U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, a freshman Democrat from Washington state, led a successful floor battle that blocked a provision to allow oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, a veteran Republican from Alaska, where ANWR is located, was attempting to make drilling for oil in ANWR part of the 2006 Defense Department spending bill. Cantwell led a filibuster and garnered enough votes from both Democrats and Republicans to stop the maneuver and keep ANWR out of the defense bill.

Stevens had already tried unsuccessfully to attach the ANWR oil drilling measure to a budget bill in the U.S. House of Representatives. His attempted maneuver with the Senate defense bill was his last chance this year to open ANWR to oil drilling.

Stevens says the oil is needed for national security and defense and to lessen America’s dependence on foreign oil. Cantwell, along with most other Democrats and some Republicans, believe the amount of oil that could be taken out of ANWR does not justify the environmental costs to one of the last pristine wilderness areas on Earth.

Suggested Reading:

Senate Defeats ANWR Drilling, Saves Cuts -- Forbes and Associated Press

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: A Wilderness Worth Far More Than Oil -- National Resources Defense Council

Majority Oppose ANWR Oil Drilling -- About U.S. Government Information