Below is Congress' work schedule for the week:



Your eyes aren't deceiving you. There is nothing on here to deal with gas prices and rising energy costs.

While many of these resolutions are for worthy causes and events, including one recognizing the State of Minnesota's 150th Anniversary, I don't think there's anything more important than addressing our nation's energy concerns. Nancy Pelosi and her Democratic colleagues have certainly paid a lot of lip service to a so called "commonsense plan" to address rising energy costs, but have taken no action whatsoever.

It won't be a quick fix, but that's why it's so important to start the conversation in Congress now so both parties can craft a plan and work to carry it out. But this can't happen unless the Democrat Leadership brings it to the floor.

Republicans have put forth their plan, we're just waiting for the Democrats to show us theirs. As we continue to wait, costs get higher and higher.

Have you heard about this yet? A new Gallup Poll shows that the majority of the American people prefer Republican-led domestic energy reforms to deal with soaring energy prices. 57 percent of Americans agree with Republicans and favor more energy exploration here in the United States to help bring down the price of gasoline. This comes after a year and a half of no direction from Democratic leadership in Congress to help lower the cost of gasoline.

When will the Democratic leadership begin to actually do something to address American's concerns?

During the first week of June, the U.S. Senate is scheduled to consider Cap and Trade legislation - more aptly called Tax and Trade legislation. Here are some pretty depressing stats to consider should this bill become law. Be sure to click on the links for details. The bottom line:  this is bad news for Minnesota.

According to The Heritage Foundation's Center for Data Analysis Report on the Cap and Trade bill (S. 2191), Minnesota would lead the nation in per-capita job loss should this legislation become law. Across the country, the already hard hit manufacturing sector of our economy would lose millions more jobs. Household energy costs would rise dramatically, and household income would decline.

What is cap and trade? In this case, the federal government would impose arbitrary limits on six emission gases, with the primary emphasis on carbon dioxide. In order to cap these emissions, the government would sell permits to power plants, refineries, and natural gas producers, which will be passed along in the form of increased energy costs to consumers (much like an energy tax). It will lead to large transfers of income from people in Minnesota to special interests in Washington.

How much will it cost you? When S. 2191 is fully implemented in Minnesota, the average household would see energy costs rise by $823 more per year in 2025 because of this legislation. The increase in the average electric bill would be at least 80% more than under current law, and the average natural gas bill increase would be at least 37% over current projections if S. 2191 becomes law.

Moreover, according to the Heritage analysis, the trade-off for the damage this Tax and Trade bill would do to the economy is "...very little change in global temperature...perhaps even smaller than the .07 of a degree Celsius drop in temperature that many scientisits expected from worldwide compliance with the Kyoto climate change accords."

On Sunday, residents of Hugo, Minnesota were hit hard by an EF-3 class tornado, with gusts of wind at the speed of 136-165 mph. Tragically, a 2 year boy was killed during the disaster. The initial assessment of damage to personal property is estimated to be $25 million.  Fifty homes are so devastated that they are uninhabitable.  Another 159 homes suffered tornado damage, and 61 homes suffered storm-related damage.  The local communities estimate that they will have substantial clean-up costs as well.

While tragedies like this are never anticipated, it’s how we react that’s important. I issued a statement yesterday informing the media should Governor Pawlenty make a disaster declaration, I would do all I could to ensure that the full array of federal aid and resources are available to the families, businesses, farms, and communities affected.

I have sent a letter to both the Administrators of FEMA and the U.S. Small Business Administration asking that should the threshold be met and the Governor request federal aid their offices be prepared to step in promptly.

To give you an update on where we stand with funding, Gov. Pawlenty’s office contacted my office this morning to tell us that after an examination of the area, the damage sustained to public infrastructure does not meet the threshold for FEMA assistance because most of the damage was to personal properties and insured by private insurance. SBA can separately declare a federal disaster because they have different thresholds for assistance, and it remains unclear as to whether they will reach those benchmarks.  

The greatest public need at this time is for clean-up assistance.  For those wishing they could lend a hand, please consider a donation to help Hugo’s families.

WCCO has compiled a resource guide for those looking to contribute to the cause:

The city of Hugo has opened a relief fund. Monetary donations may be sent to:

Lake Area Bank
1400 East Highway 96
White Bear Lake, MN 55110
(651) 653-9619

Monetary donations are also being accepted by U.S. Banks. You can drop off donations at any U.S. Bank. For information you can call (651) 429-7758.

Volunteers at the Hugo Fire Department are accepting donations of water, food, personal care, bedding and other items for the storm victims.

The Hugo Fire Dept.
5323 140th St. N.
Hugo, MN 55038
(651) 429-6366

Donations are also being accepted at the Hugo Public Works Department.

Public Works Department
6900 137th Street
Hugo, MN 55038

The city is asking for volunteers to help clean up the area affected by Sunday's tornado. As of this writing, the city's web site only says volunteers should plan on meeting at 8 a.m. this coming Saturday, May 31. A meeting place has not been set, but will be posted on their site in the future.

Red Cross

The Red Cross Service Center opened at 9 a.m. Monday in Hugo at Oneka Elementary School. The Red Cross is also asking for emergency donations. They may be made either online by clicking here, or checks may also be sent to:

Twin Cities Red Cross
NW 5597
PO Box 1450
Minneapolis, MN 55485-5597

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

Last night, Congress voted 223-186 rejecting a critical increase in G.I. Bill education benefits. I am a co-sponsor to the “Enhancement of Recruitment, Retention and Readjustment through Education Act” (H.R. 5944) and was extremely disappointed.

H.R. 5944 provides for an immediate increase in the Montgomery G.I. Bill education benefit, and to improve retention and update this successful program for today’s service members.  Amongst the new features this bill provides for the GI Bill program, it allows military personnel to transfer their education benefits to a spouse or dependent children.   Simply put, this is not your grandfather’s G.I. Bill.

There is a competing G.I. Bill expansion bill out there, introduced by Senator Jim Webb.  But while the G.I. Bill expansion I am supporting is comparable in size and scope of benefits, it avoids the pitfalls of the Webb bill. 

(1)  The bill I support maintains the retention benefits of the G.I. Bill.  A Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis found that the Webb bill could lead to a 16% decline in re-enlistment.
(2) The bill I support is not just a big money giveaway to universities and colleges.  It removes incentives for schools to keep hiking tuition costs.
(3) The bill I support is fully paid for.  The Webb bill simply passes the costs of educating one generation of GIs on to the next.
(4) The bill I support allows education benefits to be transferred to family members, giving service members and their families options for how they use the benefits they have earned.

While both pieces of legislation go a long way to increasing G.I. benefits, one does so in a more responsible manner. Hopefully, the House can reconsider this issue when we return to Congress after the Memorial Day district work period.

Continuing the energy talk from yesterday, check out these numbers. I wish I could take credit for this, but this piece was sent to my office this morning by the Office of the Republican Whip, Roy Blunt. This piece shows the differences between what Republicans would do to rein in gas prices on behalf of American energy consumers and what Democrats WILL NOT DO. The difference is becoming clearer and more pronounced by the day.

(Here are some details about the origin of the stats to compile this piece. Retail gasoline prices are the result of literally hundreds of factors, including crude oil supply, global demand, refinery capacity, regulation, taxes, weather, the value of the dollar, etc. Therefore it is impossible to say with certainty what one individual action will do to the overall price.  However, based on what we know about the impact of crude oil supply and prices it is possible to develop some potential ranges of impact on gasoline prices for certain policy changes. For example, using the methodology employed by Speaker Pelosi and House Democrats that suspending shipments into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (between 40-77,000 barrels of oil a day) would reduce gas prices by at least 5 cents, bringing ANWR online (at least one million barrels of oil a day) could impact gasoline prices by between 70 cents and $1.60.)

Last week, I posted a video with solutions for dealing with America's rising energy costs. I'm happy to say my office was ahead of the curve, and today, Republicans took to the steps of the Capitol to lay out a plan for the American people. In contrast to these fresh ideas, all we hear from the Democrats is the same old 1970s solutions to today's problems.

Here is how we will do it.

We will increase the production of American-made energy in an environmentally-safe way.  This includes the exploration of next generation oil, natural gas, and coal and the production of advanced alternative fuels like cellulosic and clean coal-to-liquids – all while protecting our natural resources for future generations.

We will promote new, clean, and reliable sources of energy like advanced nuclear and next generation coal, while promoting clean power from renewable energy such as wind and hydroelectric power.  Nuclear energy has proven itself as a safe, carbon-free and environmentally friendly alternative, with France relying on it for nearly 80 percent of its electricity needs, compared to just 19 percent in America.

We will cut red tape and increase the supply of American-made fuel and energy.  Limiting the construction of new oil refineries and bureaucratic regulations mandating the use of exotic fuels have decreased supply and increased the Pelosi Premium.

We will encourage greater energy efficiency by offering conservation tax incentives to Americans who make their home, car, and business more energy efficient.

I know you you all have solutions of your own, and I'd love to hear them.

I told you yesterday I'd be posting a recent column I sent to local Chambers and Rotaries in my district, and here it is.

I'd love to know your thoughts about the legislation mentioned within it, namely the Spending Limit Amendment, the Truth in Accounting Act, and the Tax Increase Prevention Act.

If Congress was to successfully pursue these three measures, our economy would have the solid foundation it needs to get us going on all cylinders once again.

This is something I just had to share with all of you now that I received the pictures. Last week, I got to stop by the New York Stock Exchange and meet with their new CEO, Duncan Neiderauer. Despite the meeting starting in the early AM, this was one of the most interesting and worthwhile experiences I’ve had during my time in Congress. We met for almost an hour to discuss ways to enhance America’s global competitiveness.

Soon I’ll be posting a recent column I sent to the local Chambers and Rotaries in my district that highlights ways to put America’s economy on the fast track to greater prosperity. 

Like all of you, I'm concerned about the rising price at the pump and America's dependence on foreign oil. We have the resources and ingenuity here to do it, but we appear to lack the political will. We have not built a new oil refinery in America since the 1970's, and the same goes for our last nuclear power plant. We must cut the red tape and look for answers here at home, rather than depending on a cartel of foreign exporters.

I want to give you with this fact from the Bureau of Land Management. They estimate that more than 70 percent of American oil shale — including the thickest and richest deposits — lies on federal land, primarily in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. If the federal government would open these lands, we could offset imports from Saudi Arabia in full. These reserves are readily available and need to be utilized.

Keep that in mind the next time you go to the pump to fill up your gas tank at $4 per gallon.

There are certainly no quick fixes, but if we take the necessary steps now, we'll be putting ourselves on the right track for energy independence in the years ahead.

Hi everyone!

It's taken some time, but I'm finally here and ready to start blogging! It's unfortunate that many of my colleagues in Congress haven't yet tapped into this vital online resource (I should talk, it's taken me this long!), but there's an entire community to work with who have long abandoned the morning newspaper and 6pm newscast.

I've got my own channel going on YouTube. I'm making new friends on Facebook, and best of all,  I'm enjoying my time doing it.

I want to thank Townhall for facilitating this site and the work they do is second to none.

There's a lot going on in Congress including the Farm Bill and the War Supplemental, and I'm trying to figure out the best way to kick this blog off. I'll have a new post up very soon, but just wanted to start the conversation.

Michele

Oh and by the way, check out my blog roll to the right and you can see my other colleagues who have blogs of their own.