| WASHINGTON, D.C. –
House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today strongly opposed
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) national energy tax and the impact
it would have on middle-class families and small businesses across the
country. Boehner earlier spoke on the House floor in a marathon,
hour-long speech in which he read portions of the legislation to
underscore its real consequences for American jobs and the economy.
Following is Boehner’s statement on the legislation: “Today,
in what will be remembered as the defining vote of the 111th Congress,
House Democrats passed a 1,500-page national energy tax bill that no
one even had the chance to read. The American people have the right to
know what is in this legislation and, more importantly, what impact it
will have on middle-class families and small businesses. In just an
hour, we raised serious questions about the true consequences of this
legislation for Americans’ jobs and all of our economy. “Speaker
Pelosi’s national energy tax is a bureaucratic nightmare that will cost
families more than ever for electricity, gasoline, food, and other
products, and cost millions of American workers their jobs. This is a
tax on anyone who drives a car, buys an American-made product, or flips
on a light switch. It will drive up energy costs, send millions of
jobs overseas to countries like China and India, and place an
especially heavy burden on rural America. Republicans believe there is
a better way. Our American Energy Act is the fastest route to a
cleaner, more reliable energy future. By increasing
environmentally-safe energy production, promoting alternatives like
nuclear and clean-coal technologies, and encouraging increased
efficiency, this alternative legislation will create more jobs, lower
energy costs, and clean up our air and water. “There’s
a big difference between the heartland and San Francisco when it comes
to Speaker Pelosi’s national energy tax. Today, House Democrats made
the decision to stand with left-wing special interests rather than with
families and small businesses in their districts that will lose so much
because of this national energy tax. The American people will not
forget this vote.” |
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