WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Pat Roberts today said the Majority Leader shouldn’t sidestep the energy debate and should continue to work on real energy solutions that increase domestic supply and reduce consumption, in order to bring down the cost of energy for Kansans.

Senator Roberts voted against a cloture motion on the Speculation Bill offered by the Majority that would have prevented any amendments from being voted upon. Senator Roberts supported amendments that increased domestic oil and gas production, conservation, and alternative fuels development.

Senator Roberts made the following remarks:

"The Majority has wasted our time debating an energy bill that they don’t want to go anywhere - gas prices are high, and Kansans want solutions. We want to drill here at home. We want to embrace new technologies like turning oil shale into fuel. We want to develop alternatives to foreign oil and we especially want our Congress to act now. We are sick of partisan delays when commonsense solutions are within reach.

"The Majority of the Senate has not allowed a fair and open debate on real, comprehensive solutions to our pain at the pump. I have urged the Majority Leader, Senator Reid of Nevada, to take the blinders off and see what is obvious to the experts, a majority of my colleagues and Kansans: we need to address the futures market, but doing that alone won’t get the job done. It will not alleviate the strain on the family budget, and it will not put America on the right course to dependable, clean energy for generations to come.

"It is clear my friends across the aisle don’t want to vote on drilling and now, under the course set by the Senate Majority Leader, a course without debate on real solutions, a course without amendments, a course designed to stall critical legislation that Kansans and the nation’s economy needs, they have sidestepped the issue.

"While they play these games, the high costs of energy continue to penalize the consumer and our economy. Let’s save the games for the Olympics. Let us get to work and pass a real energy bill before the August break."

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