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Former Congressman Nolan: Still Clueless to Minnesota Mining Jobs

Press Release

Date: Oct. 5, 2012
Location: North Branch, MN
Issues: Natural Resources

On Wednesday night in Hibbing, former Congressman Rick Nolan stated: "I've talked with the mining companies and the steelworkers. Nobody has any problem with the regs [EPA regulations] anymore." (video:http://bit.ly/RicfSD)

With his latest comments, Nolan has demonstrated yet again that he is out of touch with 8th District residents and the challenges to creating jobs for a twenty-first century Minnesota mining industry. Silent on solutions, Nolan fails to understand the regulatory roadblocks to job creation for Minnesota's taconite workers and steel-based industry.

Chip Cravaack stated, "Currently, the EPA threatens the vitality of Minnesota, the Eighth district, its workers, and their families. Former Congressman Nolan's staunch support for imminent job-killing regulations could not be further out of step with this district, and presents an unmistakable danger to Minnesota's taconite jobs and future well-paying jobs like PolyMet."

Cravaack added, "The U.S. won World War II in less than four years, and it was Iron Range mining that provided the steel for U.S. tanks, guns, and vehicles. History has proven that taconite mining is a vital strategic asset, and the men and women of the 8th can rest assured that I will continue fighting to ensure Washington does not come between Minnesotans and their livelihoods."

Steve Biondich, Millwright at ArcelorMittal Minorca Mine, Treasurer of USW Local 6115: "Without question, Chip Cravaack is a true servant of Minnesota's Iron Range and the industries we all rely on for a living. Plain and simple, workers understand that EPA regulations from Washington do not create jobs, and Rick Nolan could not be further detached from this reality. Chip Cravaack is a proven advocate for working families and our steel-based industry, and without these employers, I don't have a job, and there is no union."

Chip Cravaack's Record of Commitment on Mining:

Proposed legislation to protect MN taconite industry from job-killing EPA overreach
Enacted "Buy America' steel provisions into law
Defeated efforts to gut two-thirds of domestic steel production
Passed the PolyMet and Twin Metals streamlining amendment
Secured House passage of the BWCA land exchange
Conducted quarterly PolyMet roundtable meetings with state, local, and federal officials
Former Congressman Rick Nolan's View of the EPA:

"These [EPA] rules and regulations are not job killers. Quite frankly, they are job creators." (video:http://bit.ly/RZfBOG)


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