Posts Tagged ‘Mark Warner’

Salazar Delays Offshore Drilling

Friday, January 29th, 2010

Why doesn’t this surprise anyone? U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, delayed Virginia’s offshore drilling plans until 2012, and according to a Reuters report, it is creating a possibility that offshore drilling plans will ever be carried out.

Funny, how this happens? Governor Bob McDonnell wrote a letter to Salazar shortly before being sworn in to urge him not to delay the offshore drilling.

“Any effort to remove or delay Virginia’s participation in the lease sale would significantly hamper our efforts to create jobs, eliminate much-needed new revenue, and undermine support for President Obama’s stated commitment to make the United States more energy secure”

And now, Virginia’s U.S. Senators, Jim Webb and Mark Warner, are angry at Salazar’s delay of allowing offshore drilling.

The Honorable Kenneth Salazar
Secretary of the Department of Interior
1849 C Street, N.W.
Mail Stop 7229
Washington, D.C. 20240

Dear Mr. Secretary:

We are writing to state our support for the development of oil and gas resources off the coast of Virginia, specifically for the Minerals Management Service’s (MMS) Lease Sale 220, scheduled for 2011. In the 110th Congress, then-Senator John Warner and Senator Webb jointly sponsored legislation (S.3147) to allow the Commonwealth of Virginia to conduct energy exploration activities in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), with revenue-sharing provisions, a view that we share today.

Support among Virginia’s political leadership for the development of oil and gas resources is strong. Virginia’s governor, Robert F. McDonnell, as well as members of the General Assembly from both parties, recognize the potential benefits to the Commonwealth and to our nation. Therefore it is understandable that recent media reports highlighting additional delays are a source of frustration to Virginia and to a nation that is looking to turn around the economy while simultaneously addressing energy security.

In October 2008, months after S. 3147 was introduced, the 26-year federal moratorium on OCS oil and gas exploration expired. We believe the time has come for implementing the intent of this legislation by going forward with Lease Sale 220 in a more expedited manner. We understand that additional steps must be completed for this sale to occur, including the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Sale 220, and potentially a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement that would allow seismic surveys of the Atlantic OCS by private entities. But we would urge you to promptly commence these steps in order to ensure that the Virginia Lease Sale is conducted in a manner that is timely and consistent with the interests of the environment and our national security.

If accomplished with a fair and equitable formula for sharing of revenues between the federal and state government, Lease Sale 220 will attract well-paying jobs to the Commonwealth to support a range of projects, from the transportation sector to coastal restoration. Further, it holds significant promise for boosting needed domestic energy production. The MMS estimates that the Sale 220 area could contain 1.14 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 130 million barrels of oil.

Over the next 20 years, U.S. demand for energy is expected to grow at an annual rate of 1.4 percent. Lease Sale 220 would be part of a comprehensive approach to meeting our critical energy challenges. The offering of 2.9 million acres 50 miles off the coast of Virginia would significantly improve Virginia’s and America’s energy security, as well as assist in meeting growing energy demands. Improved technology that allows for minimally invasive drilling techniques many miles off shore and out of sight from Virginia’s coastline can provide oil and natural gas in an environmentally sustainable manner.

We look forward to working with you to ensure that this resource is developed in a timely fashion, through a fair distribution of revenues between the federal and state government, and in an environmentally sound manner.

While this may not seem like a family related issue, this issue will impact family economics. With the economic situation and outlook looking grim, families are forced to cut back and evaluate their budgets. Since fuel prices are increasing significantly across the Commonwealth, families are being forced to pay more, resulting in more economic hardships. Fuel prices are expected to take a sharper climb due to the outright demand and reliance on foreign oil. Allowing offshore drilling in Virginia will help eliminate our reliance on foreign oil, create more employment opportunities, as well as reducing the cost of fuel prices.

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Ex-Sen. Byrd Rips Mark Warner on Spending

Monday, January 11th, 2010

Government spending continues to be a trend for this Congress, and it seems that Virginia’s U.S. Senators Jim Webb and Mark Warner seem to embrace this trend. In 2008, then Candidate Warner promised to be fiscally responsible and reduce government spending. Since being in office, he has supported the stimulus plan, as well as the health care bill that is now being debated in a joint conference committee in Congress.

According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, former U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Jr. discussed in an interview that he is appalled by Warner’s decisions to vote for the health care bill.

“When a Virginia Democrat is elected to the Congress — Senate or House — he or she must decide whether to vote the party line or vote the Virginia tradition of financial responsibility,” said Byrd, who turned 95 on Dec. 20.

“Hundreds of thousands of Virginians — independents and conservative Democrats who voted for Mr. Warner — must be puzzled by his votes.”

Meanwhile, Senator Warner defended his actions.

A Warner spokesman defended the votes, saying that a federal stimulus package stabilized the economy, while reform of the health system can help control the deficit.

Byrd was originally a Democrat, who switched to an Independent status, because he was dissatisfied by the party’s embrace of funding government programs with deficit spending. Byrd also endorsed Warner in 2008, but there is no doubt that he, along with others from both sides of the aisle, are regretting their support now.

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Two Must Read Articles…

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010

First and foremost, there are two must-read articles that have come across my desk today that I wanted to share with you.

Cathy Ruse of the Family Research Council wrote a blog post about The Washington Post’s blatant attempts to smear conservative candidates in the Commonwealth. Ruse focuses on Steve Hunt, who is running for State Senate in the 37th District, and how the Post is working hard to smear his candidacy for standing up for marriage and families. (Note: The special election will take place on January 12.)

Also, The Washington Times published an op-ed by State Senator Mark Obenshain (R-Harrisonburg). Obenshain takes Virginia’s U.S. Senators, Jim Webb and Mark Warner, to task for their recent votes for the health care bill. This is spot-on analysis.

Obenshain says:

Outrageous, right? What did our intrepid duo in the U.S. Senate do to stand strong for the rights and interests of Virginians? Absolutely nothing. They fell right in line with Mr. Reid and the rest of the Democrats in the Senate and voted for this abomination. They required little coaxing and no incentives. Jim Webb may have been “born fighting,” but he did not hesitate to run up the white flag here.

This is not the garden-variety pork, the proverbial lard that has long greased the wheels of Congress. It is now evidently acceptable to exempt entire states from costly mandates if that is what it takes to secure one more vote. Even if it was too much to ask Messrs. Warner and Webb to break ranks with the president and their leadership over the government takeover of health care (something to which Virginians and Americans have expressed their overt opposition and which threatens to transform fundamentally the landscape of our freedoms as we know them), Virginians nonetheless had every right to expect them to reject these crass deals doled out to the states of their recalcitrant colleagues.

Messrs. Warner and Webb signed off on a plan that makes Virginia the loser coming and going. Not only must we shoulder an increased Medicaid burden, which could not come at a worse time for Virginia’s taxpayers, but all those sweetheart deals come with a price tag, and we are the ones left holding (and footing) the bill – a bill we cannot begin to pay.

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Virginia News Flash

Friday, December 11th, 2009

This is a roundup of what has been reported on throughout the Commonwealth.

  • UPDATE: The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors met last night to set the rules for the displays on the grounds of the county courthouse. With these rules, there is now going to be a vulgar display, in addition to the traditional Christmas displays.
  • Other than the courthouse displays, could it be that one Supervisor has a conflict of interest? Novatownhall Blog has the details.
  • The Daily Press reports that both of Virginia’s U.S. Senators are currently on the fence in regards to health care reform. Perhaps, your call can make a difference and encourage them not to support Harry Reid’s health care bill: 202-224-3121.
  • News from Virginia’s 5th District Congressional Race: Bearing Drift has a great article up about six of the now eight candidates running for the GOP nomination requesting a convention, rather than a primary. Another good article comes from CQ Politics, which compares the GOP nomination in the 5th to the open Congressional race in NY-23.
  • Aside from a Congressional primary, there is a special election to fill the seat of Ken Cuccinelli, who was elected Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Virginia. In the 37th District, Steve Hunt is running against Dave Marsden, who is currently serving as Delegate in the 41st District (which is outside the 37th). Marsden recently sent out a direct mailing to residents in the district citing that he is for lower taxes. Isn’t it odd that Marsden voted for tax increases as recently as 2008?

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