Dems’ War on Energy is a War on Workers

April 11, 2012

Workers are Speaking Out Against Democrats’ Anti-Energy Agenda That Is Destroying Existing Jobs and Preventing New Jobs

American workers are speaking out against job-destroying new regulations from Obama’s EPA that will stop new coal plants from being built in the U.S.—and prevent any of the new jobs that would come with them.
It’s not the first time the Obama administration has used its anti-energy agenda to wage war on workers. President Obama’s rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline came over the protests of many local unions and workers desperately calling for the creation of the project’s thousands of shovel-ready jobs.
President Obama’s war on offshore drilling has similarly exacted a significant toll on the many small independent refiners and local businesses along the Gulf of Mexico dependent on offshore energy exploration and development.

American workers are speaking out against job-destroying new regulations from Obama’s EPA that will stop new coal plants from being built in the U.S.—and prevent any of the new jobs that would come with them:

NEW EPA REGULATIONS WOULD “END THE CONSTRUCTION OF CONVENTIONAL COAL-FIRED FACILITIES IN THE UNITED STATES”: “The Environmental Protection Agency issued the first limits on greenhouse gas emissions from new power plants Tuesday, a move which could end the construction of conventional coal-fired facilities in the United States.” (Juliet Eilperin, “EPA Imposes First Greenhouse Gas Limits on Power Plants,” The Washington Post, 3/27/2012)

UNITED MINE WORKERS CHIEF: “LISA JACKSON SHOT US IN WASHINGTON”: “The coal industry will suffer the same fate as Osama bin Laden under new climate regulations proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency, the head of the United Mine Workers of America said this week.

“‘The Navy SEALs shot Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan and Lisa Jackson shot us in Washington,’ Cecil Roberts, president of the powerful union, said during an interview Tuesday on the West Virginia radio show MetroNews Talkline.” (Andrew Restuccia, “Mine Union Boss: Coal Industry Could Suffer Same Fate as Bin Laden,”The Hill, 4/4/2012)

MORE: NEW RULE IS “AN ALL-OUT… DECISION BY THE EPA THAT WE’RE NEVER GOING TO HAVE ANOTHER COAL-FIRED FACILITY” IN AMERICA: (Andrew Restuccia, “Mine Union Boss: Coal Industry Could Suffer Same Fate as Bin Laden,” The Hill, 4/4/2012)

“THIS STANDARD EFFECTIVELY BANS NEW COAL PLANTS”: “Industry officials and environmentalists said in interviews that the rule, which comes on the heels of tough new requirements that the Obama administration imposed on mercury emissions and cross-state pollution from utilities within the past year, dooms any proposal to build a coal-fired plant that does not have costly carbon controls.

” ‘This standard effectively bans new coal plants,’ said Joseph Stanko, who heads government relations at the law firm Hunton and Williams and represents several utility companies. ‘So I don’t see how that is an ‘all of the above’ energy policy.'” (Juliet Eilperin, “EPA Imposes First Greenhouse Gas Limits on Power Plants,”The Washington Post, 3/27/2012)

13% OF COAL POWERED ENERGY BEING SHUT DOWN BECAUSE OF NEW RULES: (Juliet Eilperin, “EPA Imposes First Greenhouse Gas Limits on Power Plants,” The Washington Post, 3/27/2012)

It’s not the first time the Obama administration has used its anti-energy agenda to wage war on workers. President Obama’s rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline came over the protests of many local unions and workers desperately calling for the creation of the project’s thousands of shovel-ready jobs:

20,000: THE NUMBER OF SHOVEL-READY JOBS FROM KEYSTONE PIPELINE BLOCKED BY OBAMA: (Editorial, “Keystone Cop-Out,” The Wall Street Journal, 11/11/2011)

130,000 JOBS: THE LONG-TERM JOBS IMPACT OF THE KEYSTONE PIPELINE, ALSO BLOCKED BY OBAMA: “Many of those 20,000 jobs on the construction of the pipeline would have been filled by skilled union members. Eventually, the completed pipeline was expected to result in as many as 130,000 jobs, many of them on the upper Texas Coast, where the heavy oil would be refined into 700,000 barrels of oil daily.” (Editorial, “Keystone Pipeline is the Wrong Call,” The Houston Chronicle, 11/11/2011)

NATIONAL JOURNAL ANALYSIS: “U.S. ECONOMY MISSED OUT ON CREATING UP TO A QUARTER-MILLION JOBS” IN 2011 BECAUSE IT “LACKED [ENERGY] INFRASTRUCTURE”: “The U.S. economy missed out on creating up to a quarter-million jobs this year because it lacked the infrastructure to capitalize on a rare divergence in global oil prices, a National Journal analysis shows.” (Jim Tankersley, “A Crude Hit to the Recovery,” National Journal, 11/29/2011)

MAJOR LABOR UNIONS LIKE THE TEAMSTERS, LABORERS’ INTERNATIONAL UNION OF NORTH AMERICA AND AFL-CIO CHAPTERS ALL SUPPORT KEYSTONE XL: “At the same time, labor unions have backed the pipeline, arguing that it would create badly needed jobs for American workers. … The pipeline has the support of many Republicans in Congress and also major labor unions like the Teamsters, Laborers’ International Union of North America and segments of the AFL-CIO.” (Dan Berman and Darren Goode, “Obama Punts Keystone XL Pipeline,” Politico, 11/10/2011)

COALITION OF FOUR LABOR UNIONS: “All four of our International Unions – the United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters, the International Union of Operating Engineers, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Laborers’ International Union of North America – have executed a project labor agreement to build the Keystone XL Pipeline. We are committed to making Keystone XL a reality for our nation and we are prepared to begin work as soon as the Presidential Permit for the $7 billion privately funded Keystone XL pipeline is approved.” (Labor Unions letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, 10/22/2010)

PIPELINERS UNION 798 ASSOCIATION: “As we understand it, Keystone XL will create more than 13,000 high-wage construction and manufacturing jobs during the project’s 2011-2012 construction schedule. Many of those jobs will be created in rural areas in our districts, where too many of our residents continue to find it difficult to find good jobs. With Keystone XL, they will have an opportunity to work on the project or for businesses that provide supplies, goods, and services for its construction and operation.” (Pipeliners Union 798 Association letter to White House, 7/1/2010)

ROCKY MOUNTAIN ENVIRONMENTAL LABOR COALITION SUPPORTS KEYSTONE: (Rocky Mountain Environmental Labor Coalition letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, 9/6/2011)

OMAHA, NE CHAPTER OF AFL-CIO CALLS FOR KEYSTONE CONSTRUCTION: (Omaha Federation of AFL-CIOletter in support of Keystone XL, Accessed 4/6/2012)

President Obama’s war on offshore drilling has similarly exacted a significant toll on the many small independent refiners and local businesses along the Gulf of Mexico dependent on offshore energy exploration and development:

1/2: THE RATE AT WHICH OBAMA IS ISSUING NEW DEEP-WATER DRILLING PERMITS RELATIVE TO THE HISTORICAL AVERAGE: “According to the Greater New Orleans Gulf Permits Index for January 31, over the previous three months the feds issued an average of three deep-water drilling permits a month compared to the historical average of seven.” (Editorial, “‘Stupid’ and Oil Prices,” The Wall Street Journal, 2/24/2012)

1/3: THE RATE AT WHICH OBAMA IS ISSUING NEW SHALLOW-WATER DRILLING PERMITS RELATIVE TO THE HISTORICAL AVERAGE: “Over the same three months, the feds approved an average of 4.7 shallow-water permits a month, compared to the historical average of 14.7.” (Editorial, “‘Stupid’ and Oil Prices,” The Wall Street Journal, 2/24/2012)

IHS STUDY: OBAMA ADMIN SLOWWALKING PERMITS AFTER MORATORIUM OFFICIALLY ENDED: “A study by the business-consultant firm IHS found that the federal government issued 51 new drilling permits in the year following the lifting of the drilling moratorium. That was down from 157 annual permits approved before the regulations took effect.” (Bill McMorris, “Obama’s Energy Slowdown,” The Washington Free Beacon, 3/13/2012)

GULF BUSINESSES FRET THAT “PERMITORIUM” REMAINS IN PLACE: “They’re calling it a ‘permitorium’ caused by stricter regulations that are allowing gulf drilling, but at a snail’s pace, in both deep and shallow water.” (Katie Moore, “New Study: Small Businesses Hit Hardest by Drilling Delays,” WWL TV, 1/31/2012)

“HIDDEN VICTIMS” OF OBAMA DRILLING PERMITORIUM ARE SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES, ACCORDING TO GREATER NEW ORLEANS INC. REGIONAL ECONOMIC ALLIANCE: (“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

50% OF GULF OF MEXICO BUSINESSES HAVE LAID OFF WORKERS DUE TO MORATORIA: (“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

“39% OF BUSINESSES HAVE REDUCED SALARIES AND/OR HOURS”: (“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

46% OF BUSINESSES HAVE MOVED ALL OR SOME OF THEIR OPERATIONS OUT OF THE GULF OF MEXICO: (“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

82% OF BUSINESS OWNERS HAVE LOST PERSONAL SAVINGS BECAUSE OF PERMIT SLOWDOWN:(“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

13% OF BUSINESSES HAVE LOST ALL THEIR PERSONAL SAVINGS BECAUSE OF PERMIT SLOWDOWN:(“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

41% OF LOCAL BUSINESSES ARE NOT MAKING A PROFIT: (“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

“76% HAVE LOST CASH RESERVES”: (“The Impact of Decreased and Delayed Drilling Permit Approvals on Gulf of Mexico Business,” GNO Inc., 3/1/2012)

SEN. MARY LANDREIU (D-LA): SMALL BUSINESSES ARE SUFFERING BECAUSE OF OBAMA’S DRILLING MORATORIUM, NOT “BIG OIL COMPANIES”: “I want to say that, despite the administration’s arguments that are laid out, that you all are all guns blaring and green lights for drilling, the facts that I checked, and if you disagree tell me, only 21 permits for offshore drilling have been issued by this date. In 2010, there were 32 permits. I just left the annual conference of LOGA, which is Louisiana Oil and Gas Association, Mr. Secretary, yesterday. They are beside themselves with not being able to get their permits processed and to answer you, Mr. Franken, let me just say Exxon and Shell may be making record profits but according to a study recently done by the Greater New Orleans, Inc., 41 percent of our oil and gas independent operators and service companies, I’m not talking about Exxon and Shell that have operations all over the world, I’m talking about companies in the Gulf Coast, in Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. Let me tell you what the studies show about their profits: 41 percent of them are not making a profit at all, 70 percent have lost significant cash reserves, 46 have moved operations away from the Gulf, and 82 percent of business owners have lost personal savings as a result of this slow down.” (Remarks from Sen. Mary Landrieu, U.S. Senate Hearing, 2/28/2012)