A head-to-head comparison of the candidates' environmental voting records In the past few years, our leaders in Congress have been called on to make some critical decisions for our environment, on issues ranging from support for renewable energy to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. We looked at 22 key environmental votes in the Senate between June, 2005 and February, 2008. We found that Barack Obama made the right choice for the environment 87 percent of the time, while John McCain recorded a score of 27 percent. Click here to see a U.S Senate lifetime comparison.
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HEAD-TO-HEAD
SCORE
86% |
HEAD-TO-HEAD SCORE
27% |
H.R. 5140 (Roll Call #8)
2/6/08 |
Energy: Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) introduced an amendment including clean energy incentives to the Recovery Rebates and Economic Stimulus for the American People Act of 2008. The Senate rejected a motion to invoke cloture on Sen. Reid's (D-NV) amendment by a 58-41 vote.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6 (Roll Call #425)
12/13/07 |
Energy: The renewable energy production tax credit, the solar energy production tax credit and other clean energy investments are set to expire in 2008. The Senate rejected a motion to invoke cloture on an energy bill that combines renewable tax incentives and fuel economy standards 59-40.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6 (Roll Call #416)
12/7/07 |
Energy: A national Renewable Electricity Standard will substantially reduce global warming pollution while sparking a clean energy boom across the country. The Senate failed to invoke cloture on an energy bill that included a RES, renewable tax incentives and increased fuel economy 53-42.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6 (Roll Call #225)
6/21/07 |
Energy: The Senate voted to invoke cloture on the Energy bill that included an increase in CAFE standards 62-32.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6 (Roll Call #226)
6/21/07 |
Energy: The Senate passed an Energy bill that included an increase in CAFÉ standards 65-27.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6; S. Amdt. 1704 (Roll Call #223)
6/21/07 |
Energy: The Energy Advancement and Investment Act of 2007 was added as an amendment to the energy bill. It reduced tax breaks to oil and gas companies by $13 billion and extended $21.8 billion in tax credits to energy efficiency and renewables. The Senate failed to invoke cloture 57-36.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6; S. Amdt. 1628 (Roll Call #213)
6/19/07 |
Energy: Converting coal to a liquid transportation fuel is a dirty process that creates more than twice the greenhouse gas emissions of conventional oil. The Senate defeated an amendment by Senator Jim Bunning (R-KY) to the energy bill that would have mandated 6 billion barrels of liquid coal by 2022 by a vote of 39-55.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: NO |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6 (Roll Call #211)
6/14/07 |
Energy: The Senate rejected an amendment by Sen. Mitch McConnell for Sen. Peter Domenici that would have introduced a Renewable Electricity Standard that included nuclear, fossil fuels and other dirty energy sources in its definition of renewables. The Senate voted to table the amendment 56-39.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 6 (Roll Call #212)
6/14/07 |
Oceans: Sen. John Warner (R-VA) attempted to modify the offshore drilling moratorium by allowing the Governor of Virginia to petition the Secretary of the Interior to allow natural gas exploration at least 50 miles from the coast. The amendment was defeated 43-44.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: NO |
MISSED
VOTE |
MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 1495 (Roll Call #166)
5/15/07 |
Global Warming: Sens. John Kerry (D-MA), Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Susan Collins (R-ME) offered an amendment to require the Army Corps of Engineers to consider the short- and long-term effects of global warming in planning water resource projects. The amendment failed 51-42 (need 60 votes to pass).
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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MISSED
VOTE |
H.R. 2863 (Roll Call #364)
12/21/05 |
Arctic Refuge: Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) inserted drilling language into the Defense Appropriations bill. The must-pass bill included funds for both U.S. troops and hurricane relief. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and other drilling opponents led an effort to remove the drilling language from the Defense bill and filibustered. The Senate voted 56-44 to end debate on the bill, short of the 60 votes necessary to move the bill forward. The House and Senate then approved a revised conference report that included other drilling provisions but left ANWR intact.
PRO ENVIRONMENTAL VOTE: NO |
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S. 2020 (Roll Call #332)
11/17/05 |
Energy: In 2005, the oil industry enjoyed record profits because of high oil and gasoline prices. At the same time, the Congressional Research Service has stated that the oil industry pays taxes at a rate significantly lower than any other industry. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) offered an amendment to the tax reconciliation bill to repeal a tax break worth $2.4 billion over five years to the oil and gas industry. The Senate voted 48-51 against the amendment.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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S. 1932 (Roll Call #303)
11/3/05 |
Arctic Refuge: In March 2005, the Senate voted to include language in the Senate Budget resolution that counted revenue from oil and gas leasing and drilling in the coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge. The Senate voted 52-47 to approve the budget reconciliation package, which included this “assumption of revenue” language.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: NO |
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H.R. 3010 (Roll Call #270)
10/26/05 |
Energy: Even before Hurricane Katrina hit, natural gas prices were climbing. After Katrina, natural gas prices skyrocketed to the highest in more than a decade. During consideration of the Senate budget resolution, Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Susan Collins (R-ME) offered an amendment to increase low income heating assistance by $2.92 billion. Opponents of the amendment raised a procedural issue to require a two-thirds majority vote. The Senate voted 54-43 to approve the amendment, which was not enough to overcome the procedural hurdle. PUBLIC INTEREST VOTE: YES |
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S.J. Res.20 (Roll Call #225)
9/13/05 |
Clean Air: Mercury can affect the way children think, learn, and grow, causing problems ranging from learning disabilities to mental retardation. In March 2005, the Bush administration finalized new rules to give power plants, the largest U.S. source of mercury emissions, until 2018 to reduce their mercury emissions. Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced a rare Congressional Review Act resolution to overturn the Bush rule. The Senate rejected the resolution by a 47-51 vote.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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H.R. 6 (Roll Call #213)
7/29/05 |
Energy: After the House passed its energy bill, the Senate passed a slightly better energy bill that included a requirement to increase renewable energy production and acknowledged the need for a mandatory limit on global warming pollution. However, when the House-Senate energy conference committee convened in the summer of 2005, it abandoned these few positive Senate provisions. The Senate approved the weaker conference report by a vote of 74-26.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: NO |
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H.R. 2361 (Roll Call #164)
6/29/05 |
Preservation: In June 2005, the Senate voted on a bill to build taxpayer subsidized roads in the Tongass National Forest in southeast Alaska, the world’s largest remaining old-growth temperate rainforest. The construction of roads is a prelude to logging and development. During consideration of the Interior Appropriations bill, Senators John Sununu (R-NH) and Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) introduced an amendment to end taxpayer subsidies for new commercial logging roads in the Tongass. Their amendment failed by a 39-59 vote.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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H.R. 6 (Roll Call #155)
6/23/05 |
Energy: The Senate energy bill contained $8.8 billion in subsidies for the nuclear industry, $5.6 billion for the coal industry and $7.4 billion for the oil and gas industry. These subsidies disproportionately benefit capital intensive industries such as coal and nuclear power. Sens. John Sununu (R-NH) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) offered an amendment to strip these subsidies from the energy bill. The Senate rejected the amendment 21-76 .
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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H.R. 6 (Roll Call #157)
6/23/05 |
Global Warming and Energy: During consideration of the Senate energy bill, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) proposed an amendment to raise the CAFE standard for cars and light trucks to 40 mpg by 2016. The Senate rejected the amendment by a vote of 28-67.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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H.R. 6 (Roll Call #146)
6/22/05 |
Energy: Liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals pose potential safety hazards for local communities; an explosion at an LNG facility could kill and injure people within three-quarters of a mile. In its original form the energy bill contained a provision that preempted all state authority and made the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission the main decision maker for siting these facilities. By a 52-45 vote the Senate voted to table an amendment offered by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) to strike the provision.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: NO |
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H.R. 6 (Roll Call #149)
6/22/05 |
Global Warming: Global warming is one of the most pressing issues our country faces, but the federal government does not limit global warming emissions. As part of its 2005 energy bill deliberations, the Senate considered a non-binding “Sense of the Senate” resolution calling for a mandatory program to “slow, stop, and reverse” global warming emissions. The motion to table failed by a vote of 44-53.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: NO |
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H.R. 6 (Roll Call #141)
6/16/05 |
Energy: A renewable energy standard requires power companies to generate an increasing percentage of electricity from clean renewable sources, such as solar and wind. During Senate consideration of the energy bill, Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) offered an amendment to set a national renewable energy standard of 10 percent by 2020. The Senate adopted the amendment by a vote of 52-48.
PRO ENVIRONMENT VOTE: YES |
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