Will Shuler Join Bipartisan Consensus Against Excessive Red Tape on American Job Creators?

March 15, 2011

FYI, a similar version of this release below went out to the following districts: Sanford Bishop (GA-02), Tim Bishop (NY-01), Leonard Boswell (IA-03), Bruce Braley (IA-01), Dennis Cardoza (CA-18), Russ Carnahan (MO-03), Ben Chandler (KY-06), Gerry Connolly (VA-11), Jim Cooper (TN-05), Mark Critz (PA-12), Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Raul Grijalva (AZ-07), Martin Heinrich (NM-01), Brian Higgins (NY-27), Jim Himes (CT-04), Maurice Hinchey (NY-22), Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15), Rush Holt (NJ-12), Jay Inslee (WA-01), Steve Israel (NY-02), Bill Keating (MA-10), Dale Kildee (MI-05), Ron Kind (WI-03), Rick Larsen (WA-02), David Loebsack (IA-02), Carolyn McCarthy (NY-04), Jerry McNerney (CA-11), Michael Michaud (ME-02), Brad Miller (NC-13), Bill Owens (NY-23), Frank Pallone (NJ-06), Ed Perlmutter (CO-07), Gary Peters (MI-09), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), David Price (NC-04), Loretta Sanchez (CA-47), Kurt Schrader (OR-05), Heath Shuler (NC-11), Adam Smith (WA-09), Betty Sutton (OH-13), John Tierney (MA-06), Niki Tsongas (MA-05), Tim Walz (MN-01), Anthony Weiner (NY-09), David Wu (OR-01), John Yarmuth (KY-03)

Will Shuler Join Bipartisan Consensus Against Excessive Red Tape on American Job Creators?

North Carolina Democrat Yet to Weigh in On Widely-Derided Proposed EPA Rules

Washington — As efforts continue today in the House Energy and Commerce Committee to clear the path to economic growth and job creation, it remains to be seen whether Heath Shuler will stand by his Democrat leaders who support increasingly unpopular and excessive regulations. A growing bipartisan consensus recognizes that President Obama and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have been overreaching in proposing regulations which would cause substantial economic harm and destroy jobs. Will Shuler put North Carolina’s need for jobs first and support this proposal, or will he continue to side with his tone-deaf Democrat leaders in D.C.?

“If Heath Shuler truly wants to put creating jobs in North Carolina first, he should speak out against Democrats’ overreaching regulations and support this bipartisan plan to make job creation easier for small businesses,” said NRCC Communications Director Paul Lindsay. “However, Shuler’s record of siding with his Democrat leaders in D.C. remains unchanged as he and his party promote more job-crushing spending and excessive red tape that continues to burden job creators.”

Bipartisan opposition has emerged against the EPA’s proposed carbon emissions rules and their job-crushing effect:

“Other critics of the EPA’s carbon agenda include Senate Democrats like West Virginia’s Jay Rockefeller and Ohio’s Sherrod Brown, neither of whom is otherwise known for business sympathies. But they understand that the EPA is about to unleash an economy-wide deluge of new rules and mandates that is already costly and destructive, and it has barely begun.” (Editorial, “Carbon and Democracy,” Wall Street Journal, 3/15/11)

Even big unions are lining up against the EPA’s overreaching regulation since they threaten to destroy jobs:

“Several unions with strong influence in key states are demanding that the Environmental Protection Agency soften new regulations aimed at pollution associated with coal-fired power plants. Their contention: Roughly half a dozen rules expected to roll out within the next two years could put thousands of jobs in jeopardy and damage the party’s 2012 election prospects.” (Stephen Power, “EPA Tangles With New Critic: Labor,” Wall Street Journal, 3/14/11)

Heath Shuler appears to be torn between again siding with his Democrat leaders in promoting their big-government agenda, and doing what is necessary to remove barriers to private sector job growth. Perhaps this time he will finally listen to his constituents in North Carolina and put job creation first.

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