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Favor for Salazar comes back to burn Louisiana senator

By M.E. Sprengelmeyer, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 6, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.

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Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar

Photo by @Associated Press

Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar

Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu

Photo by @Associated Press

Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu

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A Louisiana senator's favor for Sen. Ken Salazar is coming back to haunt her in her re-election bid, as a Republican challenger tries to gain traction by vilifying her Colorado "friend."

In May, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., cast a committee vote against Colorado Sen. Wayne Allard's bill to remove restrictions on oil shale development. She did so, she said, at the request of Salazar, who calls for a more cautious approach to such development in the West.

Louisiana's economy relies on the energy industry. So, Landrieu's Republican opponent, state treasurer John Kennedy, has been pounding the incumbent, saying she should keep her home state's interests in mind, not just do favors for buddies like Salazar.

Landrieu, who campaigns as a "pro-energy production" advocate, said she was inclined to side with Allard because she also wants oil shale production to be expedited.

Still, "Sen. Salazar asked me to vote no. I did so at his request," Landrieu said at the time, vowing to push for a compromise that advances exploration.

Kennedy has tried to use that statement against Landrieu at every turn, portraying Salazar as a sort of poster child for "extremist" liberals.

"It's a textbook case of Washington politics," Kennedy spokesman Kyle Plotkin said Tuesday. "This is about action right now. When it counted, Mary Landrieu sided with the extremists in her party, such as Ken Salazar."

The dust-up has extended beyond the oil shale debate.

On Monday, the Kennedy campaign helped distribute a video on YouTube.com that splices together U.S. Senate proceedings from last week.

In it, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., repeatedly makes formal motions asking senators to set aside the usual debate procedures and remove limits to offshore oil drilling.

Such "unanimous consent" requests are rarely granted, especially on controversial matters, because any one senator can file an objection to block them.

Salazar objected, but McConnell repeatedly amended his request, asking that drilling restrictions be set aside if the per-gallon gas price reached $4.50, $5, $7.50 or even $10.

In the video, Salazar is shown objecting every time.

"It was a piece of political theater, and before a bill passes it should be debated and voted upon," Salazar spokesman Matt Lee-Ashley said Tuesday.

"There are far better proposals to expand production and to expand renewable energy production and to give people a choice at the pump than what was being discussed last week," he said.

In Louisiana, however, the Kennedy campaign headlined its release about the video saying: "Watch Landrieu's 'Friend' Block Offshore Drilling - Even If Gas Hits $10."

Landrieu's campaign dismisses that attack, saying it ignores her record on energy issues and her bipartisan efforts to pass legislation that balances drilling and conservation.

"At the end of the day, the senator has a long record of being for energy exploration," Landrieu spokesman Scott Schneider said.

Attacks along the Salazar-Landrieu axis might continue, but Schneider doesn't think they will work.

"They're certainly trying to make it a big issue," Schneider said. "But at the end of the day, Sen. Landrieu is known as one of the most moderate members of the Senate."

sprengelmeyerm@shns.com