Members of DK GreenRoots are Adopting A Senator to determine how we can push for real climate change legislation. Landrieu is my Senator.
Last year, Landrieu joined the League of Conservation Voters' Dirty Dozen List as the "worst Democrat in the Senate on environmental issues." Landrieu's record depicts an energy industry rainmaker who uses spinmeister talents to obstruct real climate change reform in order to benefit the energy industry. Landrieu's answer for climate change is to increase offshore drilling by the carrot of diverting oil royalties to the states. This carrot is a chameleon: One year Landrieu successfully called it Katrina aid, now it is a financial miracle for the economic crises faced by coastal states. The reality is that the carrot is her bailout plan for the oil and gas industry, and environmental groups fear it may become part of the Senate's climate change bill. Offshore drilling would not only continue the fossil fuel pollution that causes climate change, but compound the existing climate change impacts suffered by our oceans.
This diary is part of the Adopt-A-Senator for Aces project that is one of the eco advocacy campaigns of DK GreenRoots. We are tracking Senators to determine their positions on climate change legislation so we can focus on key issues that might influence their votes. Meteor Blades and RL Miller discuss this project in more detail.
There are 6 Senate Climate Committees that will have "jurisdiction over pieces of the Senate climate bill: Environment and Public Works (EPW), Finance, Foreign Relations, Agriculture, Commerce Science and Transportation, Energy and Natural Resources (ENR)." Landrieu sits on the ENR.
Position on Climate Change Bill
Review of Landrieu's voting record and her financial indebtedness to the energy industry indicated that she would likely vote no on any bill that is not written by the industry. In fact, Landrieu admitted that she has not "ruled out filibustering climate legislation". Thus, it was no surprise that E&E Daily projected (pdf file) Landrieu as a probable no vote on climate change legislation.
The other day, Landrieu's legislative director wiped out this nail-biting suspense, saying she would vote no against the current "Frankenstein" of a bill".
Energy Industry Donations
Landrieu is one of the top 10 Senate recipients of campaign donations from electric utilities, having received $525,590 since 1990. In the 2008 election cycle, only GOP senators Cornyn and global warming denier Inhofe obtained more money than Landrieu from the oil and gas industry.
Voting Record
Not surprisingly, Landrieu's voting record favors the energy industry. Progressive Punch gives Landrieu a lifetime progressive score of 52.34% and rank of 60/100 on all environmental votes. However, her lifetime score is skewed by environmental votes not directly linked to climate change, such as 100% for humane treatment of animals. Her scores decrease when considering votes on air pollution (38.24%, rank 61/99), global warming (38.60%, rank 62/99) and renewable energy (46.15%, rank 62/99).
Landrieu's voting record from 2005-2007 shows she voted in favor of big oil 67% of the time. Landrieu voted yes on billions in tax breaks to the oil industry despite record profits, but voted against fuel efficiency 11 times and voted "against bills designed to slow global warming pollution." Landrieu opposes cap and trade, opposes use of the budget reconciliation process to adopt climate change legislation, and opposes increasing taxes on her oil and gas buddies. (For a more detailed listing of her votes against her party and environmental measures, see The Washington Post's Votes Database.)
Landrieu is proud of her voting record as the "most-fervent pro-drilling Democrat in the Senate." In fact, every democrat in the Senate voted against a GOP proposal to open up ANWR to drilling except Landrieu.
Can Democrats Make A Deal With Landrieu?
Obtaining a yes vote from Landrieu would not be worth the environmental sellouts needed to gain her vote.
(1) Landrieu requires a bill to WHOLLY favor energy industry.
For example, last year, the ENR passed their version of the climate change legislation, the American Clean Energy and Leadership Act of 2009. Landrieu voted no on even this weak energy bill that approved off-shore drilling as close as 45 miles. Landrieu was miffed that the bill did not provide "more support for nuclear power" and the ENR rejected her amendment to provide coastal states with a larger share of the offshore drilling revenues.
(2) Landrieu Out of Synch with Democrats.
Landrieu will do whatever it takes to please the energy industry, even if it means stabbing Democrats in the back. In 2007, Landrieu gave the GOP the one-vote margin needed on a critical cloture vote to defeat a Democratic energy bill that wiped out $13.5 billion in industry tax breaks to help fund $21 billion of renewable energy investment. This measure also included recovery of billions in oil and gas royalties. Landrieu adopted Bush's reasoning that $100 billion dollar profits annually were simply insufficient to ensure the oil industry's economic health. However, she could have voted against the bill, but she voted against her party to filibuster the bill.
Landrieu's Successful Role as Climate Change Spinmeister
What is it that Landrieu considers an effective measure to address climate change? Landrieu would replace cap and trade with "common-sense initiatives that focus on increasing efficiency" and domestic energy security, such as her fixation on offshore drilling.
Landrieu is making dangerous headway by bribing states with the chameleon carrot of oil royalties that either constitutes Katrina aid or state aid, depending on the financial issue du jour.
In 2006, Landrieu rallied Democratic support to enact a bill opening 8.3 million acres of offshore drilling. The key to winning Senate support was transferring to 4 States 37.5% of the oil royalties that Landrieu recast as Katrina aid in tearful speeches that "capitalized on the nation's sympathy to help rebuild her state" near the time of the 1-year anniversary of Katrina.
The Katrina aid precedent was then successfully used to change the off-shore drilling debate by arguing that oil royalties are the economic savior to states in crisis:
In the process, Landrieu also set an important precedent that has changed the calculus in today’s debate over offshore drilling. Other states, many of which are facing budget shortfalls due to the fall in housing prices, the rise in unemployment and a slowdown in the broader economy, see the potential for an additional source of revenue in offshore drilling.
This new revenue equation is part of the reason for a shift toward support for drilling in some states that had once opposed it — even among some Democrats who had long viewed offshore drilling as anathema.
New Off-Shore Drilling Legislation (DESA)
Now that financially strapped communities are smitten by the lure of oil royalties, Landrieu joined Sen. Murkowski (R-Alaska) last July to co-sponsor Senate Bill 1517 (the Domestic Energy Security Act of 2009 or DESA) to allow drilling within 45 miles of the Florida coast. The current law bans drilling within 125 miles of Panhandle beaches and 235 miles of Gulf Coast beaches. DESA would void a 2006 law that created a no-drilling buffer zone of hundreds of miles until at least 2022.
It's worth taking a little peek at DESA because it shows how Landrieu operates and it is also similar to a Dorgan amendment that environmental groups fear will become part of the Senate climate change bill.
The successful argument in 2006 that oil royalties should be allocated to states as Katrina aid is now retooled to argue that royalties from offshore drilling are a means to solve economic woes. While Landrieu focuses on fairness to coastal states and energy security, she also admits that revenue sharing is the only carrot that will yield new offshore drilling.
The bill is also promoted as a way to "lower prices at the pump," but the U.S. Energy Information Administration concluded that off-shore drilling will not have a significant impact on production or prices not just now, but for the duration of its projected analysis, which covered the next two decades.
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla) opposes DESA as a bailout plan for the oil and gas industry:
"This isn't even thinly veiled," Nelson said. "It's an oil industry bailout plan. And it's Alaska and Louisiana's senators plan to boost their own revenues in tough economic times. But even in the toughest of times, there are some things states shouldn't sell out, like Florida's economy and environment."
Working on this DK GreenRoots Adopt-A-Senator project suggests Landrieu is important to climate change legislation not as a potential yes vote, but to counter respond to her memes used to win over Congress and the public.
Resources for AAS Project: You really need to just surf out the sites that are filled with good information!
Legislation
H.R.2454 - American Clean Energy And Security Act of 2009
Votes, Committees, and Background
The Washington Post's Votes Database provides roles in Congress, key votes, missed votes, voting with party and against party, latest votes and financial disclosure.
Open Congress page for Senators. This is sample of the information provided for Landrieu.
ProgressivePunch
GovTrack: Provides information on bill sponsorship, voting record, money & influence, and committee membership. Here is Landrieu's page.
SourceWatch and Landrieu's page.
Project Vote Smart: Landrieu's page.
Fundraising & Donors
OpenSecrets and the page for Landrieu index by years and then the page for her 2010 profile.
FEC – Search Campaign Finance Summary Data
Sunlight Foundation's Party Time: Find out who is holding parties for Landrieu.
MapLight shows the supporters and opponents, votes, list of contributions within 3 days of vote on bill, timeline of contributions, committees, history and status, and news for ACES and has a search engine for legislators. The page for Landrieu shows her top 10 funding interests, top organizations, money contributed near votes, etc. The page listing interest groups contributing within 3 days of her voting is very good!
General or Multiple Information Sites: Just do site search with lawmaker's name.
Taxpayers for Common Sense covers earmarks and campaign contributions.
Foreign Lobbying Influence Tracker allows searches by legislators to find out efforts by foreign governments and organizations to influence U.S. policy.
LOUISdb provides a list of useful sites that have a variety of government information.
League of Conservation Voters
1sky
Senate Web Site
grist
solveclimate
Hill Heat