NEWS

9th Circuit Court may split Congressional Republicans are hoping yet again to split the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers nine Western states and has issued some rulings to the dismay of conservatives, saying a breakup is the best way to reduce the caseload of the circuit's federal judges. Next week, Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., plans to introduce a bill to split the circuit into three parts. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, has already introduced legislation this year that would create at least one, if not two, new appellate courts for the area. And because the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has linked the addition of any new judgeships across the country to dividing the circuit, lawmakers may have reason to view the prospect with an open mind....
Senate refuses to block offshore oil inventory Fresh from one successful move to protect Florida from offshore oil drilling, the state's two senators suffered a setback Tuesday when the Senate rejected their effort to block an inventory of the nation's offshore energy resources. Sens. Mel Martinez, a Republican, and Bill Nelson, a Democrat, argued unsuccessfully that the inventory -- one element in a massive energy bill -- would make it easier for the energy industry to eventually remove the ban on drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. 'It tantalizes pro-drilling interests. It's like saying to pro-drilling states, `Come and get it,' '' Martinez said. Proponents of the inventory said it would help the nation identify where oil and gas resources were located for possible future use....
Senate Votes to Give Feds Final Word on LNG Sites The Senate voted today to give federal regulators the last word on the location of liquefied natural gas terminals, despite objections from governors, including California's Arnold Schwarzenegger, that states should be an equal partner in deciding where the controversial facilities are built. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) led a bipartisan group of senators in an attempt to add to energy legislation a provision that would give governors an opportunity to veto projects they consider a safety risk. The measure was rejected 52-45. The House-approved energy bill includes a similar provision that would give the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission the final say over where the terminals are built, virtually ensuring that the measure will be included in any final bill that emerges from Congress....
Senate votes to add voluntary emission-cutting plan to energy bill The U.S. Senate voted June 21 to include a climate change plan as part of the energy bill now under debate. However, it opted for a voluntary, incentive-based program favored by much of the business community but condemned by most environmentalists as too weak. At one time, it appeared that a mandatory greenhouse gas emission cap proposed by Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., might be included as part of the energy bill because Energy Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., expressed interest in it. However, as the vote neared, Domenici decided instead to back the voluntary plan proposed by Chuck Hagel, R-Neb. "It has become clear to me that we need to do something to address climate change," Domenici said. Domenici said he was impressed by a plan proposed by the National Commission on Energy Policy, on which Bingaman based his mandatory cap-and-trade proposal. "However, as we began developing details of how NCEP would be implemented, particularly how credits would be allocated, it became clear that we do not have something ready to be added to the energy bill," Domenici said. "This is just too tough to do this quickly."....
Bush: U.S. needs more nuclear power plants Pushing for the construction of nuclear power plants, President Bush on Wednesday pressed Congress to send him an energy bill, though he acknowledged that even when he signs the legislation, gasoline prices at the pump won't fall overnight. Bush is promoting nuclear power as a way to take the pressure off fossil fuels - oil, natural gas and coal. "It's time for this country to start building nuclear power plants again," said Bush, who noted that while the U.S. gets 20 percent of its electricity from nuclear reactors, France meets 78 percent of its electricity needs with nuclear power....
Despite promises, gaps remain in U.S. defense against mad cow disease American cattle are eating chicken litter, cattle blood and restaurant leftovers that could help transmit mad cow disease -- a gap in the U.S. defense that the Bush administration promised to close nearly 18 months ago. "Once the cameras were turned off and the media coverage dissipated, then it's been business as usual, no real reform, just keep feeding slaughterhouse waste," said John Stauber, an activist and co-author of "Mad Cow USA: Could the Nightmare Happen Here?" The Food and Drug Administration promised to tighten feed rules shortly after the first case of mad cow disease was confirmed in the U.S., in a Washington state cow in December 2003. "Today we are bolstering our BSE firewalls to protect the public," Mark McClellan, then-FDA commissioner, said on Jan. 26, 2004. FDA said it would ban blood, poultry litter and restaurant plate waste from cattle feed and require feed mills to use separate equipment to make cattle feed. However, last July, the FDA scrapped those restrictions. McClellan's replacement, Lester Crawford, said an international team of experts assembled by the Agriculture Department was calling for even stronger rules and that FDA would produce new restrictions in line with those recommendations. Today, the FDA still has not done what it promised to do. The agency declined interviews, saying in a statement only that there is no timeline for new restrictions....

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