Denouncing the Harmful, Anti-American Energy Policies of the Biden Administration

Floor Speech

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Mrs. FLETCHER. Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition to H. Res. 987. I don't have enough time in these 3 minutes to go through all of the inaccuracies and misleading statements in this nonbinding resolution or that I just heard on the floor this afternoon. In the time I do have, I am going to cover some of the omissions in the resolution.

My friends on both sides of the aisle know that I am proud to represent the great State of Texas and the city of Houston, the energy capital of the world. We know a thing or two about energy production.

Here is what we know is happening right now under the Biden administration: One, the United States is producing today more crude oil than any other country at any other time in history; two, last December, 3 months ago, the United States' natural gas production reached an all-time high. 2023 also saw record growth in the solar industry. That is more than 50 percent more than in 2022. The same thing is true with wind energy which we produce a lot of in Texas.

After the last Congress passed and President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act, forecasts for land-based wind energy installed by 2026 increased by nearly 60 percent. That is enough to power an additional 2 million homes.

At CERAWeek in Houston this week, industry leaders are talking about other promising energy technologies: geothermal, hydrogen, and more. Moreover, they are talking about climate because we have to do both. We have to continue to lead the world in both production and ideas. That is American energy dominance.

Policy disagreements are to be expected around here. We are here to bring our diverse perspectives and experiences and engage constructively to solve real problems and to address real concerns.

However, resolutions like this do nothing. They do the opposite of facilitating dialogue and understanding, and they take up the time we could spend solving real problems. I am kind of a broken record on this, but I wish we were here right now doing permitting reform. That is what we should be spending our time doing.

Let's engage constructively and build on the momentum and the important steps that have been taken in the Biden administration to ensure our energy independence, which have led us to produce the most crude oil ever, to lead the world in natural gas production, to lower gas prices, to grow wind and solar in record amounts, and to develop new technologies and address emissions and climate change.

We can do all of those things and more if we do it together.

Madam Speaker, today I am voting ``no,'' and I encourage all of my colleagues to do the same.

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