Randy Forbes Thoughts on the Passage of Cap and Trade

This afternoon following the passage of cap and trade Randy Forbes sent out an e-mail with his thoughts on the bill. Randy Forbes offered his New Manhattan Project as an alternative to the bill.

Friends -

Last night as many Americans began their weekend, the US House of Representatives was voting to saddle them and their families with a large additional tax burden through legislation, known as the cap-and-trade national energy tax.

The effects of this tax will be far reaching. It will impact American families in all parts of their daily lives – when they turn on a light switch, watch TV, mow their lawn, or run their dishwasher. Over the course of a year, the average family of four will see their energy costs rise by $1,200. Electric bills will rise by $754 per year and gasoline costs will rise by $596 per year. All total, an average family will to have to find an additional $100 in their monthly budgets to cover this new national energy tax - which is on top of the taxes already paid on energy bills.

This is wrong – especially now when so many have lost jobs and are just trying to make ends meet. I need your help as I continue to try to stop this burden on our families.

Businesses will feel the staggering cost of this legislation as well. Farmers and manufactures will be among those hardest hit. All total, the National Black Chamber of Commerce estimates this legislation will cost 2.5 million American jobs. Other estimates suggest anywhere between 1.8 and 7 million net American jobs could be lost. Many of these jobs will be shipped overseas. American businesses will face declining competitiveness as they struggle to compete with foreign companies whose products are not subject to this tax.

As the Wall Street Journal noted "Even as Democrats have promised that this cap-and-trade legislation won't pinch wallets, behind the scenes they've acknowledged the energy price tsunami that is coming. During the brief few days in which the bill was debated in the House Energy Committee, Republicans offered three amendments: one to suspend the program if gas hit $5 a gallon; one to suspend the program if electricity prices rose 10% over 2009; and one to suspend the program if unemployment rates hit 15%. Democrats defeated all of them."

Any glimmers of economic recovery in our recession are likely to be threatened by this new tax. Under this bill, already-strapped small businesses will face skyrocketing energy costs and will have less money to retain their current employees let alone create new jobs.

Sadly, even if one could overlook the crushing results of this bill on our economy, the legislation does not even meet its intended purpose. As the Washington Post reported yesterday, even environmental groups such as Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth oppose the bill saying it will not help our environment.

Last night I took to the floor and fought strongly against the passage of this national energy tax. I even introduced my widely-acclaimed New Manhattan Project for Energy Independence as an alternative. My bill would spur green energy innovation without raising taxes. The majority of my colleagues chose taxation, rather than innovation.

My constituents, however, overwhelmingly supported my position and my alternative to the national energy tax. Supportive emails and phone calls poured in my office all day.

The sad reality is that there are too few of us fighting to lower taxes and bring innovative bipartisan ideas before Congress. There are too few of us fighting against big government. There are too few of us fighting to preserve the individual freedom and liberties on which this great nation was founded. And those of us left will very likely face opponents next campaign year. I am writing to you today because I need your help to stay in Congress and to be your voice in Washington. This year, my campaign must rebuild our financial footing. If you believe in what I am doing in Congress would you please help us to do that?

Would you consider donating $20 to my campaign today? If you could do more, I would appreciate it. If you can only afford $10 now, I want you to know that your contribution makes a difference. Please also consider a monthly donation of $10 or $20. Individuals that give on a monthly basis form a powerful financial base for my campaign.

The cap-and-trade national energy tax must now be considered in the Senate. I’ll continue to fight against it and the tide of bailouts, runaway spending, and taxation in Washington. Let's hope we can stop this terrible bill.

As always, I remain, yours in service,

Randy

PS – The list of organizations opposed to the cap-and-trade national energy tax was staggering. Below is just a partial list. Would you forward this email to a friend that is a member of one of these organizations – or post this email on your Facebook page via the link below? Please let your concerned friends know of my position, of your support for me, and ask them to also support my campaign. We need your help.

Tea Party Patriots
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
American Farm Bureau Federation
60 Plus Association
Americans for Prosperity
Americans for Tax Reform
Citizens Against Government Waste
Club for Growth
National Association of Manufacturers (NAM)
National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors
National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB)
National Taxpayers Union
Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council)
Association of Builders and Contractors (ABC)
Concerned Women for America (CWA)
Eagle Forum
Family Research Council Action
Focus on the Family
National Cotton Council

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