Dems' War on Jobs: "No Energy" Plan Will Kill Millions of Family-Wage Jobs
With Skyrocketing Gas and Home Heating Prices, Congress Leaves American Families in the Cold
Washington,
Dec 5, 2007 -
American families are worried about the rising cost of living – costs of energy, health care, college, retirement, housing, and taxes have put a real strain on family budgets. Bloomberg News released a new poll this morning, underscoring the pinch American families are feeling these days, particularly when it comes to skyrocketing energy prices:
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“The belt-tighteners most often cite higher energy prices as the reason for their caution…
“Oil prices topped $98 a barrel in late November, before settling back below $90, and the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S. rose above $3, up from $2.76 in mid-October.” |
And the policies of this Democratic Congress will only make things worse. Take, for example, the “no energy” bill Democrats plan to bring to the House floor today. Though no one outside of the Democratic leadership actually knows exactly what’s in the legislation – a final version of the bill hasn’t even been written, after all, even though the bill is slated to be on the House floor in a matter of hours – here’s what we do know:
- The “no-energy” plan will do nothing – ZERO – to alleviate consumers’ concerns about high energy costs.
- The “no energy” plan includes no provisions to lower gasoline prices for American families and no reforms to help families deal with rising home heating costs this winter.
- In fact, the “no energy” bill doesn’t take a single step toward more domestic production of domestic sources of energy.
In this morning’s Wall Street Journal, an energy policy analyst notes that the scheme will actually INCREASE gas prices in the future:
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“Larry Goldstein, a director of Energy Policy Research Inc., a Washington nonprofit research firm, noted that the requirement will likely raise future retail gasoline prices: ‘Nobody is watching out for the consumer.’” |
The “no energy” plan is just the latest shot fired in the congressional Democrats’ ongoing War on American Jobs. The CRA International study of the legislation projects it would result in a net loss of 4.9 million American jobs by 2030, a $1,700 decrease in the average American household’s annual purchasing power, and a net loss of $1 trillion in U.S. economic output.
In short, the Democrats’ legislation ignores high gas prices and home heating costs, does nothing to reduce our reliance on foreign energy sources, will lead to higher prices at the pump in the future, and will kill millions of American jobs, while draining money from our economy and from consumers’ wallets. Now that’s some energy plan.
House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) highlighted these flaws and called on Congress to support a plan that actually will benefit American families in dire need of relief:
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“The American people want their elected leaders in Washington to address the rising costs of living and improve each citizen’s quality of life. Simply put, creating an energy shortage and killing American jobs is a recipe for economic disaster. Republicans support a balanced, free-market approach to America’s energy future – one that increases American-made energy, enhances conservation and efficiencies, and invests in innovative research and the development of the next generation of fuels at the same time.” |
With consumers facing rising gas prices and the highest home-heating costs in history this winter, it’s painfully clear that the Majority’s prescription for energy policy is a recipe for economic disaster. That’s why Republicans are fighting for a balanced plan that increases supplies of American energy to help lower prices today and invests in future fuels at the same time.
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