Diane Black Weekly Republican Address TEXT PODCAST VIDEO 03/05/11

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Weekly Republican Address: Rep. Diane Black on Creating a Better Environment for Job Creation Rep. Black: “What we need is a new approach – a path to prosperity that gets government out of the way by cutting unnecessary spending and removing barriers to job growth.”

Washington (Mar 4)

Delivering the Weekly Republican Address, Rep. Diane Black (R-TN) talks about how the path to job creation and prosperity lies in liberating our economy from the shackles of big government and out-of-control Washington spending. Rep. Black, a member of the Budget and Ways & Means committees, is in her first term representing Tennessee’s Sixth Congressional District. She also serves as the freshman class representative to the Republican Policy Committee.

"Hello, I’m Diane Black. In addition to being a nurse, I'm also a small business owner and I taught at a local community college. I’m also a proud mother of three and grandmother of six – all of them wonderful. Just two months ago today, I had the honor of being sworn-in to serve the people of Tennessee’s Sixth Congressional District, as part of the new Republican freshman class in the House of Representatives.

“My colleagues and I in the freshman class know that we weren’t sent to Washington to sit on our hands, or to find new ways to avoid old problems. We were sent here by our constituents to help put an end to Washington's policies that are making it harder to create jobs and threatening our nation’s future.

“Job creation has to be the number-one priority for both parties. The policies of the past haven’t worked, and despite some signs of life in our economy, the unemployment rate is still far above the levels that the president’s advisors promised when the ‘stimulus’ spending bill was signed into law.

“What we need is a new approach – a path to prosperity that gets government out of the way by cutting unnecessary spending and removing barriers to job growth. We need to unleash our nation’s economy instead of burying it under a mountain of regulation, taxation and debt.

“Since the moment we were sworn into office, this has been the focus of our new majority in the House.

“Whenever I tour my district and I ask small businesspeople ‘what can I do to help?,’ they tell me to just get government out of the way and they’ll create the jobs and grow on their own. That’s exactly why our new majority is taking a complete inventory of Washington's rules and regulations, looking to root out the ones that make it harder to create jobs.

“We’re hoping to find things that could have been discovered if Washington had been doing its work in an open and transparent way. There’s no better example of this than the 1099 paperwork mandate in ObamaCare. The House passed a bill this week to repeal it.

“And soon, we’re going to vote to cut wasteful mandatory spending programs – not just in ObamaCare, but also in the Dodd-Frank financial regulation bill that’s drying up credit for our small businesses. We’ve also got our eye on EPA rules that are hurting job creation and creating higher gas prices.

“It’s not just the overreaching that has to stop – it’s the overspending, which many economists agree is a barrier to job creation.

“It’s now been just two weeks since the House passed H.R. 1, a bill that makes much-needed spending cuts and keeps the government running through the end of the fiscal year. Unfortunately, the Democrats who run the Senate haven’t allowed the vote on this bill or any other bill that would cut spending and keep the government running long-term.

“You may have heard President Obama say that we need to make sure ‘we're living within our means.’ He’s right about that. Unfortunately, his budget doesn’t match his words. It continues out-of-control spending, it adds to our $14 trillion debt, and it adds to the uncertainty that makes it harder to create jobs. Maintaining the status quo – and refusing to offer a credible plan to cut spending – is just unacceptable and inexcusable.

“Again, we weren’t sent here to sit on our hands. The American people want us to keep the government running while cutting its cost. So with your support, Republicans spearheaded the passage of a short-term measure that cuts spending by $4 billion. That’s $4 billion of YOUR money that would otherwise have gone to earmarks and other wasteful programs. It’s a start, but it’s not nearly enough. By enacting this bill, we’ve provided another two weeks for our Democrat colleagues in the Senate to either pass H.R. 1, or to pass a credible alternative that meets the people’s priorities. Doing nothing is not an option.

“After two years, we know that government doesn’t create private-sector jobs. It’s small businesses and the people behind them who do. That’s why our majority is focused on getting government out of the way and charting a new path to prosperity. It’s what our constituents sent us here to do, and it’s what we need to do for the future of our children and our country.

“Thank you for listening.”

VIDEO CREDIT: HouseConference

TEXT CREDIT: Speaker of the House John Boehner Contact H-232 The Capitol Washington, DC 20515 P (202) 225-0600 F (202) 225-5117

AUDIO/VIDEO CREDIT: The House Republican Conference - Digital Communications visual.media@mail.house.gov 202-225-5439

Energy Tax Prevention Act (H.R. 910), a bill to block EPA’s controversial backdoor climate change agenda

Leading Bipartisan Voices on Energy Policy Introduce Energy Tax Prevention Act, H.R. 910 Energy Tax Prevention Act in PDF FORMAT

March 3, 2011 WASHINGTON, DC – Republican and Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives today introduced the Energy Tax Prevention Act (H.R. 910), a bill to block EPA’s controversial backdoor climate change agenda that would further drive up the price of energy for American consumers and job creators at a time when gas prices are already spiking and job creation remains weak. The bill is narrowly drawn to clarify the EPA’s authority under the Clean Air Act, preserving the law’s important and longstanding functions to reduce air pollution.

Introducing the bill are Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Collin Peterson (D-MN), Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Ranking Member Nick Rahall (D-WV), and Energy and Power Subcommittee Chairman Ed Whitfield (R-KY), in addition to others.

“Whether at the pump or on their monthly utility bills, American families, farmers, and employers feel the pinch when energy prices go up. The very last thing the federal government should do is make matters worse by intentionally driving up the cost of energy. Yet that is exactly what’s in store if the EPA moves forward with its plans to regulate and penalize carbon emissions under the Clean Air Act,” said Chairman Upton.

“The EPA is pursuing a dramatic shift in our nation’s energy and environmental policy that would send shock waves through our economy,” said Chairman Whitfield. “Setting the course of our energy policy is the job of Congress, not a single federal agency acting without authority. The Energy Tax Prevention Act is a sensible, straightforward plan to end the uncertainty and economic threat posed by the EPA’s climate change agenda.”

“The EPA needs to be reined in. If Congress does not do something about the regulations being imposed on our farmers, ranchers and rural communities, the economic effects could be devastating. This is the last thing we need when our economy is beginning to show signs of recovery,” said Ranking Member Peterson.

The text in PDF FORMAT of the Energy Tax Prevention Act is available online along with letters of support for the legislation from American Electric Power, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the Industrial Energy Consumers of America, the National Association of Realtors, and the National Mining Association. ###

TEXT and IMAGE CREDIT: House Energy and Commerce Committee January 11, 2011 By Alexa Marrero, (202) 225-3641 or Sean Bonyun, (202) 225-3761 2125 Rayburn House Office Building | Washington, DC 20515 | (202) 225-2927