Enzi Says Energy Prices Will Go Up [VIDEO]

Senator Mike Enzi (R-WY) says when we have affordable, abundant energy, America stays competitive with the rest of the world. He added when President Obama and his allies in Congress try to push economically-damaging regulations aimed at coal, it is the consumers that will pay for it through higher energy bills.

U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., spoke about this and more on the Senate floor Thursday concerning the new EPA regulations announced this week. Enzi expressed his concerns with Americans being priced out of the economy because of a one-size-fits-all solution that doesn’t even address the problem.

No one likes to sit in the dark, and I imagine most folks like being able to run their air conditioning in the summer. States that rely on coal for their power see on average 30 percent lower electricity costs than states that rely on other fuels,” said Enzi. “An increase of that size would be noticed by almost everyone, regardless of political affiliation. We could learn a thing or two from Germany, who is going back to coal after experimenting with alternative sources. They realized coal is readily available and will help them bring energy prices down.”

Enzi also highlighted that when government tries to pick winners and losers in any part of the market, everyone loses.

If we as a body allow the president to get his way, we are looking at billions in annual economic losses. Hundreds of thousands of people will lose their jobs. We’ll burden our businesses with billions in costs, all of which will be passed on to consumers in the form of double digit energy price increases. If you’re elderly, a low-income or even middle-class family, or living on a fixed income, are you willing to pay this energy tax that won’t make a dent in CO2 emission? I can’t imagine you are. These new regulations will only succeed in making our pocketbooks lighter, and our country darker.”