The Latham Report
It’s simple: We must vote on the American Energy Act
Washington,
Sep 11 -
As an Iowan… you know the value of energy. Iowans understand that it's not just about the high price of gasoline at the pump… it's also about the price of diesel used to harvest the corn and soybeans in our fields… the cost of the energy to get those crops to market, and the price of heating oil, propane, and natural gas for our notoriously cold Iowa winters.
In Congress, I am a co-sponsor of the American Energy Act. The bill simply says that America should take into consideration all of our natural resources: wind, solar, biofuels, oil, natural gas, coal, and any other alternative forms of energy, to lower fuel prices.
The Speaker of the House has been blocking a vote on this common sense bill for more than two months, even though a majority of Americans support it and there is widespread bi-partisan support for it in Congress. It is troubling to many that Speaker Nancy Pelosi is using her power to make sure that this common sense bill never sees the light of day.
The Speaker of the House is the presiding officer of the U.S. House of Representatives and has the power to call a vote on any piece of legislation. She also has the power to block legislation. Is it simply due to an abuse of power that she is making sure the American Energy Act never reaches the floor of the House of Representatives? Is it simply neglect? No matter what it is, she still has the power to change her mind. She still has the power to listen to the American people, to call a vote and to take action—now—to lower energy prices for every Iowan... and every American.
I, for one, hope she does change her mind. Along with many of my colleagues, I believe that the Speaker should allow Congress to vote on the American Energy Act—by itself—without adding unnecessary trivialities to the bill. While congress has a million-and-one tricks up its sleeve on how to pass a bill—and how to sink a bill—they should put that bag of tricks away. The American people deserve better. Iowa families deserve better. And everyone deserves to have their representatives vote for this bill, or... simply, vote against it.
We don't need amendments. We don't need parliamentary tricks to help or hinder the process. The American people want congress to, simply, vote for or against the American Energy Act. I, along with many of my Republican and Democrat colleagues, will vote for it. We need this up-or-down vote, and we need it now.
Republicans and Democrats are supporting this up-or-down vote on the American Energy Act because it makes sense. We all want comprehensive long-term energy reform. We all want lower overall energy and gas prices. Above all, this bill is easy to understand. In simple language it says that America must do what we can to be more energy independent. And while it is true that America still has large oil and natural gas reserves, the American Energy Act also demands that alternative forms of energy be part of the solution, and they should be.
Does the Speaker have a problem with making a permanent tax credit on alternative-energy production that includes wind, solar and hydrogen? Perhaps… . Does Speaker Pelosi want to continue her prohibition on allowing the government to purchase alternative energy? And why would anyone be against establishing an alternative energy trust-fund using revenues generated from oil and gas production? No matter the reasons, the issue here is a simple up-or-down vote.
Right now, Speaker Pelosi does not support it. I support it. A large number of my Republican and Democrat colleagues support it. The Speaker should listen to the American people—and her own House of Representatives—to make sure we vote on it as soon as possible. Every day we wait means another day of paying exorbitant prices for gasoline, high prices for diesel for use in our fields and on our highways... and nearly prohibitive prices for heating fuel in our homes in the dead of winter. American families deserve better. Iowa’s families deserve better. It's simple: we need a vote on the American Energy Act.
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