoken many times on this floor about the need to drill for oil in places that make sense in this country. One of them in particular is a formation called the Bakken formation in eastern Montana. I have called on my colleagues to work together to crack down on oil speculators who artificially drive up the price of oil, and, of course, I have spoken about the need to conserve--the low-hanging fruit, conserve, conserve, conserve--and to invest in alternative and renewable energy for the future to make this country energy independent.

That is why I rise today. In Montana, several alternative energy projects have been held up by the Federal Government. Why? Because of too much redtape. And this administration has cut staff and resources just when we need them the most in the area of renewable energy. That is why I am introducing legislation, along with Senator Feinstein, that will help get renewable energy projects approved faster. The measure will cut through the redtape that slows down too many of these innovative and important projects. My bill will make it easier for folks who are figuring out how to use new technology to solve the energy crisis while also cutting down on the emissions of greenhouse gases. It would also create as many as six renewable energy pilot project offices across the country to coordinate Federal permits for renewable energy projects and transmission lines with State governments.

This legislation is only a part of the puzzle, but it is a very important piece. In the 2005 Energy bill, we created an oil and gas pilot project to speed up onshore gas and oil exploration drilling, and it is working. If we had put the same focus on renewable energy that we have on oil and gas, we would be in a different spot today. And we won't run out of renewables as we will with oil.

I very much appreciate the work many of my colleagues have been doing to develop a bipartisan energy proposal, and I support their work. I call on the Senate to work together to pass commonsense solutions to this energy crisis. We can't put all our eggs in one basket energy- wise. Energy security will take a mix of solutions, and it is not going to happen overnight. But every day we delay is another day we continue to rely on foreign energy.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, are we on the Defense bill or in morning business?

Mr. President, I want to take a moment to thank Chairman Levin and Senator Warner for their willingness to work with me on the amendment that has been accepted into the managers' package. This amendment provides some additional comfort to family members whose loved one is killed while serving in the military by allowing the Defense Department to pay for travel to a memorial service honoring a servicemember killed on Active Duty.

Currently, the law allows for the services to provide transportation of family members to a burial service of a servicemember killed on Active Duty. Although the law makes this voluntary, the services, much to their credit, all make this travel available to the families. However, current law does not allow travel to memorial services. With many families split up over long distances, this can be particularly painful when a parent or sibling of one of our fallen heroes cannot afford to travel to a memorial service held by a unit or even other members of the family. Although some charity groups have been able to help these families attend memorial services for their fallen loved ones, when servicemembers die in service to their country, it is this country's moral obligation to help their families in every possible way.

This amendment would allow the Secretary of each service to allow family members of fallen heroes to attend one memorial service as a way of helping to honor those who give the ultimate sacrifice--their lives--to our Nation. It would be voluntary. The services do not have to participate, but at least they would have the option, which is something they currently do not have.

Earlier this year, a constituent of mine suffered the loss of his son. He died in a hospital in Canada after being injured in Iraq. He was on a transport flight from Germany to Walter Reed when his condition worsened and the plane diverted to Halifax. When my constituent's ex-wife sought to have a memorial service for their son in Phoenix prior to the burial at Arlington National Cemetery, the Army had to tell the man, whose son had given his life for our country, that the country could

not help him attend that memorial service.

I think we can do better. I think we should do better. This amendment will allow us to do better.

When a soldier or marine or airman goes to war, the whole family goes to war. When a servicemember gives the ultimate sacrifice and is killed in service to our Nation, we need to do the right thing for the family. That is why I have offered this amendment. Again, I thank Chairman Levin and Senator Warner for working together to help get this amendment into the managers' package.

Mr. President, I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I rise today to visit about an issue we have all been talking about for some time: energy. In fact, truth be known, we have been talking about energy for over 30 years in this country, since the first energy crisis in the early 1970s.

Over the August recess, I had the opportunity to go around the State of Montana--I logged hundreds of miles on my vehicle--and talk with Montanans virtually from all over the State about energy and our Nation's energy future. Every visit to the great State of Montana is another reminder

to me that many of the best ideas--if not all of the best ideas--are found outside of Washington, DC. From a dairy farm in western Montana that converts cow manure into enough electricity to power that farm and its neighbors through hydrogen fuel cells that keep the lights on in college classrooms, to a generator that turns tree bark into electricity, Montanans are finding innovative ways to meet their energy needs. That can not only help Montana, but it can help the whole country's energy future.

It is no wonder, as I traveled around the State, as we see in Montana, gas prices a little under $4 a gallon, and as we see winter coming in and the potential of a cold winter and the potential for high heating oil and natural gas prices, that Montanans are very concerned about their energy future.

This fall, over the next few weeks, we have an opportunity to address this country's energy future both in the short term and in the long term. Hopefully, we will address it. Hopefully, we can put the partisanship away. Hopefully, we will be more concerned about energy for this country's citizenry than about who is going to win the next election.

Back in 1978, one of the other times we had energy problems in this country, Montana put out this book. It says 1978 on the bottom, and it is called ``Montana's Energy Almanac.'' This book contains information about oil and gas and coal. It also contains information about electricity transmission, solar power, geothermal, renewable energy, and a myriad of other issues. This book could have been written in 2008. The fact is we had a format to move forth with this country's energy future, and it didn't happen. We had the ability to develop a long-term energy plan for this country, and it didn't happen--30 years ago, it didn't happen; a generation ago, it didn't happen.

We need to make it happen this fall. It is critically important for this country. It is critically important for this Nation's security. As we come forth with an energy plan over the next few weeks, it will include drilling, make no mistake about it, and it should. Also remember this: It is not going to significantly decrease the prices at the pump right now. That doesn't mean it is the wrong thing to do. It is the right thing to do, because the truth is that if we can take our reliance off of places such as Venezuela, Russia, and Saudi Arabia, that is a good thing. You also must note that, right now, we are drilling. In fact--and I have stated this before on the floor--right now, it would be difficult to find a rig in the United States to punch a hole for gas or oil, because they are already doing that. If you are lucky enough to find a rig, you would be hard pressed to find the casing to put in that hole once it is drilled.

The truth is we need to drill, and how much we drill will probably depend upon the availability of rigs and casings, and right now they are being used up. Drilling is part of the plan. We also need to invest in renewables, because drilling should be a bridge. We talk about bridges, but we never talk about where that bridge is going to go. It will go to nowhere unless we invest in renewables such as solar, wind, geothermal, biofuels, and cellulosic ethanol, and it is critically important for our long-term energy future. So we need to invest in those things by a myriad of ways.

My colleague in the Senate, Max Baucus, has a bill that will do exactly that. That bill needs to be a part of the Energy plan to invest in solar, wind, geothermal, biofuels, cellulosic ethanol--the list goes on and on--because there is tremendous opportunity out there. We need to invest in R&D in clean coal, battery technology, hydrogen technology, high-mileage cars, hybrids, and electric. We need to encourage innovation in R&D. It will happen because it is happening on the ground in places such as Montana now. We need to encourage the innovation.

As this book said on all these issues, we also need to invest in transmission. We need to invest in the grid. If we are going to get electricity to consumers in a way that makes sense, in a way that is efficient and cost-effective, we need to invest in transmission.

Finally, and potentially the most important of all these points, we need to eliminate the redtape. A few years ago, we eliminated the redtape for gas and oil companies. We need to do the same thing for renewable energy. The agencies have been understaffed and, quite frankly, it occupies a lot of time now to get a project through.

We have a Montana-Alberta tie line project to move electricity from Montana to Alberta and from Alberta back to Montana with renewable energy on that line. It has been 3 years in progress. The redtape needs to be eliminated.

I will be introducing a bill to cut through the redtape and encourage these kinds of renewable energy projects because, for the long-term future of this country, it is absolutely what we need to do.

In closing, I wish to say this: Oil is hovering around $100 a barrel right now. It has backed off somewhat. Back in the seventies, we saw oil peak and then back off, and this book was put on the shelf and never looked at again, and probably every State in the Union had a book such as this.

The truth is, we have an opportunity right now to address this issue from a short-term and a long-term standpoint. This issue is not going to go away. We have 3 percent of the reserves. We use 25 percent of the oil. We need to figure out not only ways to maximize our own oil capacity but also how we are going to take renewables into the future and other energy sources into the future so it makes sense for this country and its consumers and this country's security.

As I said earlier, with countries such as Venezuela, Russia, and Saudi Arabia determining our energy future, that is no way to run a country. We need to address our energy problems, and we need to do it together today by all of us giving a little bit to find common ground to move forward.

As we move across the next 57 days to the election, we ought to forget about it. We ought to forget about the election and do what is right for this country and develop a short-term and long-term energy plan that addresses current demand, future demand, affordability, and sustainability. Thirty years from now, I don't want to see a Senator standing up on this floor holding this book up saying: In 2008 we had this same problem, and we need to deal with it today.

We need to deal with it now in 2008, this fall. We cannot blow this one.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I wish to begin by noting that, again, it is fire season in Montana.

Right now, major wildfires are threatening homes in a small town called Red Lodge. The Cascade fire has been burning and has burned about 6,000 acres. It is burning uncomfortably close to the Red Lodge Mountain ski area.

The hot, dry weather forecast over the next week means there are likely to be more fires and more acres of rangeland and forest lost.

Fire season in Montana officially runs from August until the first snow in fall. So, once again, we are off to an early start.

Wildfires are becoming a fact of the West. We accept it. We deal with it.

The good news is Montana is blessed with outstanding firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service, Tribal Nations, and the State Department of Natural Resources, as well as first responders from local volunteer and paid fire departments.

When they need reinforcements, they turn to the Montana National Guard. Last year, more than 200 guardsmen were mobilized to help fight wildfires in Montana. While no guardsmen have been mobilized yet this year, it will happen at some point--just as they are mobilized every year to protect people and homes, dig out fire lines, smother embers, and provide all manner of hands-on support to this team effort.

There are not too many jobs in this country where the work is as varied as service in our National Guard. This summer we can expect that hundreds of National Guardsmen in Montana and throughout the West will be mobilized to help fight wildfires. It has already happened in California, where the Governor called up 200 Guardsmen.

This is a vital role in our Nation's homeland security.

And just as the Guard answers the call for homeland security missions, they answer the bell when it comes to national security.

In 2004 and 2005, more than 1,500 of my State's National Guard deployed to Iraq. They did yeoman's work over there, and we can all be very proud of their service and grateful for it as well. Today, there are nearly 23,000 National Guardsmen serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Another 3,000 Guardsmen from all over the country work hard to protect our southern border, helping the Border Patrol get a better handle on securing that border. Four hundred Montana Guardsmen were a proud part of that important effort earlier this year.

So as the National Guard in Montana prepares for the inevitable mobilization fight against wildfires here at home, I think it is appropriate we stop to thank the 3,500-strong members of our Montana National Guard for what they do both abroad and here at home.

As wildfires continue to threaten Montana's countryside and our communities, I wish to pay tribute to all the brave men and women who put it on the line to fight our fires.

Energy

Mr. President, I wish to comment on the energy debate we have been having in the Senate. Every Tuesday morning, for 2\1/2\ hours, I get to preside over this great body, and I get to hear folks from both sides of the aisle talk about issues of importance.

The energy debate has been particularly intriguing because I have seen folks on the other side of the aisle hold up signs that talk about drilling more and using less.

They are quick to support oil production. But on the other hand, they will not support alternative energies or conservation methods. They talk about drilling more as if it is going to change the price of gasoline tomorrow.

The fact is, the United States has less than 3 percent of the world's reserves of oil. We use 25 percent of the supply. As far as drilling goes, we are drilling now like there is no tomorrow. In fact, in Montana, you would be hard-pressed to find a drilling rig if you wanted to punch a hole.

In Montana, we have offered over 3 million acres of leasing since 2000. We have increased our oil production two and a half-fold. We have drilled 4,870 wells in the last 5 years. Yet we continually see the price of oil go up and up and up. Why? Well, a lot of it has to do with the fact that the major oil companies last year made hundreds of billions of dollars off the consumers' back.

What can we do? What can we do to help bring the price of oil down? Sure, we are going to continue to drill, and I support that effort. But we need additions to our energy portfolio. If we continue to rely on oil as our chief supplier of energy, we are going to be continuing to be beholden to Saudi Arabia and OPEC forever. That ought not be the direction we go.

My good friend, my comrade, Senator Baucus, put forth a tax extenders bill earlier today. Yesterday, we had a chance to vote on one from the House. They were both defeated. They were not allowed to move forward. There was a majority, but there was not 60 votes.

What was in that tax extenders bill? One of the things that was in it was a renewable energy tax credit extension, a continuation that would put more energy in the marketplace.

As shown on this chart, we can see what happens when we have the wind energy tax credit. The yellow bars indicate that. The orange bars indicate when it does not happen. If we have the wind energy tax credit, wind energy production goes up, and there is more

energy in the marketplace. When we don't, it does not.

Because of the vote that was taken earlier today, you will see a decrease in wind energy production--a big mistake for this country, not very visionary.

Because of the vote that took place earlier today, we not only will see wind energy grind to a halt, we will see geothermal--which we have a tremendous opportunity for throughout the country, particularly in Montana--we will see biomass, landfill gas--we have an electrical cooperative in northwestern Montana, Flathead Electric Cooperative, that is talking about capturing methane gas off the landfill to produce energy, getting something from nothing--we will not see any of that stuff go on because of the defeat of the tax extenders bill.

In that tax extenders bill, there were also long-term extensions of tax credits for solar energy and fuel cells. Solar energy: getting our energy from the Sun to help replace some of that oil from the Middle East--not going to happen. Folks talk about corn ethanol and how they don't like it. I am not one of them. But I do think we need to get the second generation of ethanol production, cellulosic ethanol. There was a credit for property in that tax extenders bill that was not agreed to earlier today. That will not happen; a biodiesel tax credit. I have talked about a camelina provision in the farm bill for biodiesel, and there are other opportunities in all sorts of oilseeds out there. The biodiesel tax credit does not happen because we did not pass that bill Senator Baucus offered earlier today.

Carbon capture and storage technology to make our coal burn cleaner. In Montana, we are the ``Saudi Arabia'' of coal. We have an incredible opportunity. But without good technology to capture carbon and store it, we will never be all we can be. It would make us more energy independent.

Talk about producing more here at home: Drilling is part of the equation. But an even bigger part of the equation could have been to pass that tax extenders bill earlier today.

Let's talk about using less.

In that tax extenders bill, there were energy efficiency tax credits to help make our homes more energy efficient. It is not going to happen. There was a credit to reduce idling for truckers--that we all see happen--to save transportation fuel. It is not going to happen.

You want to talk about using less? There was a bicycling tax credit for those folks who want to ride their bicycle to work rather than to drive. It will not happen.

There were incentives for geothermal heat pumps in our homes that use less energy with more consistency. It is not going to happen.

There were energy conservation bonds for States and local school districts. The list goes on and on and on.

I ask myself: Why? Why does it have to be this way? Why aren't we looking to the future? Why are we not talking about more than drilling? The fact is, we are drilling. We are drilling an incredible amount of land in this country. It needs to be a bridge. But it needs to be a bridge to somewhere this time. If we put forth the renewable energy components that are in the tax extenders bill, we will have a future. We will have a future of affordable energy.

I ask my comrades to pass that tax extenders bill. It is incredibly important. It is not just because of energy that it is important.

Secure Rural Schools

Finally, I wish to talk about the security of rural schools. These are payments to Montana's rural communities and forested counties that have an incredible amount of public lands.

The Secure Rural Schools dollars are important not only for the school but also for our roads and our rural counties. Montana is rich in public lands. Consequently, it puts more pressure on property taxes of private property in those counties. With the Secure Rural Schools money, it gives those rural and forested counties the opportunity to meet the needs of the kids in these rural districts and to meet the needs of the transportation industry in those rural districts. We all know that less money for rural schools means lower teacher pay, bigger classroom size, fewer activities, and students start to fall behind.

County road workers right now are being laid off. I spoke with the head of the Montana Association of Counties. He said to the counties: Take your budgets and utilize them as if this money is not going to happen because it is not until we pass the tax extenders programs.

We had the opportunity in this body today and yesterday to pass a good bill that meets the needs of America's families, small businesses, and the economy. It was not passed. There are all sorts of excuses for it, but they are simply that: excuses. We need to move forward with some proactive thinking in this body. I hope the next time this bill hits this floor, it is passed and passed by a large margin.

I thank the Chair.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise today to call on the Senate to pass commonsense legislation to lower gas prices. This week, possibly even today, the Senate will vote on legislation that would create more oversight on the financial markets that are helping to drive up the cost of oil. I hope my colleagues will join me in voting to pass it. It is the first step toward energy independence but certainly not the last.

In my State of Montana, folks are hurting. The average price of a gallon of gas is about $4.20. Diesel now costs on average $4.67 a gallon in the Big Sky State. My constituents need and deserve effective action from their national leaders to provide them with relief from this energy crisis.

Across Montana, desperate times are producing desperate measures. Driving to go to work or between cities is not a choice; it is a necessity. Snow is on the ground for a good part of the year. You need wheels to get around. Folks are paying with credit cards at the pump or getting second or third jobs to get by. They are canceling vacations, driving less, and buying smaller cars. But that is not enough.

The Senate must provide relief at the pump, and there is no silver bullet. It is going to take a few commonsense ideas and a lot of hard work to diversify our portfolio. I support a three-pronged plan: Crack down on energy speculators manipulating the marketplace for a quick buck; produce more fuel by drilling for oil where it makes sense and invest in renewable energy for the long term; also, encourage energy conservation--that is the low-hanging fruit--for long-term energy sustainability.

The Senate will soon vote on a commonsense plan to crack down on oil market speculators and hedgers who break the rules. We have seen these guys before with Enron and the housing bust, folks on Wall Street who manipulate the market and give themselves raises while gas prices are choking regular folks. It is time to put a stop to this unfair manipulation.

Let me be clear about two points. First, not all speculation is bad. Well-

regulated speculation can help markets set a fair price for a commodity. Unfortunately, under this administration, speculation and hedging have gotten way out of hand, driving up the price of oil to record heights and squeezing the American consumer as never before. When the price of oil skyrocketed this summer, it was not because of a sudden increase in demand, nor because OPEC suddenly decided to pump less. It was because of trading on Wall Street by folks who never intended to own a barrel of oil.

We owe to it every family struggling to meet rising gas bills, every farmer filling up his tractor, every trucker buying fuel to move product to make sure this trading is fair and on the level. Folks in Montana don't have a problem with anyone making a buck, but we do believe in the American dream. We will not put up with folks who game the system.

I call on my Senate colleagues, Democrats and Republicans alike, to join together and pass the Stop Excessive Energy Speculation Act. This bill will strengthen the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to crack down on Wall Street speculators in the oil market. More watchdogs, more transparency will stop people from gaming the system and artificially and unnecessarily driving up prices at the pump. We need this bill.

When it comes to getting control of high gas prices, this is only the beginning. Beyond speculation, we need to drill for oil in places that make sense right here in America, and production of renewable fuels must go hand in hand with drilling for more oil.

One of the places it makes sense to drill for oil is in the Bakken Formation in eastern Montana and North Dakota. The Bakken field is a place we will hear about again and again. New technology is allowing smaller producers to extract more oil. There is more than 4 billion barrels of oil in the Bakken field. It is hard work, but these are good jobs, and the salaries are good too. And they are right here at home. All you need is a strong back, a cattle stand, a good work ethic, and a clean record, and you can find jobs that start for as much as $25 an hour.

The Bakken field isn't the only place where drilling makes sense. Last week, the Interior Department finally opened 2 million acres in the Alaska National Petroleum Reserve, and it is about time. It is all part of the puzzle to free America from the grip of foreign oil and lower the price of gas at the pump.

However, anybody who tells you we can drill our way out of this problem is not shooting straight. Congress has been debating whether to extend tax credits for wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources, and we ought to stop extending the production tax credit on an annual basis. A long-term extension of these tax credits will really make a difference.

Over the long haul, we know we cannot simply drill our way out of this problem. We must invest in conservation and sustainable energy such as biofuels. It is all part of the puzzle to free America from the grip of foreign oil and lower prices of gas at the pump.

Earlier this summer, Congress passed the farm bill over the President's veto. That bill included hundreds of millions of dollars for advanced biofuels. The farm bill also contained a provision I was able to offer to encourage the production of camelina. Camelina is a crop that can be grown in Montana and other places and can be processed into biodiesel to run tractors, combines, farm equipment, and diesel engines. The byproduct of camelina makes a nutritious feed for livestock. Camelina truly is a win-win solution for renewable energy. We need to encourage more of these commonsense answers to our energy crisis.

Finally, conservation must play a significant role in solving our Nation's energy crisis. If we are ever going to free America from the grip of foreign oil, we must find real ways for consumers to use less fuel.

Last year, Congress increased auto fuel-efficiency standards for the first time in a generation. But it took 20 years of fighting, and eventually a Democratic Congress got it passed. Those new standards will save about 1.1 million barrels of oil a day by 2020, or about as much as produced by the State of Texas.

One hundred years ago, the Model T got 25 miles per gallon. Now a car gets 28 miles per gallon. Since that time, we have split the atom, sent a man to the Moon, developed computers, and mapped out the human genome. Yet we get the same fuel efficiency? Come on. That is not right. Conservation is the easiest and cheapest thing we can do to keep energy costs down.

Part of the energy tax package will help homeowners and businesses make those savings themselves. A partisan majority of the Senate supports this bill, but a small minority keeps us from getting it done.

The State of Montana recently announced an initiative to help citizens increase insulation in preparation for next winter's high heating bills.

These are all steps in the right direction, but we have more work to do to reduce energy consumption. The United States is the single largest consumer of energy in the world. We cannot continue on this unsustainable path. To do so would forfeit our national security to countries such as Russia, Venezuela, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia. That would be a tragic legacy to leave to our children. We need a comprehensive approach to bring down the price of gas and address this energy crisis in the long term. We need to crack down on speculation and greedy hedging to manipulate the oil markets. We need to increase production of fossil fuels where it makes sense and develop renewables for the long haul, and we need innovative solutions to reduce our overall energy consumption.

Some people think the economic pressure on the middle class is all in their heads. We know better. Folks in Montana know this energy crisis is real and it is bad. The Senate must act now to pass constructive legislation to bring down the price of energy at the pump. It all starts with passage of the Stop Excessive Energy Speculation Act.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, last night my flight to Washington was diverted to Columbus, OH, due to bad weather. As a result, I missed rollcall vote No. 163, to invoke cloture on the motion to concur with House amendment No. 2 to the Senate amendments to the housing bill. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. President, I rise in support of the bipartisan Webb GI bill, and I urge the Senate to join me in voting to pass it without further delay. As a member of the veterans committee, this legislation has been a big priority of mine for the past year and a half.

Montana is home to more than 100,000 veterans. I have spoken with many of them over the past year and a half, and I was very pleased to work on their behalf last year for the largest increase in funding in the history of the VA.

Earlier this year, the Senate passed my legislation to raise the reimbursement rate for veterans' travel to and from VA facilities. It was the first increase in 30 years.

As American forces continue to be engaged in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, it is well past time for Congress to step up to the plate and deliver for our veterans.

This new GI bill will provide first-class educational benefits for those who served since 9/11. It will pay for tuition and books and a monthly stipend roughly equivalent to the benefits given to millions of Americans following World War II.

The first GI bill created a vibrant middle class that drives our economy to this day and makes America the envy of the world. This GI bill can do the same again.

Every major veterans organization in this country supports this bill. I understand even the White House has dropped its longstanding opposition, and the President now says he will sign this bill into law.

Passing the 21st century GI bill will be a landmark achievement for this Congress. It will strengthen our Nation's military readiness through better recruitment by making military service a more practical option, and it will provide an important investment in Americas's future by enabling veterans to afford college at a time when career options and lifetime earning potential are increasingly linked to higher education.

One in nine Montanans have served our country in the military. We have one of the highest veterans rates in the country, and our Montana values compel us to take care of those who have served. Many of my Montana neighbors have written to me in support of this new GI bill for the new ``greatest generation.''

One airman from Belt, MT, said to me:

I hope this bill passes for myself and for future

generations. I have been deployed three times in my five and

a half years of active duty service, and will be leaving

active duty service within the year. This bill is finally

something that will allow people to do the things that they

put off and that so many have died for since the beginning of

our war on terrorism. I ask you to support this bill and

allow all our Armed Forces members to succeed in life and all

their endeavors.

Another veteran from Kalispell, MT, wrote:

I read with a great deal of interest your article in the

Flathead Beacon about the need for a GI Bill, much like that

of what we had in the past. I was able to attend college

under the GI Bill after I was discharged from the Army in

1956 under that bill enacted for World War II vets. The GI

Bill was instrumental in the creation of our middle class. It

gave this child of the Depression an opportunity to

experience the degree of success that I very likely would not

have been able to achieve had it not been for that GI Bill.

These are just two examples of the many letters I have received from back home. I know many Senators received similar letters. I call on all of my colleagues to join me in voting for this vital legislation. We must pass this bill to honor the service and sacrifice of our Nation's veterans and to invest in America's future.

I have been pleased to work on this important piece of legislation with a bipartisan group of Senators led by the Senator from Virginia, one of my fellow members of the Senate class of 2006.

Senator Webb and I hail from different parts of the country and different walks of life, but we joined the Senate at the same time with a simple hope: to provide a new direction for our Nation.

Last year, Senator Webb and I traveled together to Iraq. We were able to visit with quite a few of the brave young men and women who serve our country day in and day out. When you talk to these folks, it really makes you feel that our Nation is in good hands.

They are serving us well, and now it is time to do right by them. This is commonsense legislation that will demonstrate to our veterans that America honors their service and cares about their future.

Passing this bill is the right thing to do, and it is the smart thing to do. I urge the Senate to vote as soon as possible to pass this new GI bill for America's new ``greatest generation.''

I thank the Senator from Missouri for giving me this opportunity to speak.

I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, I rise to emphasize the importance of extending the production tax credits for renewable energy in the tax package we are voting on today at 2:15. These tax credits have helped create a strong and growing renewable energy industry, not only for wind power but also for geothermal, biomass, and landfill gas. Wind power, especially in a State such as Montana and across the country, is critically important, but we have a long way to go before renewable sources of energy can have the full impact on lowering energy costs and fighting climate change. That is why these tax credits are so very important.

Last year the United States installed more than 52 hundred megawatts of wind power, enough to power a million and a half households for an entire year. Put another way, if the population--every man, woman, and child in Montana and Wyoming--each had their own house, there would be a million and a half homes.

All that wind power was about a $9 billion investment into the economy. Wind now powers over 4.5 million homes in the United States. At this rate, the United States will overtake Germany as the world's leader in wind power next year, but only if we extend this tax credit. Unfortunately, everything grinds to a halt if the tax credits are not extended.

Congress has let these tax credits lapse before. Each time we have seen growth in the renewable energy industry flatline. This chart shows exactly what happens when we refuse to extend the tax credits. Over the last 9 or 10 years, you can see where the high bars are, where wind energy megawatts have gone on. That is with the tax credits. When we failed to extend tax credits, we see virtually no growth in wind energy.

I know a lot of my colleagues will be voting to extend these credits by year's end, but waiting until the last minute is just as bad as letting them expire. Right now wind developers are working out financing for future projects. They cannot move these projects forward without certainty. That means projects that are starting right now will stall if we don't re-up these tax credits today.

We have heard a lot for the last few months about energy costs and climate change. Renewable energy is attractive because it can help us get a handle on both problems. Wind is getting more and more affordable and more efficient each year, especially as fossil fuel costs go up. The wind power capacity added last year accounted for 30 percent of all new energy brought online. Because of the wind, we are keeping 28 million tons of carbon dioxide out of the air. That is 28 million tons. There is no more efficient way to help fight climate change than by supporting the tax credits that drive renewable energy. It is just common sense.

Last month, the Department of Energy reported that the United States can get 20 percent of its power from wind by the year 2030, but we need to quit talking about wind power and get some more turbines off the ground and into the air. Wind power means real dollars and cents and real jobs and economic development, especially for rural America.

The first commercial wind farm in Montana started operating in 2005 in Wheatland County. Wheatland County has a population of about 2,000 people and a median household income of about $24,000 a year. In 2007, the wind farm paid over half a million dollars in property taxes to State and local governments. That included nearly a quarter of a million dollars to the local school district. It brought in jobs and royalty revenue for landowners.

Wheatland County, as you can tell by the name, is a farming, agricultural county. Folks there have spent the last century cursing the wind. Today, the local Chamber of Commerce calls Wheatland County the Wind Energy Capital of the United States. Next weekend, Wheatland County is putting on its first Festival of the Wind. Their slogan is to ``honor the wind, celebrate our community, and move forward to a vital future.''

With high gas and food prices, wind power is not just a mirage on the horizon. In fact, we have only skimmed the surface of our potential. To put things in perspective, Montana produces about 150 megawatts of wind-generated electricity. Montana is almost exactly the same size as Germany. Germany has about 22,000 megawatts of wind power. The entire United States has only 16,000 megawatts. Montana will double its wind production this year. Next year, we hope to have a new wind energy transmission line between Montana and Alberta, and we will double it again. But we need that production tax credit in place, not only for next year but well into the future.

Already this year, things have started to slow as developers anxiously watch Congress. One wind farm currently under construction is racing the clock to start selling power before year's end. Developers are scrambling to take advantage of the production tax credit. Their plans for several other wind farms are on hold until the production tax credit is passed here.

I cannot overstate the significance of the production tax credit to my State of Montana and throughout rural America for economic development. But our country cannot afford to let it lapse because of climate change and because of high energy costs.

High costs might be an underestimate. I just read yesterday that companies are raising power prices to the tune of 29 percent. That is 29 percent. That means ordinary folks all across this country are going to have to make some very difficult decisions as they sit around their kitchen tables. We cannot afford to sit back and just talk about it. It is time to get to work, and the work starts today by passing this extension, not by waiting until the end of the year.

That is why I appreciate the leadership of Senator Baucus on continuing to bring this measure forward. I believe that passing an extension now will send a good signal to business that Congress is serious about wind power.

Congress can invest in renewable energy that will help control energy costs and fight climate change. I urge my colleagues once again to support this measure and to vote yes and pass it today.

Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, are we out of the quorum call?

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that our remaining time be yielded back.

Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Colorado for his solid, pertinent remarks about the energy situation we face and solutions for the crisis.

The energy crisis we face today is putting a squeeze on our working families. This morning, AAA announced another new record high on the national average for the price of a gallon of gas at $4.05 a gallon. Diesel hit a new record of $4.79 a gallon. The price of oil is at $134 a barrel. Yesterday in the Senate, Republicans blocked some solid measures by which we can lower the cost of energy which would directly impact working families, small businesses, agriculture, and the trucking industry.

Today, I rise to urge my Republican colleagues to allow us to pass legislation that will make a difference to free America from this grip of foreign oil. Although my Democratic colleagues have produced commonsense legislation to deal with this energy crisis, the folks on the other side of the aisle continue to block any reasonable attempt to take effective action. We have sound policy proposals on the table, and it is time for the other side to help lead or follow or get out of the way.

My Montana neighbors are hurting from the high cost of energy. Our manufacturers are at the risk of shutting down because of high energy costs. Truckers struggle to make ends meet, facing the high prices of diesel fuel. Family farmers are suffering from record-high diesel, high fertilizer, and other input costs. This energy crisis is real. We feel it every day. We have been feeling this effect for many months. The phone in my Senate office is ringing off the hook with folks asking for relief. Unfortunately, Republicans yesterday voted to deny any of that relief. They continue to block action even on the commonsense plan of my colleague from Montana, Senator Baucus, to extend tax incentives for promising alternative energy.

The facts are clear. We cannot drill our way out of this energy crisis. Drilling is a part of the mix of solutions we need, but we must find innovative and creative solutions to the challenges of this 21st century. Investing in renewable energy at home is the only way we can get on a path toward energy independence.

In short, we must pass the tax bill by Senators Baucus and Grassley to support energy innovations such as wind, solar, and biofuels. The bill extends the production tax credit for wind, geothermal, landfill gas, solar, and biomass.

The United States has led the world for 3 years in wind power capacity. Last month, the Department of Energy said the United States can get fully 20 percent of its power from wind. But all of this grinds to a halt if we don't extend the production tax credit that expires at the end of this year.

This bill also includes incentives for homeowners to take the initiative to put renewable energy systems in their homes. It advances carbon capture technology so that we can expand coal power into the future while fighting climate change, and it extends credits for cellulosic ethanol and biodiesel. We have heard a lot of talk about ethanol influencing food prices. If we want to develop biofuels that don't compete with food, we need to extend the tax credits that help get these fuels into the marketplace.

Perhaps most importantly, it continues our focus on conservation in homes and businesses. This is the low-hanging fruit of good energy policy.

If this package has any shortfalls at all, it is that the extensions are not long enough. I know a lot of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle also like the tax provisions. The difference is, they don't want to pay for it. It is not free. We can't just get out the credit card and forget about it. If we don't pay for it, our kids do.

This package by Senator Baucus takes a fiscally responsible approach to the tax incentives. That means closing the loophole in the Tax Code that allows wealthy hedge fund managers, many of whom engage in the very speculation that drives up the cost of oil, to defer paying taxes on the money they make outside the United States.

Why anyone would hold up $55 billion in tax cuts for small businesses, working families, and our Nation's renewable energy industry is beyond me. More importantly, families in Montana and rural America wouldn't tolerate it, and they should not.

Unfortunately, the other side of the aisle continues to block this bill. We need to pass this important Federal support and expand it so energy diversification efforts can count on a more steady and reliable backstop.

Montana is already leading the way toward a more sustainable energy future. We need to use the power of the Federal Government to reach the full potential of these homegrown renewable energy projects. Let me give a couple examples.

Across the Great Plains, wind is one of our most reliable and most plentiful natural resources. We are harnessing the power of wind to generate electricity and to power homes and businesses across my State. We need the support of the U.S. Tax Code to build on this progress. On the agricultural front, camelina is a crop that can be used in biofuels without competing with food crops. In fact, the byproduct of camelina fuel production can be fed to cattle as a nutritional feed. This is an example of the innovative approach this Nation needs to free ourselves from the grip of OPEC and corrupt oil regimes of the world.

There is no reason the Senators cannot work together to support innovative solutions to this challenging problem. Unfortunately, the Republicans seem only interested in covering for the President, who has been asleep at the switch. Their own solution is to drill for oil in our most environmentally fragile areas.

We need commonsense solutions to address the cost of energy. The energy provisions in the Baucus bill will take a giant step forward in developing the 21st-century solutions our people deserve. We must start today to put America back on a path toward energy independence.

I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I thank you.

I thank the Senator from Missouri for her comments. They were right on.

I rise today to call for action by the Senate on an urgent problem facing this country, facing the State of Montana: gas prices.

The national average now, we just found out last weekend, is $4 a gallon. I remember when gas was $1.46. It was not that long ago. It was before the Bush administration took over. That was before the war in Iraq, before speculators and market manipulators spiraled out of control, before that $17 billion Bush tax cut for our Nation's biggest oil companies.

These gas prices hurt. They especially hurt hard-working people in Montana and across rural America. In my State, nearly everybody has to drive to work. There are not other options. We do not have a subway system. We do not have other means of mass transit. Whether it is on a tractor or behind the wheel of a truck, a lot of folks rely on horsepower and the fuel to supply that horsepower to get their work done.

Of course, high gas prices means high prices for consumer goods. It means fewer jobs. Middle-class families are getting pinched hard by these high gas prices. For low-income folks, high gas prices are unbearable. They do not need to see headlines like in Newsweek this week to know our economy is in trouble. People are already feeling it. Yet we have seen no solutions from this administration.

I am not even convinced this administration considers rising gas prices a problem. Earlier this year, a reporter asked President Bush what advice he had to consumers facing $4 a gallon gas. He was visibly surprised and asked the reporter where he had heard that.

Well, working folks and small businesses have felt the pain for some time now. Our farmers all over rural America have known it for quite a while. Our trucking and transportation industry has felt it hard for a long time. The cost of diesel fuel that powers our tractors, our combines, and our trucks that take food to the grocery stores hit $4 back in April. It is closing in on $5. Every working family and small business and farmer and trucker is taking a hit--a big hit--on these fuel prices.

That is why I am supporting these two packages today that go to the root of the problems of high gas costs. They offer some solutions.

The Consumer-First Energy Act will go after commodity speculators who are manipulating the market. It needs to be done. It will let the Justice Department go after the illegal OPEC oil cartel in court. It needs to be done. It will put a stop to the big tax giveaways the last Congress gave to big oil, which needs to be done. It will protect consumers from price colluders and price gougers. This needs to be done.

This bill will immediately put a stop to the financial gimmicks that have driven up the cost of oil past the laws of supply and demand. If you do not think speculators are playing with the markets, and they are having a big impact, let me remind you of the Enron collapse, the dot- com bust, and the demise of the housing market. It is all happening in oil right now.

When Wall Street investment banks faced trouble a couple months ago, the Bush administration swiftly took action. But when American consumers have to tap into their savings or run up their credit card debt just to pay the price at the pump, the administration is nowhere to be seen.

The Consumer-First Energy Act is about solutions. They are solutions we need to invest in right now. We have the opportunity in the United States to drill for oil in places that make sense--eastern Montana, the western Dakotas, the Bakken field. And wouldn't you know, it is the smaller companies--not the big companies--that are going after those reserves. It is the smaller companies innovating, investing in the future, boosting domestic oil production right now, working with the folks in those regions, boosting rural economies.

My colleague, Senator Baucus, has again brought forward an energy tax package that will help extend some of the most successful and effective tax credits that are driving alternative energy development. He brought a similar package forward last year, only to have it narrowly defeated.

I hope we have a different outcome this time because our future energy system depends on new solutions, not old solutions. We have the ideas and the ambition, but we need to get on with new innovations in the marketplace.

It is time to resolve these energy costs and take a step toward solving our energy problems. We have to work together, and I am confident we can work together to find solutions to bring the costs back down.

Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.