ENERGY POLICY -- (House of Representatives - July 16, 2008)
(Mr. BROWN of South Carolina asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. BROWN of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, yesterday I spoke at a rally highlighting how America's energy crisis is impacting the working men and women in our Nation. The average working person in my district works at a hotel or a restaurant meeting the needs of the tourism industry.
That average person also drives to work. There is no light rail or subways taking them from rural homes to their place of work near the coast. The folks they serve probably drove hundreds of miles with their families for a well-deserved vacation, but few families are coming to the beach this year because of high gasoline prices. It also means that few folks will be working at the hotels and restaurants.
Mr. Speaker, the Democrat-led House's lack of action on energy policy is affecting every segment of our society, so much so that I am receiving drill bits in the mail demanding that we take action to lower energy prices in America. Those drill bits aren't coming as part of some well-financed campaign; they're coming because we can no longer hope that the problem will go away.
Like many other countries, the United States is blessed with many types of natural resources. I agree with the vast majority of Americans by viewing our natural resources as one of our greatest assets, not as an environmental liability.
We must take action now and vote on legislation immediately that would allow for more domestic energy to be produced by Americans for Americans.