CBS 4 Denver - Six U.S. House Candidates Discuss Energy at Forum
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CBS 4 Denver - Six U.S. House Candidates Discuss Energy at Forum
The candidates for Wyoming's lone seat in the U.S. House say the nation needs answers to rising energy prices and they have a few suggestions.
All six candidates took part in an energy-themed public forum at Casper College on Thursday.
One of the four Republican candidates, former State Treasurer Cynthia Lummis, said the nation needs to increase its oil, gas and coal production. Lummis suggested funding research into cleaner coal technology, boosting alternative energy and promoting conservation.
''Wyoming will play a pivotal role in those issues,'' Lummis said. ''And yes, we do need to diversify our energy portfolio in this country.''
Another Republican, Johnson County rancher Mark Gordon, said Wyoming needs to balance gas development with protecting wildlife habitat.
''I will tell you that my family has enjoyed countless hours walking in the mountains, and it's a very precious thing,'' Gordon said.
Gordon suggested using seismic mapping technology to gain a better understanding of the state's energy resources, such as in the Wyoming Range.
Retired U.S. Navy officer Bill Winney, also a Republican, said his home in the Bondurant area overlooks the Wyoming Range. He said he doesn't particularly want to see drilling rigs from his window.
''But there's another piece of me that says, 'We know how to make that not happen,''' he said. ''We know how to locate drilling rigs in remote locations. ... When you have energy at the prices we pay today, it makes a difference to us.''
This year's House race will be wide open with the upcoming retirement of Republican Rep. Barbara Cubin. Cubin narrowly lost to Wilson businessman Gary Trauner in the 2006 election.
Trauner, a Democrat, is running again. He told the forum that the nation needs to shake off its ''addiction to oil.''
''We're funding both sides of the war on terror right now, whether we like it or not,'' Trauner said.
The other two candidates are Green River physician Michael Holland, a Republican, and Riverton podiatrist W. David Herbert, a Libertarian.
Holland said the state would be better suited than the federal government to limit energy development in the Wyoming Range. Herbert said rising energy prices are linked to the weak dollar and the U.S. needs to return to the gold standard and balance the budget.
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