Drilling duo claims way to sidestep a shutdown The bipartisan duo who authored a compromise on offshore oil drilling say their plan may be the best way to avoid a government shutdown now that Republican leaders have flatly rejected Democrats’ first effort to allow exploration off the coasts. Reps. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) and John Peterson (R-Pa.) led a group of more than two dozen lawmakers from both parties in drafting legislation to allow drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The key selling point of their plan is diverting one-third of the royalties to support alternative and renewable energy....