[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 19699-19701]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 REGARDING ENERGY AND NATIONAL SECURITY

  Mr. VOINOVICH. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about one of the 
top issues facing our Nation: the high cost of energy and how it 
relates to our national security.
  There has been much controversy on Capitol Hill regarding the reason 
why prices have climbed. My colleagues have introduced various pieces 
of legislation that attempt to address our energy security.
  I am hearing loud and clear from thousands of Ohioans how this crisis 
is directly affecting them and their loved ones. Ohioans are demanding 
that the Senate have a lengthy and open debate on the issue of high 
energy costs. They are expecting that we work together in a bipartisan 
fashion to craft legislation that will address our Nation's long-term 
energy requirements and set us down a path towards energy independence.
  Their urgency is underscored by the fact that this is no longer just 
a question about the price of oil but also about national security.
  Americans are hurting from our addiction to oil, but I am not sure 
they fully realize the extent our national security; and indeed our 
very way of life, is threatened by our reliance on foreign oil.
  Every year we send hundreds of billions of dollars overseas for oil 
to pad the coffers of many nations that do not have our best interests 
at heart, and to some like Venezuela, whose leader has threatened to 
cut off oil.
  In fact, in 2007, we spent more than $327 billion to import oil, and 
60 percent of that, or nearly $200 billion, went to the oil-exporting 
OPEC nations. In 2008, the amount we will spend to import oil is 
expected to double to more than $600 billion, $360 billion of which 
will come from OPEC. Let's take a moment to put those import figures 
into context. When compared to our Fiscal Year 2008 budget for our 
Nation's defense, which was more than $693 billion, the $600 billion we 
will spend to import oil in 2008 is nearly equal to our entire defense 
budget.
  There is no question that our dependence on foreign oil has serious 
national security implications. In addition to funding our enemies--as 
I just explained--we cannot ignore the fact that much of our oil comes 
from and travels through the most volatile regions of the world.
  A couple of years ago I attended a series of war games hosted by the 
National Defense University. I saw firsthand how our country's economy 
could be brought to its knees if somebody wanted to cut off our oil.
  In 2006, Hillard Huntington, executive director of Stanford 
University's Energy Modeling Forum testified before the Senate Foreign 
Relations Committee, and stated that based on his modeling, ``the odds 
of a foreign oil disruption happening over the next 10 years are 
slightly higher [than] 80 percent.'' He went on to testify that if 
global production were reduced by merely 2.1 percent due to some event, 
it would have a more serious effect on oil prices and the economy than 
hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
  And our dependence on foreign oil is even more troubling when you 
consider our Nation's financial situation.
  The national debt stands at $9.3 trillion, almost double the $5.4 
trillion debt that existed when I came to the Senate in 1999. By the 
end of 2009, the national debt is expected to have grown to $10.5 
trillion.
  In July, the Office of Management and Budget projected a $389 billion 
budget deficit for 2008. And this week even worse numbers came from the 
Congressional Budget Office. CBO said the Federal Government will 
finish the fiscal year with a near-record deficit of $407 billion.
  These numbers, however, do not include borrowing from the Social 
Security trust fund and other trust funds to the tune of $184 billion. 
So the real operating deficit is actually projected at $591 billion--
almost three times the $219 billion deficit projected at the start of 
2008.
  We cannot overlook our ballooning national debt. Today 51 percent of 
the privately owned national debt is held by foreign creditors--mostly 
foreign central banks. That is up from just 6 years ago. Foreign 
creditors provided more than 70 percent of the funds that the U.S. has 
borrowed since 2001, according to the Department of Treasury. And who 
are these creditors?
  According to the Treasury Department, the three largest foreign 
holders of U.S. debt are China, Japan, and OPEC nations. With the debt 
skyrocketing to 10.5 trillion in fiscal year 2009 and the plight of our 
financial markets we can expect an even greater involvement by these 
countries in purchasing our debt.
  This is insane and it has to stop. We can not afford to allow the 
countries that control our oil and our debt to control our future. It 
is time that we took our future into our own hands.
  Let's take a moment to think of our Nation like a business. Our 
feedstock is oil, and our competitors control the supply and price of 
our oil. We have debt, but our competitors also control our debt. 
What's to keep our competitors from raising prices, calling in our debt 
and running us out of business?
  I imagine that many have yet to hear of this, but it has been rumored 
that countries like China, with large financial holdings in Fannie Mae 
and Freddie Mac, pressured Secretary Paulson to bail out the 
corporations, by threatening to reduce their security holdings.
  This is a very real example of how not only our foreign policies, but 
even

[[Page 19700]]

domestic policies can be stymied due to reckless fiscal policy. I hope 
it frightens you as much as it frightens me. It certainly has dramatic 
effects in the present, but portend what it does for our children and 
grandchildren futures which we continue to mortgage with the 
irresponsible use of their credit card.
  But also keep in mind, that as we sit here and twiddle our thumbs 
over simply expanding domestic drilling within our own borders, Russia 
and China are actively and aggressively laying claim to energy 
resources around the globe.
  Russia, the world's second biggest oil exporter, is trying to lay 
claim to large section of the Arctic seafloor that is believed to 
contain billion of barrels of fuel equivalent. The country has also 
made moves to control a larger portion of the world's natural gas 
reserves. Russia, which has significant reserves of natural gas, is 
considering the creation of a natural gas cartel similar to OPEC. 
Venezuela and Iran have expressed interest.
  Russia has proven it has no qualms with using energy as a weapon. In 
1990, Russia tried to suppress independence movements in the Baltics by 
cutting energy supplies. In all, Russia has used energy as a tool to 
further their foreign policy goals on no less than six countries over 
the last 15 years. And energy is believed to be one of the driving 
reasons for Russia's military action in the independent nation of 
Georgia, through which passes a critical oil pipeline.
  China as well is moving ahead in securing its energy future. In 
Africa, China is handing out loans and funding expansive infrastructure 
projects in an effort to lay claim to lucrative oil reserves. With the 
help of Chinese investment, Angola recently passed Nigeria to become 
the largest petroleum producer on the continent.
  Can you imagine these countries scratching their heads in disbelief 
when they see the U.S. with the largest energy reserves in the world 
debating to drill or not drill?
  My friends, we have allowed the environmental lobby to run wild. As a 
result, we have had a tail wagging the dog environmental policy which 
has ignored our energy, economy and national security interest.
  And why did Congress let them get away with it? Because oil was cheap 
and some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle were afraid of 
the 30 second commercials that would be run against them if they didn't 
toe the environmental line.
  Now the chickens have come home to roost. Ask any Ohioan about the 
high price of gasoline. They will give you an ear full. Many of them 
have told me about how both the price of gasoline and the price of 
natural gas are affecting them where it hurts, right in the pocketbook 
and in their quality of life. These are the middle class Americans, the 
elderly and the poor that my friends on the other side of the isle keep 
talking about.
  Addressing this crisis requires nothing less than a Second 
Declaration of Independence--to move us away from foreign sources of 
energy in the near term and away from oil itself in the long term. To 
do this I believe we must find more, use less, and conserve what we 
have. As T. Boone Pickens said, ``we need to do it all.''
  In order to find more and stabilize our Nation's energy supply we 
must enact policies to increase responsible development of our abundant 
American resources.
  The fact of the matter is that when you take into account our 
untapped oil shale reserves, we have more oil resources than any other 
part of the world. The Department of Energy estimates that America's 
total oil shale resources could exceed 2 trillion barrels of oil 
equivalent, and there are currently 800 billion barrels of proven 
reserves. This is three times larger than the total proven oil reserves 
of Saudi Arabia.
  Further, the majority of conventional resources are locked up due to 
shortsighted congressional moratoria. Eighty-five percent of our 
offshore acreage and 65 percent of our onshore acreage is off limits.
  I was very embarrassed when our President went over to Saudi Arabia, 
just a few months ago, with hat in hand to beg for them to increase oil 
production. And last month I spoke with oilman T. Boone Pickens, who 
was recently in Saudi Arabia. He said they asked him, ``Why is your 
country asking us for oil, why aren't you exploring your own?''
  The Saudis couldn't have been more right. Rather than begging foreign 
countries for their oil, we need to be utilizing our own. That means 
opening up areas like the Outer Continental Shelf and ANWR for oil 
exploration. And that means capitalizing on our vast reserves of coal, 
oil shale, and tar sands.
  While we must increase our production of fossil fuels to relieve 
costs and reestablish our independence in the short term, in the long 
term we must reduce our demand for oil.
  And with that goal in mind, it is essential that we explore 
alternative means to meet our Nation's energy needs.
  It is long past time for our government to provide the spark to 
rekindle our Nation's creativity and innovation. Following Russia's 
launch of Sputnik, President Kennedy challenged our country in 10 years 
to be the first in the world to land a man on the Moon. And it was Neil 
Armstrong, an Ohioan, who did it. If we can put a man on the Moon, 
there is no reason why we cannot be the first country in the world to 
not have to rely predominantly on oil for our transportation needs.
  It is time we undertook a similar Apollo-like project to establish 
clean, reliable and domestically abundant energy alternatives and in 
turn usher in a new era of American freedom and independence.
  And through this new Apollo program, we must encourage further 
advances in biofuels, electric-hybrid plug-in vehicles and fuel cells.
  One of the best shots we have in significantly reducing our reliance 
on foreign oil is plug-in hybrid vehicles. If half our fleet of 240 
million vehicles were converted to electric-hybrids, we could reduce 
our oil imports by 4 to 5 million BPD. Just doing this could cut our 
reliance on foreign oil by 40 percent.
  Americans today demand action. And they demand we come together in a 
bipartisan fashion to solve this crisis. I commend my colleagues in the 
``Group of 10'' on their efforts to find sensible solutions to this 
crisis. While their bill is not perfect, it would be my hope that we 
can continue to work together to move our country towards energy 
independence.
  Regardless of what one thinks of the specifics of the bipartisan 
proposal, this is the way we should be trying to get things done around 
here--Senators of good will from both parties coming together, with 
everyone willing to give up a little of what they want in order to move 
the country forward. My greatest frustration in the Senate is the 
partisanship and game playing. We must end the gridlock and put the 
people's business first.
  I honestly believe that the best message we can send to OPEC, those 
investing in the oil market, and indeed the entire world, is that we 
are mad as heck and won't take it anymore. We must demonstrate that we 
are going to find more by going after every drop of oil that we can 
responsibly drill and that we are going to use less by undertaking a 
new Apollo program, and continue to conserve and become more energy 
efficient.
  I envision an America where in 10 years we have enough oil to take 
care of our needs. I imagine an America that is the least reliant 
nation in the world on oil. An America where our economy is not 
threatened, an America that has created thousands of jobs by finding 
more and developing technologies that use less. It will be an America 
that has gone from the bottom of the barrel to the top. Who's national 
security is without threat because we have removed the potential of 
energy being used as a ``weapon'' against us by those who do not share 
our values?
  We must put aside our differences and come together to reaffirm our 
Nation's independence for a second time. We can usher in a new era of 
prosperity

[[Page 19701]]

and a guarantee that in the new global economy we will maintain our 
position as the greatest military and economic power in the world.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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