That was the vote in the Senate on Friday: 53 for closing debate on the energy bill, 42 against — 7 short of the number in favor that would prevent a filibuster.

So it's back to the drawing board, with the following items among the most likely to be scaled back:

• the rollback of $13.5 billion in tax breaks for the five largest oil companies
• the requirement that 15% of electricity come from renewable energy sources by 2020

At least the 35 mpg CAFE Standard seems safe.

With a Senate vote on a revised energy bill expected late this week, Democratic leaders have a lot of work to do.

The Washington Post has a good overview of the situation. In that piece, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Jeff Bingaman said:

We have to figure out how to pass a bill in the Senate that will accomplish the same general objectives the House is trying to accomplish.

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