SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
"With the strong support of the American public, we must fight to ensure that this short-sighted provision to authorize oil and gas development in the iconic Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is not a part of any final budget reconciliation package," said Jennie Olson of Environment America. (Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Headquarters/Flickr/cc)
Senate Republicans (and One Democrat) Team Up to Open Arctic to Big Oil Plunder
"Sacrificing our public lands and waters to benefit the oil and gas industry is both environmentally and fiscally irresponsible."
Oct 20, 2017
In addition to mounting a "horrific" assault on life-saving social safety net programs like Medicaid and Medicaid, the GOP-crafted budget resolution passed by 51 Republican senators late Thursday also lays the groundwork for "drastic cuts" to programs that help shield the nation's land, air, and water from exploitation by big polluters.
"This is the wrong budget for our health, environment, and kids"
--Jennie Olson, Environment America
"Adding insult to injury," 51 Republicans also teamed up with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) to thwart an amendment to their budget that would have barred drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
In a statement on Friday, Jennie Olson of Environment America said the GOP's decision to kill the amendment--crafted by a group of Senate Democrats--opens the pristine refuge to "irreversible damage...just so corporate polluters can make a profit."
"This is the wrong budget for our health, environment, and kids," Olson concluded. "With the strong support of the American public, we must fight to ensure that this short-sighted provision to authorize oil and gas development in the iconic Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is not a part of any final budget reconciliation package."
Environmental groups were also quick to note that oil and gas exploration in the ANWR poses risks not just to the refuge and its inhabitants, but also to the Arctic Ocean, "where an oil spill could cause irreversible harm if development is allowed to proceed," said Earthjustice president Trip Van Noppen.
"Drilling in the Arctic Refuge is not a budget issue, and should not be part of the budget reconciliation process. This is a blatant attempt to use the budget reconciliation process to pass a divisive and controversial proposal that would lead us in the wrong direction on climate," Van Noppen concluded. "Sacrificing our public lands and waters to benefit the oil and gas industry is both environmentally and fiscally irresponsible."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
In addition to mounting a "horrific" assault on life-saving social safety net programs like Medicaid and Medicaid, the GOP-crafted budget resolution passed by 51 Republican senators late Thursday also lays the groundwork for "drastic cuts" to programs that help shield the nation's land, air, and water from exploitation by big polluters.
"This is the wrong budget for our health, environment, and kids"
--Jennie Olson, Environment America
"Adding insult to injury," 51 Republicans also teamed up with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) to thwart an amendment to their budget that would have barred drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
In a statement on Friday, Jennie Olson of Environment America said the GOP's decision to kill the amendment--crafted by a group of Senate Democrats--opens the pristine refuge to "irreversible damage...just so corporate polluters can make a profit."
"This is the wrong budget for our health, environment, and kids," Olson concluded. "With the strong support of the American public, we must fight to ensure that this short-sighted provision to authorize oil and gas development in the iconic Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is not a part of any final budget reconciliation package."
Environmental groups were also quick to note that oil and gas exploration in the ANWR poses risks not just to the refuge and its inhabitants, but also to the Arctic Ocean, "where an oil spill could cause irreversible harm if development is allowed to proceed," said Earthjustice president Trip Van Noppen.
"Drilling in the Arctic Refuge is not a budget issue, and should not be part of the budget reconciliation process. This is a blatant attempt to use the budget reconciliation process to pass a divisive and controversial proposal that would lead us in the wrong direction on climate," Van Noppen concluded. "Sacrificing our public lands and waters to benefit the oil and gas industry is both environmentally and fiscally irresponsible."
In addition to mounting a "horrific" assault on life-saving social safety net programs like Medicaid and Medicaid, the GOP-crafted budget resolution passed by 51 Republican senators late Thursday also lays the groundwork for "drastic cuts" to programs that help shield the nation's land, air, and water from exploitation by big polluters.
"This is the wrong budget for our health, environment, and kids"
--Jennie Olson, Environment America
"Adding insult to injury," 51 Republicans also teamed up with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) to thwart an amendment to their budget that would have barred drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
In a statement on Friday, Jennie Olson of Environment America said the GOP's decision to kill the amendment--crafted by a group of Senate Democrats--opens the pristine refuge to "irreversible damage...just so corporate polluters can make a profit."
"This is the wrong budget for our health, environment, and kids," Olson concluded. "With the strong support of the American public, we must fight to ensure that this short-sighted provision to authorize oil and gas development in the iconic Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is not a part of any final budget reconciliation package."
Environmental groups were also quick to note that oil and gas exploration in the ANWR poses risks not just to the refuge and its inhabitants, but also to the Arctic Ocean, "where an oil spill could cause irreversible harm if development is allowed to proceed," said Earthjustice president Trip Van Noppen.
"Drilling in the Arctic Refuge is not a budget issue, and should not be part of the budget reconciliation process. This is a blatant attempt to use the budget reconciliation process to pass a divisive and controversial proposal that would lead us in the wrong direction on climate," Van Noppen concluded. "Sacrificing our public lands and waters to benefit the oil and gas industry is both environmentally and fiscally irresponsible."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.