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Senate pressured to find energy compromise

File photo of Sen. Kent Conrad dated February 5, 2007. (UPI Photo/Kevin Dietsch)
File photo of Sen. Kent Conrad dated February 5, 2007. (UPI Photo/Kevin Dietsch) | License Photo

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.

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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.'"

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