[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 14 (Thursday, January 23, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H350]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1615
                          PREPARE TO BE AMAZED

  (Mr. CASTEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. CASTEN. Mr. Speaker, step right up, and prepare to be amazed.
  This is an ordinary folder. As you can see, Mr. Speaker, no hidden 
compartments, and yet inside it is an invisible rabbit.
  If you like that trick, Mr. Speaker, then you are going to love 
Donald Trump's national energy emergency. It is also totally imaginary, 
but as any good carnival barker will tell you, there is a sucker born 
every minute who falls for this shtick.
  Let's review the numbers. Under the Biden administration, the U.S. 
created 16 million jobs, had the fastest growing economy in the OECD, 
held oil demand flat, drastically cut coal use, and embraced cleaner, 
cheaper renewables and efficiency. We decoupled economic growth from 
fossil fuel giving American people more heat, more light, more power, 
and more money.
  That put downward pressure on domestic oil and gas prices which 
caused domestic fossil producers to export into less developed and more 
remunerative overseas markets.
  Now, Mr. Speaker, before you say: There is no emergency here, 
consider this from the perspective of our poor oil and gas producers. 
They are losing market share. They are making less money. However, they 
have got an ally in Donald Trump. After all, he is the guy who forced 
the Saudis to curtail production in 2020 to drive up oil prices and oil 
industry profits. That is right. He made sure U.S. consumers paid more 
for gasoline.
  Ta-da.
  Don't be a sucker, but if you are, Mr. Speaker, I am available for 
parties, and I can solve all your invisible rabbit problems. You can 
keep hopping, Mr. Speaker.

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