Sen. Mary Landrieu, a Democrat from Louisiana, has taken the unusual step of blocking the confirmation of a Democratic administration's appointee. She says she will not allow a vote on Jack Lew, President Obama's choice for OMB director, until the offshore drilling moratorium is lifted.

In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, she writes, "I do not take this step lightly. But the fact is that the Administration's moratorium on new energy exploration is profoundly impacting the economy of the Gulf coast, while doing nothing to improve safety or environmental performance."

Landrieu also asserts that the administration doesn't understand the effect of the moratorium on Gulf Coast families. She says both deepwater and shallow-water drilling have "been brought to a standstill," hurting... more »

The Senate bill unveiled today by Majority Leader Harry Reid moves forward with provisions that will cost American jobs, slow economic growth and will place our energy security at risk.

While full details of the Senate bill are not yet available, the liability provision sticks out as a jobs killer. Requiring an unattainable level of insurance coverage for domestic energy producers on the Outer Continental Shelf will force the vast majority of American companies out of U.S. waters, according to insurers.

This would cut domestic production, kill American jobs, slow economic growth and cost billions in federal oil and natural gas revenues.

Even those that could self insure operations would see costs skyrocket, driving investments out of the United States, further hurting our economy, employm... more »