Solutions for Our Country
Floor Speech
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Mr. GRIFFITH of Virginia. Glad to be with you this evening.
I thought it was interesting. You just raised the issue where the President said that costs would necessarily skyrocket. I actually carry that quote around in my back pocket. So I pulled it out, my little folded-up version that I have, and what he said was:
When I was asked earlier about the issue of coal, you know, under my plan of cap-and-trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Even regardless of what I say about whether coal is good or bad because I'm capping greenhouse gases, coal power plants, you know, natural gas, you name it, whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money.
And you know what he said next? Exactly what you've been talking about. That they, talking about those plants that would have to retrofit, will pass that money on to consumers.
But it's not just the higher cost to the consumers, the moms and dads that are going out there shopping, trying to make ends meet, trying to look at their grocery bill getting bigger, their gas bill getting bigger, et cetera, et cetera, but it's also the impact on the families. Because no matter what they say about we can do this with jobs and we can create jobs, that's not been the case, particularly in my district, which is a natural gas and coal-producing district.
I was at a Remote Area Medical program this weekend in my district. Senator Kaine was there. I was doing intake and helping folks get those documents filled out. One of the people that came through was there because she needed some help, her husband needed some help, and her daughter needed some help. Her husband lost his job in the mine. This is happening all across my district, all through central Appalachia. They're laying off people. Every month, we're losing more and more jobs. A lot of folks don't know that those jobs are bringing in money to the community and that these are big-paying jobs. The estimate is somewhere between $75,000 and $95,000 dollars a year. That's what these jobs bring into the community.
So here's a lady that needs help because they've lost their job because of the policies of the administration that have killed those jobs. But as the gentleman previously stated, it's not just the jobs in the coal mines, it's not just the coal operators. It's the people that sell the cars to the people who used to work in the mine. It's the people who sell the mine safety equipment to the people who run the mines and work in the mines. It's the people who haul the coal. It's the people who work for the train companies that haul the coal. And it's the cost of making goods in the United States of America, where those costs are going up and up and up compared to other parts of the world.
In fact, there's an article just recently that says that Southeast Asia, even though natural gas is available to that Asian market, is choosing coal over and over again because per Btu, it's better for them to use coal. And a lot of times people talk about the low cost of natural gas in this country. I have to tell you, it's a great boon to us in many, many fields and lots of areas. But you have to remember, at $4 per million Btus created, coal and natural gas are equal. Anything above $4, coal is more efficient. It's cheaper to use. But guess what? This year we've been over $4. Right now, today, it's at $3.83. This year we've been over $4.
So what we're doing is we're passing these costs on. We're taking our jobs and we're shipping them overseas. And I know you all have heard this before, but Mr. Speaker, I want everybody in the country to know that we send these jobs overseas. They're making the goods that we used to make in this country; they're getting the money that we used to have in this country for our jobs, our employees. And according to a NASA study, it takes 10 days for the air from the middle of the Gobi Desert--that's in central China--to get to the Eastern Shore of my beloved Virginia. The air is coming back over here.
So what we need to be doing is we need to be looking for things that resolve this issue of the pollutions and so forth on a global basis, and we don't need to be killing jobs in the United States of America while we look for those solutions. We need to make sure we're encouraging those jobs in the United States of America.
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Mr. GRIFFITH of Virginia. I believe if we use our energy sources--which I believe can be a bipartisan issue and it is in my part of the world in central Appalachia--but if we use our energy resources, I am convinced that the United States of America can remain the number one economic Nation in the world well into the next century--recognizing we've just started this one--well into the next century. But we have to make sure that Washington doesn't get in the way and completely stop that economic engine.
Mrs. ROBY. Well, I just want to thank all of my colleagues, Mr. Speaker, for joining us to talk about these important issues.
As we will hear from the President in his next three speeches about pivoting back to jobs and the economy, we here in the House remain focused on jobs and the economy for all Americans families. But we are also remaining focused on an all-of-the-above energy approach; repealing ObamaCare so that I can make those decisions with my doctor about what's best for me; a fairer, simpler Tax Code that we know will help all Americans. We've got to ease burdens and regulations so that businesses can create more jobs instead of having to worry about the ones that they're going to lose.
This is about making life work for Americans. This is about easing the pain that so many Americans are feeling because of this bloated government that refuses to, first and foremost, admit that we have a spending problem.
This is about refocusing our efforts here in the House and making sure that we are remembering the people that sent us here, the families that we've talked about tonight that we want to ensure that government is not hurting, but government is getting out of the way so that they can thrive in these United States of America.
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