fresno elections 2008

Whether Congress is controlled by the current party or my own, I am confident that there will be opportunities for me to get things done. I have excellent relationships with our state delegation and in particular our valley delegation. I also have demonstrated that I can work with California's senators, despite our differing political views. It's not always easy, but debate is part of democracy and hard work and good ideas can transcend even the most bitter political environments. By way of example, Sen. Dianne Feinstein and I are collaborating on a bill right now that involves a Clovis soldier impacted by the sole survivor policy. We hope to have this legislation enacted before the end of the year. Sen. Barbara Boxer and I fought for California agriculture following the citrus freeze early in 2007, an effort that brought significant resources to our state in response to the disaster.

The United States is facing a number of very serious challenges in the coming years. We need people in Washington who will take these challenges head-on. In one significant area, national energy policy, I have been a leader in the reform debate. As energy prices have continued to rise, the window-dressing approach to reform that has been offered by House leaders is being exposed as a fraud.

There is a real need for energy policy reform, including major investments and new development within the United States. We should be using our nation’s plentiful reserves of oil and natural gas, both inland and off our coast. Today, 76% of these resources are off limits. According to the Minerals Management Service and Department of Interior, domestic supplies amount to hundreds of billions of barrels of oil and trillions of cubic feet of natural gas. This is more than enough to supply the United States for decades (conservatively, we could be natural gas self-sufficient for 39 years). At the same time, China, Venezuela and other countries are building infrastructure within international waters that will take our nation’s oil reserves out from under us.

My leadership on this important issue culminated this year in the introduction of the American Made Energy Act, which was co-sponsored by Rep. Mike Ross (D-AR). The legislation, which I have been developing since the 108th Congress, would end our dependence on foreign oil, while making historic investments in alternative and renewable fuels. To date, Congressional leaders have failed to allow an up or down vote on my proposal. However, we have built a credible bipartisan foundation for change. I truly believe that our nation can have energy reform just as soon as the American people demand it. In the meantime, I will continue to demand that politicians tell the truth about where our energy comes from and how we can develop a sustainable supply for the future.

In other important areas, including healthcare and transportation, I believe the next few years offer a number of opportunities to improve the conditions we face in the Central Valley. For too long the San Joaquin Valley has donated money to federal coffers while facing discrimination by government programs. An example of this is the decision to remove parts of the 21st Congressional District from the federal Health Professional Shortage Area designation. We need federal programs to recognize the challenges faced in the Central Valley and while the dynamics of Congress make reform difficult, the facts facing my colleagues are compelling. I hope to empower our region with an enhanced federal recognition of our healthcare and transportation problems.

However, sometimes good representation means that an elected official needs to stand up against powerful special interests and, at times, a stand must be taken against what appears to be accepted public opinion. That is what I have done in relation to the San Joaquin River Settlement. I have asked hard questions and I have been unwilling to accept promises that are not spelled out in legislation. The loss of water associated with the agreement is real and will have real consequences. Had I not stood up for city and county governments in the valley, the views of a silent majority would have been ignored. My questions have had an impact, and helped improve the deal long after the settling parties ended negotiations. However, the San Joaquin River Settlement legislation continues to be an irresponsible waste of taxpayer dollars and a dangerous diversion of precious water resources.

Bush’s biggest accomplishment: pursuit of terrorists

Despite what the common public perception may be, and in sharp contrast to the daily rants of political pundits, I believe the best accomplishment of the Bush administration has been the safety of the American people through a tireless pursuit of terrorists.

The President’s initiatives overseas and his commitment to seek out and eliminate threats against our nation are held in stark contrast to previous administrations. Presidents of our recent past failed to recognize the gathering storm and left our nation vulnerable to the mass murder perpetrated on 9/11. To some extent, the people of Europe are being confronted with a similar challenge even today. London, Madrid, and other European cities have long harbored Islamic radicals. The failure of our allies to take decisive action has left them vulnerable in ways that Americans would find shocking.

It is important to recognize the enormous successes we have had in preventing attacks against Americans, both here in the United States and overseas. There are countless examples, some high profile, others less well known. I have had the opportunity to witness the work of our intelligence and military personnel during visits to the Middle East. They are doing amazing work, particularly our Special Forces, and are locating and eliminating terrorists in very challenging regions around the world.

Bush’s biggest mistake: not holding Congress accountable on energy

The President has not held Congress accountable for the energy crisis we are facing. Although he has offered a number of solutions to our nation’s dependence on foreign oil, he has completely failed to convince the American public of the importance of these solutions and has done little to hold Congress accountable for today’s high energy prices.

Congress is directly responsible for the high prices paid at the pump today. Energy prices across the spectrum have risen, including home utility bills, and Congress has done nothing. In fact, what Congress has done is attempted to pass into law legislation that would increase taxes on domestic energy production, and raise prices on fossil fuels. At the same time, lawmakers have sold the American public on fairytale solutions involving alternative energy.

With 86% of our nation’s energy coming from fossil fuels, and 1% coming from renewable power, there is no person in his or her right mind who could suggest the United States is capable of transitioning away from oil in the near future. It will take many years. And while we need to make investments to achieve a transition away from oil, we must continue to power our economy until that day comes. There is only one way to achieve this. Our nation must drill for oil and gas within our territory and use the revenues from this exploration to fund massive investments in alternative energy development. If we fail to do this, we will face rationing and economically ruinous high energy prices.

The dirty little secret is that the people who control Democrat lawmakers in Washington actually believe high energy prices are a good thing. In 1981, an activist by the name of Steven Wilson said, “…our perception of the ‘energy crisis’ is different from many. We feel that Americans have had too much fuel available, that less will be better. I see it as the ‘effects of too much energy’ crisis.”

Wilson, of the Etheos Mountain Agriculture Institute, was unabashed in his views. Over the more than 25 years since his public statement, radical activists have crusaded to make their dream of an oil free America come true and have driven energy development out of the United States.

When lawmakers say “we can’t explore for fossil fuels and we can only invest in renewable energy,” what they are saying is that “high gas prices are not a problem and we are not going to do anything about it.” The bottom line is that Democrat lawmakers can’t win elections unless they cater to radical environmentalists. The political courage necessary for most Democrats to speak the truth about energy policy is quickly doused by the very real prospect of an electoral defeat.

President Bush has failed to make the case to the American public that we can bridge our transition to alternative energy with our own domestic fossil fuel resources, while protecting Americans from out-of-control energy prices. He has allowed the agenda of radicals to dominate the energy debate and as a result, most Americans do not realize that the people in power today have a record of supporting high oil prices.

In short, thanks to an absence of leadership from the White House, Congress is not being held accountable and the American people have not been presented with the facts about how we arrived at our current situation. As a result, a lot of pundits and too many Americans have a flawed and simplistic understanding of our energy crisis.

To suggest that Congress has accomplished something during the past two years is problematic at best. In fact, none of the major reforms promised by the new majority have become law.

America was told by the new majority that they would bring a new era of open government to Congress. However, Speaker Pelosi has presided over the most bitter and partisan Congress in modern history. The Speaker has taken control of the legislative process in an unprecedented manner and actually controls the drafting of legislation. In fact, at no time in our nation’s history have so many Congressional committees ceded their jurisdiction to House leadership as we have witnessed in these past two years.

Since the first days of this Congressional session, committees have been forced to accept legislation without hearings, markups or debate. Proposals have arrived on the House floor with little notice and with no review by Members of Congress. In fact, the Rules Committee, which is controlled by the Speaker, has used its authority to waive all of the rules created by the House to ensure public debate and transparency and replaced them with marshal law rules that not only limit debate but prevent consideration of alternatives or amendments.

In short, the biggest accomplishment of this Congress has been the consolidation of power by the Speaker and her leadership team. The erosion of this democratic institution into one dominated and controlled by a handful of political leaders has resulted in the lowest public approval rating of Congress in history. President Bush enjoys twice the approval rating of Congress, and for good reason. The change that was promised was not delivered.

Congress: biggest mistake

Congress has made a lot of mistakes in the past two years. It is difficult to identify a single error that stands out from the others. However, I believe that one mistake that has implications far beyond Washington directly relates to our national security. To date, Congress has failed to pass FISA legislation.

We have operated for 89 days without the necessary legal authority to allow our intelligence officials to quickly react to terrorist threats. The Director of National Intelligence has said that every day we deny our intelligence officials access to surveillance against suspected terrorists, we will incur compounding damage in our ability to protect the United States.

By failing to pass FISA legislation, Congress has partially blinded the people who we have charged with protecting us. In doing so, they have sided with trial lawyers who believe that foreign terrorists and their supporters should have the same legal standing as American citizens in our courts. Congressional leaders want a judicial process to govern each attempt to monitor a terrorist, and they want civil liberty protections for these killers.

Rather than empowering the FBI, DHS and other law enforcement agencies, Congressional leaders have sought to recreate a system that prior to 9/11 helped to shield terrorists plotting attacks against America. The 9/11 Commission cited the need for speed and quick decision making as an essential component of tracking and monitoring terrorists around the world. By placing legal burdens on the people who are responsible for protecting us, Congress is making it easier for our enemies to inflict destruction on the American people.

I did not offer earmarks this year. The process is broken and has been linked to corruption. While I support the Congressional authority to determine federal spending, I do not support continuing a process that has so significantly damaged the reputation of this institution.

In addition to the outright corruption associated with earmarks, the fact remains that the vast majority of earmarked dollars go to a select few in Congress. Congressional Leadership, members of the Appropriations Committee and Representatives in tough elections tend to draw the vast majority of money to their districts. There is no effort to determine the merit of projects and no objective system to provide for an orderly and fair allocation of resources. In fact, Congress has earmarked some projects that we can’t even prove exist. Earmark decisions are made in smoke filled rooms by out of touch people who have a record of making poor decisions. The process has enabled corrupt politicians to exploit their offices and is largely based on political patronage. We need transparency and accountability in the earmark process. Once we have that, I will consider making requests for my district. Until then, I will fight for reform.