A Democratic U.S. Senate will pose a big challenge to President Bush’s energy plan. When Sen. James Jeffords (R-Vt.) formally leaves the GOP in a week or so, Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), who opposes drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and wants more money spent on energy efficiency and renewable energy sources, will take over the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee from Sen. Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska), a close friend of the oil industry. Meanwhile, Jeffords, who will reportedly chair the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, is cosponsor of a bill to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. Howard Gruenspecht, a scholar at the Resources for the Future think tank, said the switch in leadership means "climate change comes back.
