Dems’ Anti-Energy Policies in Washington Derailing Potential Economic Recovery Across America

February 9, 2012

FYI, a similar version of this release below went out to the following districts: Sanford Bishop (GA-02), Tim Bishop (NY-01), Russ Carnahan (MO-03), Kathy Castor (FL-11), Ben Chandler (KY-06), David Cicilline (RI-01), Gerry Connolly (VA-11), Jim Cooper (TN-05), Peter DeFazio (OR-04), John Garamendi (CA-03), Raul Grijalva (AZ-07), Brian Higgins (NY-27), Jim Himes (CT-04), Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15), Kathy Hochul (NY-26), Tim Holden (PA-17), Rush Holt (NJ-12), Steve Israel (NY-02), Bill Keating (MA-09), Ron Kind (WI-03), Rick Larsen (WA-02), Carolyn McCarthy (NY-04), Mike McIntyre (NC-07), Jerry McNerney (CA-09), Michael Michaud (ME-02), Frank Pallone (NJ-06), Ed Perlmutter (CO-07), Gary Peters (MI-09), Collin Peterson (MN-07), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Nick Rahall (WV-03), Loretta Sanchez (CA-46), Kurt Schrader (OR-05), Adam Smith (WA-09), Betty Sutton (OH-16), John Tierney (MA-06), Paul Tonko (NY-21), Niki Tsongas (MA-03), Pete Visclosky (IN-01), John Yarmuth (KY-03)

Sutton’s Anti-Energy Policies in Washington Derailing Potential Economic Recovery Across America
Ohio Democrat Helped Party Leaders Reject the Keystone Pipeline Even Though Domestic Energy is a Key Private-Sector Source for Badly Needed Economic Growth

WASHINGTON — Domestic energy production has been a desperately needed source of economic growth in a shaky economy, and yet Betty Sutton and her fellow Democrats have threatened this fragile economic situation by targeting these very industries with job destroying policies. Instead of championing shovel-ready projects like the Keystone XL pipeline, Sutton and her fellow Democrats rejected the permit and destroyed 20,000 middle-class job opportunities in the struggling manufacturing sector simply to appease anti-energy Democrat donors.

“The growing energy sector is one that should be supported as a key source for job creation in a shaky economy, but instead Betty Sutton and her Democrat colleagues in Washington are working to stifle it at every turn,” said NRCC Communications Director Paul Lindsay. “Sutton’s efforts may please wealthy anti-energy donors, but working families in Ohio will be more concerned with the jobs that could have been if Democrats hadn’t shut down energy projects like the Keystone pipeline.”

In the midst of a shaky economy, the oil and gas industry is a standout that could drive continued economic growth:

“An energy boom is revving up the U.S. economy. The use of new drilling techniques to tap oil and gas in shale rocks far underground helped add about 158,500 new oil and gas jobs over the past five years, and economists think it has created even more jobs in companies supplying the energy industry and in the broader service industry…

“‘This is probably the biggest stimulus we have going,’ says Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research, a consultant based in Amherst, Mass.” (Russell Gold, “Oil and Gas Boom Lifts U.S. Economy,” The Wall Street Journal, 2/8/12)

But Democrats in Washington have been stifling the energy industry, shutting down projects like the Keystone pipeline in order to appease activist donors:

“Environmental groups have been protesting the pipeline that would run from Alberta oil sands to Texas refineries, and there have been rumblings that greens would abandon Obama next fall if he approved it.” (Dan Berman and Darren Goode, “Obama punts Keystone XL pipeline,” Politico, 11/10/11)

The energy industry is showing it could be a key contributor to economic recovery in America, but Betty Sutton and her Democrat colleagues seem to be trying their hardest to quash this growth when they reject common-sense projects like the Keystone pipeline. Through their efforts, Sutton and her fellow Washington Democrats have shown appeasing anti-energy activist donors is more important to them than creating real shovel-ready jobs for middle-class American workers.

Dems’ Anti-Energy Policies in Washington Derailing Potential Economic Recovery Across America http://ow.ly/8Ykd5 #madeinwdc

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