August Pfluger: “I would like to thank my colleague from Pennsylvania for hosting this Special Order. Madam Speaker, I rise today in…”

“I would like to thank my colleague from Pennsylvania for hosting this Special Order. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of every American family. Cold, dark, and hungry is where those families will be if we continue on this path: cold, dark, and hungry. Just two years ago, the United States became energy independent, the number one producer of oil and gas in the entire world, thanks to the previous administration's leadership on deregulating industry that made greater gains in reducing harmful emissions than any other administration in the history of this country. Now, we risk losing our competitive edge on the world stage with needless regulations and more taxes in the budget reconciliation bill that will only hurt small and independent producers and will hurt every working-class family in this country. Let's look across the Atlantic to our neighbors in Europe right this second who are currently suffering through a cataclysmic energy crisis. Their shortage of natural gas and fuel is causing multiple governments across Europe to shut down factories and to warn their citizens to prepare for consistent blackouts. Cold, dark, and hungry. Meanwhile, the fuel lines are growing scarily close to what we saw in the 1970s. This world of shortages, blackouts, and fuel lines may be in Europe today, but it is going to be a reality right here in the United States if this administration continues to push reckless and destructive energy policies.…”