Democrats Steadfast in Demands for Axing US Oil Export Ban
U.S. Senate Democrats on Tuesday laid out a list of demands they seek before making any deal to end the 40-year-old ban on crude oil exports in the wide-ranging government funding bill. With oil prices falling to nearly seven-year lows of less than $40 a barrel, producers are desperate to open crude sales to global markets. They say lifting the ban would give U.S. allies an alternative to Russia and OPEC countries for oil, breathe life into the drilling industry, and increase U.S.
Iran Deal Will Survive Despite Congress Setback - Democrats
Democrats said on Friday that they would have enough votes to ensure that the U.S.-led international nuclear deal with Iran survives review by Congress, despite influential Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer saying he would vote against it. A spokesman for Senator Dick Durbin, who counts Democratic votes as the Senate's minority whip and who supports the deal, said Democrats were still confident they could rebuff Republican attempts to sink the agreement in a showdown next month.
U.S. Senators Urge Obama to Block Arctic Oil Drilling
A group of 18 mostly Democratic U.S. senators on Friday urged the Obama administration to stop Royal Dutch Shell's preparations for oil exploration in the Arctic, saying the region has a severely limited capacity to respond to accidents. The senators, from both coasts and several Midwestern states, sent a letter to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, urging her to retire Arctic leases in the Chukchi Sea.
U.S. Lawmakers Eye Gas Tax Hike
As U.S. gasoline prices plunge to the lowest level in more than five years, some U.S. lawmakers see a golden opportunity to bump up taxes at the pump to help pay for the repair of crumbling roads and bridges. Fuel taxes have been flat for more than 20 years, starving the Highway Trust Fund of revenue used for rising infrastructure repair costs. Lawmakers have fueled the fund with last-minute short-term injections of cash, but want to find a more permanent fix.
