Congratulations to these Governors who are standing up for the people of their States for common sense energy policies rather than the counterproductive, onerous dictates, taxes, and regulations which have been promoted in Congressional leaders and the federal bureaucracy in recent years.
Editorials
Friday March 12, 2010 Congress should listen to states on the EPA
Governors point out ‘very real potential for economic harm’ Charleston Daily Mail
THE governors of 18 states and two territories - including Democrats Joe Manchin and Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear - have called on Congress to rein in the Environmental Protection Agency.
The governors, in a letter to congressional leaders, cited the failure of the administration to weigh the economic fallout of EPA’s intention to regulate greenhouse gases.
“As governors, we have the responsibility to protect jobs, promote economic growth and mitigate any threats to financial stability in our states,” said the statement. “We oppose EPA regulation of greenhouse gases that fails to account for these responsibilities.”
The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation will host a reception honoring George Allen for his public service and efforts to help victims of Communism around the world. The reception will take place on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 6:30 pm ET in Washington, DC.
CLICK HERE for details and to purchase tickets. All proceeds benefit the Global Museum on Communism, “an international portal created to honor the more than 100 million victims of communist tyranny and educate future generations about past and present communist atrocities.”
This leadership by Governor Mitch Daniels confirms my view and experience with Health Savings Accounts and the Whole Foods experience. Every State, the federal and local governments and more private employers should use HSAs for more personal, higher quality and less costly health insurance. Governor Daniels is an innovative, exceptional leader in energy, transportation, and health care policies.
Hoosiers and Health Savings Accounts An Indiana experiment that is reducing costs for the state and its employees.
Wall Street Journal
Mitch Daniels
March 1, 2010
As Washington prepares to revisit the subject of health-care reform, perhaps some fresh experience from Middle America would be of value.
When I was elected governor of Indiana five years ago, I asked that a consumer-directed health insurance option, or Health Savings Account (HSA), be added to the conventional plans then available to state employees. I thought this additional choice might work well for at least a few of my co-workers, and in the first year some 4% of us signed up for it.
In Indiana’s HSA, the state deposits $2,750 per year into an account controlled by the employee, out of which he pays all his health bills. Indiana covers the premium for the plan. The intent is that participants will become more cost-conscious and careful about overpayment or overutilization.
It is wise to diversify job opportunities in the Coalfields of Southwest Virginia and elsewhere in Appalachia. But these writers, who are against or unfriendly to coal, are concocting misleading facts to diminish the positive attributes of American coal.
The reality is that coal mining provides very good-paying jobs for those involved directly in mining as well as for people who manufacture and supply mining equipment and those who transport coal to electric power plants, steel mills and our Virginia Ports. A job is important to all men and women whether in retail or mining. These writers miss the fact that coal-related jobs pay more than retail jobs.
All of us who use electricity benefit from American coal, which by all measurement is the most available, reliable and least expensive source of power. Beyond the hundreds of thousands of American jobs related to American coal, the coal severance taxes in Southwest Virginia actually help fund the attraction of new businesses via the Coalfields Economic Development Authority.
As a country, we are blessed with plentiful coal resources. Rather than become more dependent on foreign, more expensive or intermittent energy sources, let’s creatively and cleanly utilize our American coal. -George Allen
Saturday Statistic: Just “2 percent of employment in the central Appalachian region”
Saturday, February 27, 2010 Blue Virginia Blog
From this morning’s Washington Post comes a factual response to those who claim, against all evidence to the contrary, that the highly mechanized form of coal extraction known as “mountaintop removal” is a major employer in Appalachia (or anywhere else). As Justin Maxson, president of the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development, explains, it’s not.
George Allen, former Governor and US Senator from Virginia, tells Fox News’ Neil Cavuto that President Obama’s ‘new’ healthcare plan is “more of the same… rancid stew” that has been roundly rejected by the American people. Allen counters that Health Savings Accounts and allowing the sale of health insurance across State lines is a much better way to keep insurance premiums low.
Posted by ATeam on February 23rd, 2010 | 1 Comment »
I’ll be headlining an event for Kerry Bolognese - Candidate for the VA House of Delegates, 41st District - tonight. Hope you can come on out: bolognese-invitation-email-version.pdf
Posted by GovernorGeorgeAllen on February 23rd, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Governor George Allen has two national media appearances today, February 22, 2010.
At 4:25 pm ET, Governor Allen will be live on “Your World w/ Neil Cavuto” on the Fox News Channel to discuss President Obama’s healthcare reform plan.
At 8:25 pm ET, Governor Allen will be live on the nationally syndicated “Mark Levin Show” to discuss healthcare, and a range of other issues. Go to www.marklevinshow.com to Listen Live.
John Boyd’s leadership, efforts and this proposed settlement for aggrieved black farmers is justified. During my service as Governor, and while in the US Senate, I’ve investigated and thereafter supported these remedies to compensate black farmers who have been racially discriminated against by the US Dept of Agriculture Farm Credit program. This proposed settlement should be funded. Many black, and apparently other minority, farmers have been treated wrongfully. I continue to urge that this injustice be effectively remedied. -George Allen
U.S. approves settlement for black farmers
By Carrie Johnson Washington Post
Friday, February 19, 2010; A01
The Obama administration announced a $1.25 billion settlement Thursday to resolve charges by thousands of black farmers who say that for decades the Agriculture Department discriminated against them in loan programs.
Cabinet officials exhorted Congress to approve the deal by setting aside money for the farmers, who have fought through three administrations to secure a measure of justice. In the starkest cases, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said, farmers lost their property after local administrators slow-pedaled loan applications, leaving them unable to plant key crops.
The agreement is part of a wider effort by Obama and senior officials to dispense with lawsuits stemming from America’s checkered civil rights legacy. In December, the Justice Department led efforts to settle a long-standing case with Native Americans who accuse the federal government of mismanaging royalty payments for natural resources mined on tribal lands. A settlement is awaiting congressional action.
