Energy In America

Floor Speech

Energy In America

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. TONKO. Thank you, Representative Boccieri. I listened intently to our colleague from Virginia, and when Representative Perriello talked about the lack of response from the other side, the anger, perhaps, that is expressed, the politics of fear that are engaged, that those in and of themselves would be enough measure of concern. But the fact that that's coupled with an agenda that back-burnered over the last administration so much of the progress, we're reminded of a huge failure of the delivery system, the energy delivery system, in August of 2003. Here, 6 years later, we're not responding as well as we should. This measure allows us to, with a smart-metering investment, with an upgrading of the grid.

You know, it was brought to our attention in very painful and dark terms, where blackouts gripped not only the Northeast and the Midwest of the U.S., but Southeast Canada, where two nations suffered from failure in the grid system. We have opportunities to embrace technology, technological improvements, advancements in smart metering and investments in the grid, to respond to that sort of failure. That was back-burnered. So were the investments in updating our renewable opportunities, investing in renewables.

This measure will allow us to look seriously at renewable investments across the country. I'm also coupling that exercise with a bill that deals with wind turbine efficiency, where we'll look at materials that will allow for greater response from Mother Nature, where we're able to take the elements of nature and make them work to our energy needs, all through American jobs, to produce America's energy needs. That will enable us to take the advancements that we know are possible.

We look at situations like super-conductive cable, where, in my district, they are now breaking their own records, super power is, by developing even stronger opportunities for us to reinvest and invest in innovative ways in the delivery system, in a way that, again, takes advantage of the intellectual capacity of this Nation.

So this is about entering into a mix that already finds global competitors, but it advances an American agenda in a way that will place us in the role of leader. We cannot continue to sit by idly along the sidelines of this global green energy race and advance the notion that China will build all the solar systems, that Germany will embrace the same sort of renewable or advance manufacturing processes.

We have opportunities here in this Nation to develop battery response through the stimulus package. I've seen what GE is working on, as it enters into this fray, to provide for an array of battery opportunities where it's not just Lithium ion that we develop but perhaps look at sodium chloride mixed with nickel, where we can address not only energy generation needs for batteries, but also the energy storage for intermittent situations, intermittent-type power, and where we can also use it for heavy fleets and lighter fleets for transportation-sector purposes.

So there are tons of applications here. Just that GE battery application would find 300 to 400 jobs in my district that will enable us to provide the linchpin, to open the doors to limitless possibilities. You know, it's that sort of fervor that we saw in the sixties, in the late fifties and sixties where, as a Nation, we went forward with the boldness of definition and the expression of vision where we could be better, where we could move into a space race. And we know that we invested, and we won for that investment. We need to do that here. And clean energy jobs for every State in this Nation is a great theme.

And politics of fear that respond to the efforts of progress that we have embraced just don't have a place in this mix. It is unfair to the American public, as it looks not only for job creation, but for the establishment, for the igniting of an innovation economy. And Representative Boccieri, thank you for bringing us together so that people can share thoughts of what's happening today and where we can expand and extrapolate upon that progress in untold terms.

Mr. BOCCIERI. Well, Congressman Tonko, you're so right. And I know you and Congressman Kratovil believe like I do and like Teddy Roosevelt said, that the worst that you can do in a moment of decision is nothing. The energy policy that we have right now in the United States is failing us miserably because we have troops overseas right now that are putting their life on the line for a natural resource that we could become independent from if we just invest in our country and our people.

Mr. TONKO. One of the main reasons I ran for this role in Congress was to establish a comprehensive energy policy, where we have a plan, where we act accordingly, where we update and implement that plan, and where it's all-inclusive. We haven't had that. And this is one solid way to grow jobs that are meaningful, where we are going to express and exercise our right to energy security, energy independence, and therefore, national security, which is critically important with the outcome here.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. TONKO. Thank you for bringing us together, and it's great to develop this colloquy with our colleagues here in the House, but I can't help but wonder which of us would have the opportunity to serve in this House if we pledged at election time to make certain that we develop jobs in competing nations for developing green energy innovation? Which of us would serve here? Which of us would serve here if we pledged to send dollars to some of the most troubled spots in the world that find us defending freedom-loving nations against some of these forces around the globe? We would be rejected resoundingly by that electorate.

Well, that's what's happening here. The agents of status quo are content to continue this effort to have other nations build the renewable resources out there. They would be content to have the American public send tons of their hard-earned dollars into the economies of the Mideast on which we rely for well over 60 percent of our oil supply. That is unacceptable.

And we can do it cleaner, we can do it greener, we can do it through American resources that develop American jobs to respond to the energy crises around the world. We can become that go-to Nation that will be the exporter of energy intellect, energy innovation, energy ideas. Just like we won the race in the 1960s for the space race.

We need to win this race. We don't have a choice to enter in. I think that choice has been made because there is a competitive edge already that's being developed with other nations out there. We need to go forward with an aggressive investment.

The investment here is to combat a huge deficit that was inherited by this administration, by the Obama administration. It was driven high and it started with a surplus. They spent away that surplus. They drove us into a deficit situation, and now it is necessary for us to invest in an innovation economy that creates jobs.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source