[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 117 (Wednesday, July 16, 2008)]
[House]
[Page H6581]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             ENERGY POLICY

  (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.

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