Did You Know

That the entire 2007 budget for America's government is based on the assumption that there will be oil drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that 24 Republican congressmen disapprove of?

"The administration has failed every year to convince Congress to give energy companies access to the refuge, which is a key part of the White House's national energy plan.

The refuge, which is home to a variety of wildlife such as polar bears and migratory birds, stretches across 19 million acres in the northeast corner of Alaska. But the White House only wants to offer 1.5 million acres

in the refuge's coastal plain for oil and natural gas exploration leases.

The Interior Department estimates the refuge could hold between 5.7 billion and 16 billion barrels of recoverable oil.

If the refuge was opened to drilling, it would take about eight years before the area reached full production of around 800,000 to 1 million barrels per day, according to the Energy Department."