There’s legislation being debated in the U.S. Senate on whether to allow more oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. It's not just the oil--but the oil revenues coming in that's a big part of this. The benefit for nearby states is the chance of collecting federal royalties – as much as $650 million for each state.
Some of that money could be used toward rebuilding costs from Hurricane Katrina. U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana (D)--was on Power Lunch to explain it all.