Lately, people in and out of the federal government have expressed nostalgia for the good old days of bipartisan lawmaking. Today, we have legislative gridlock, and an ideologically polarized Congress; back then Congress got things done.
There is some truth to this, but what were the results of bipartisanship?
With respect to energy, the answer is mostly awful.
Here’s a list of some major pieces of energy legislation (and the votes) of the last 40+ years; commentary to follow:
| Bill/Year | Final House Vote | Final Senate Vote |
| Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act of 1973 (EPAA) | 348-46 | 83-3 |
| Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA) | 300-103 | 65-27 |
| Crude Oil Windfall Profit Tax Act (1980) | 302-107 | 66-31 |
| Magnetic Fusion Energy Engineering Act of 1980 (MFEE) | 365-7 | Acclamation |
| Energy Security Act of 1980 (SFC) | 317-93 | 78-12 |
| Comprehensive Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct 1992) | 381-37 | 93-3 |
| Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) | 275-156 | 74-26 |
| Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) | 314-100 | 86-8 |
The table shows there was plenty of bipartisanship.…