Senate pressured to find energy compromise

WASHINGTON, July 9 (UPI) -- A group of U.S. senators says public anger about high gas prices is spurring them to push hard to find a bipartisan compromise on an energy bill soon.

"This is the No. 1 issue on people's minds, very clearly," Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., told The New York Times in comments published Wednesday. Conrad was one of a bipartisan group of 10 senators meeting Tuesday to hammer out ideas on how to reach an energy plan compromise.

Congressional Republicans advocate more domestic oil and gas production, while many Democrats instead want to focus on alternative energy sources. Finding a middle ground between them will be a hard task, the newspaper said.

Complicating matters for the Democrats is reluctance among Senate leaders to sign on to a compromise that might be at odds with policies being espoused by likely Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. Obama is calling for higher mileage standards for U.S. autos and big investments in alternative energy.

Voters, meanwhile, are blaming both parties for the high prices, said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, noting, "They blame 'the government.'"