Speeches
Pelosi on Energy Bill: ‘This is a Choice Between Yesterday and Tomorrow’
12/18/2007
“I thank the Gentleman from Michigan, Mr. Dingell, the
Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, for his kind words and for his
tremendous leadership.
“Because of his leadership and that of 10 other members, the
chairs of committees of jurisdiction working in a bipartisan way, we were able
to bring earth-shattering change in terms of energy policy to the floor of the
house.
“Here we are today to pass a bill that passed in the Senate,
88 to 6. Very strong bipartisan support
for this legislation. Today in the House, we have the opportunity to give that
same kind of validation and legitimacy to a New Direction for Energy Security
for America.
“It’s about our national security. Admiral McGinn said that
our dependence on foreign oil presents a clear and present danger to our country.
“It is a matter of our national economy. Congresswoman
Velazquez, Chair of the Small Business Committee, and Congressman George
Miller, with the “Green Jobs” initiatives, can show a new way to build a new
economy involving many more people in the new technologies that will be
unleashed because of this legislation.
“It’s about protecting our environment. Chairman Rahall and
his Natural Resources Committee provide a great leadership, as did the Chair of
the Government Reform Committee, Mr. Waxman, who has long been a supporter of
energy security and energy independence. The list goes on. Mr. Oberstar,
Greening of the Capitol and the federal buildings across the country and what
that will save and many more initiatives that he has presented.
“The Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee provided a way
to pay for it. That was rejected in the Senate, but we will revisit that issue
in a manner that I think will receive strong bipartisan support. The Chairman
of our Select Committee, Mr. Markey, did an excellent job in keeping this issue
alive, as he has worked on it for many years. Mr. Bart Gordon, Chair of the
Science and Technology Committee, is really in the forefront. So much of this bill comes out of his committee.
“Mr. Speaker, the work that was done by the distinguished
Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, Mr. Dingell, is breaking
ground. It is groundbreaking in terms of
what it will do in savings to the consumer. What it is doing in terms of protecting
the environment and again, in what it is doing to provide a new direction. And it does so in a way that breaks ground,
but does not leave it broken. It takes
us to a new place, and I thank him for that leadership. It’s a tremendous
addition to this legislation.
“In the United States Senate, two of the major provisions,
renewable fuel portfolio and the CAFE, were leadership issues and I’m glad we
were able to reconcile the differences between the House and the Senate with
the leadership of Mr. Dingell.
“I think of us as being in a place where we’re looking at
the horizon. This legislation takes us closer to that horizon. But as with all
horizons, they keep getting farther away.
But reaching for it takes us to a whole new world. And that’s what this legislation does.
“My colleagues in this chamber, you are present at a moment
of change, of real change. Of rejecting the past, respecting the values
of the past, but rejecting the insistence that we stay in the past and going
into the future. This is about a choice
between yesterday and tomorrow.
“It is a national security issue; it is an economic issue;
it is an environmental issue; and therefore a health issue; it is an energy
issue; and it is an moral issue.
“It’s a moral issue and that’s why we worked closely with
the evangelical and faith-based communities, with scientists and faith-based,
with business and environmentalists, with our friends in labor who support this
legislation to preserve God’s beautiful legacy to us. It is His gift to us and
we have a moral responsibility to preserve it.
“We have to think about our consumers every single day.
That’s who we represent; they are our bosses, and to protect their well-being
is our mission. This legislation alone will save the average driver between
$700 and $1,000 per year. It adds up to $22 billion in net annual consumer
savings in the year 2020. In order to
reduce the price at the pump, the increasing of the fuel efficiency standards
to 35 miles per gallon is historic. It’s
the first time in 32 years that this has happened.
“So whether we’re thinking as consumers and very personally
about what this means in the lives of our constituents as they see their energy
costs go up at the pump or in heating their homes at this Christmas
season, or we’re thinking of our
national defense and national economy, this is as personal as each and every
one of our consumers. It is as global as the planet and the opportunity
provided to take us to a new horizon, to see a new world, a new era of
possibilities is here with us today.
“This great opportunity for us would have been possible
without the leadership of so many of our Chairmen, including Chairman
Obey. As I salute our Chairmen for their
intellect, institutional memory, legislative know-how that they brought to this
process, I also want to give a special thank you to our freshmen class. They
came to this Congress to make change. They know how essential protecting our
planet is. They know the concerns of their constituents, they are fresh out of
the trenches dealing with them. Without that freshmen class, if I may call them
freshmen, we would not have had the success that we have had today.
“So this has been a collaboration on both sides of the isle,
from our most senior Members to our newest Members of Congress to invigorate
and encourage us to make the change that we are making today. I am absolutely delighted about it. I can’t
wait until we join with the President of the United States when he signs this
legislation into law and takes a step forward into the future.”