Deeds Silent on Likely Job Losses in Senate District
- McDonnell, Bolling Offer Jobs Plan; Democrat Won’t Speak Up -
RICHMOND – Republican Party of Virginia Chairman Pat Mullins today again called on Democratic candidate for governor Creigh Deeds to reveal his stance on the so-called “Cap and Trade” legislation currently before Congress – a scheme that threatens the livelihoods of at least 1,500 Virginians who work for a major employer in his own Senate district. Mullins made his request on the same day that Republican candidate for governor Bob McDonnell and Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling announced a sweeping plan to bring new jobs and restore economic prosperity to Virginia.
“A Deeds spokesman, Jared Leopold … said Deeds doesn’t have a position on the cap-and-trade bill.” (“Independents Edge Away from Obama,” Politico, July 9, 2009)
“This duck-and-cover routine can only work for so long,” Chairman Mullins said. “Creigh Deeds has a major problem in his own back yard with people faced with the very real prospect of losing their jobs. It baffles me that he won’t even speak up against the proposal from his national party’s leadership that is causing the hardship.”
The bill, deceptively titled the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES Act, H.R. 2454) proposes a “Cap and Trade” scheme in which entities that exceed a government-imposed emission limit would be forced to buy “credits” from entities which emit amounts under the limits. Many analysts and employers have concluded that the idea would increase costs to consumers and severely limit the ability of private companies to create jobs. The bill narrowly passed the U.S. House of Representatives and is now pending in the Senate.
“Cap and Trade” will devastate Virginia businesses, including the Covington MeadWestvaco plant, a major employer located in Deeds’ Senate district. In a commentary piece published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Mark George, Vice President of the plant, wrote that the legislation would have a severe impact on the company and its 1,500 local employees.
“If the ACES Act passes Congress, MeadWestvaco's Covington mill operations, which provide 1,500 jobs in the Alleghany Highlands, will definitely be one of the losers. The economic future for our area will be severely impacted,” George wrote (“Kill the Climate Bill: Legislation Ignores Critical Factors…,” Richmond Times-Dispatch, June 25, 2009).
“It is too complex to implement, too reliant on technologies that do not yet exist, too expensive for businesses to afford and remain competitive, and too narrowly focused on domestic emissions to reduce the overall global impact of climate change. If the U.S. is expected to commit to the provisions of this legislation without competing economies such as Brazil, China, and India making similar commitments, the American economy, and high-paying manufacturing jobs, will be in serious jeopardy,” George wrote “The bill is fundamentally unfair because it would place facilities like the Covington mill at a significant competitive disadvantage.”
A study by the Tax Foundation showed that the Cap and Trade system would place an annual burden of $144.8 billion on American household, or more than $1,200 on the average family. (Andrew Chamberlain, "Who Pays for Climate Policy? New Estimates of the Household Burden and Economic Impact Of A U.S. Cap-And-Trade System," Tax Foundation Working Paper #6, March 3, 2009)
It would reduce the American Gross Domestic Product by $350 billion and kill 2.5 million jobs, even accounting for any new “green” jobs, found a study by the National Black Chamber of Commerce (NBCC Press Release, June 24, 1009)
While Deeds remained in hiding on the matter, McDonnell and Bolling unveiled their plan for economic revitalization in the Commonwealth. To spur job creation in Virginia, McDonnell and Bolling called for:
· Expanding the use of the Governor's Opportunity Fund by roughly doubling the funding available and broadening Fund rules to allow companies that generate additional state and local tax revenue to qualify
· Appointing Lieutenant Governor Bolling to serve as "Virginia's Chief Job Creation Officer" in the McDonnell/Bolling Administration
· Designating one Deputy Secretary of Commerce to Focus Solely on Rural Economic Development
· Providing a $1,000 tax credit per job to businesses that create 50 new jobs, or 25 new jobs in economically distressed areas
“Creigh Deeds says he wants to be the governor of all of the people of the Commonwealth of Virginia,” Mullins said. “Well, it seems to me that a good place to start would be with the people he already represents in the Virginia Senate. Until he does that at least, it’s hard for him to make the case that he’s ready for a promotion.”
McDonnell has been forthright about his opposition to the cap-and-trade bill.
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