1.   Bush has long advocated oil drilling in the Alaskan refuge, an area that environmentalists consider one of the jewels of federally protected lands.

2.   But at least one senator, John Kerrey, D-Mass., said he would block any bill that would permit drilling in the Alaskan refuge.

3.   For this reason, he said, drilling in the Alaskan arctic refuge, which goes by the acronym ANWR, made sense.

4.   Given his way, President-elect Bush would use that Alaskan refuge to make us less dependent on foreign fuel.

5.   The Alaskan refuge is puny by comparison.

6.   Democratic presidential rival Al Gore opposes opening the Alaskan refuge to oil drilling.

7.   A highly controversial proposal to open up an Alaskan refuge to oil and gas exploration and a plan to improve auto fuel efficiency had been stripped from the legislation.