Lower Energy Costs Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Madam Chair, if you believe in climate change and the climate crisis, vote ``no'' on this legislation. If you believe that regardless of ideology, if you believe that climate change is real and must be dealt with, vote ``no'' on this legislation because it does nothing to deal with that real threat in front of us.

Madam Chair, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Crockett).

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Madam Chair, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas.

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Mullin).

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Lieu).
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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chair, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chair, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chair, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chair, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chair, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Chair, I yield myself the balance of my time for closing.

1.

Republican Members have produced an extreme piece of legislation. As I listened to the rationale today, there were four or five things that were repeated over and over again. It is an extreme piece and a high cost to pay for a speakership, but nevertheless, the rationale today was, as I heard it, patriotism. If you vote ``no'' for H.R. 1, you don't believe in America and you are not a patriot; you support China, Russia, Venezuela, OPEC, and communism. Unfortunately, that is a desperate lie and unnecessary in this debate.

The other rationale I heard: Let the polluters drive energy policy, production, and the safeguards that the American people need. That was one of the rationales.

The other one that struck me is collateral damage. Tribes, poor people, 40 million Americans, communities of color, once again, they get thrown under the bus to satisfy the greed of polluters.

The issues of environmental justice are almost eliminated and downplayed in this whole discussion. That is 40 million people. That is collateral damage that cannot be tolerated and should not be.

You ignore climate change. You blame other nations and ask Americans to accept a lower bar for themselves and give up the opportunity, as we always have, to historically lead in this world of ours.

This act is about taxpayer subsidies to a powerful and rich polluter industry that doesn't need the support. It dismantles fundamental public health, clean air, clean water, NEPA, environmental protections, and judicial review.

We need to remember that this act, H.R. 1, polluters over people, deals with a very consequential issue, and that is the consequential issue of life. H.R. 1 is dangerous to life. The real true act of patriotism, I remind my colleagues, is our responsibility and our oath to protect lives, to extend the future, to deal with fairness and the public's right to know and the public to have a voice in their future. H.R. 1, the polluters over people act, undoes all of that.

Do we want to go back to the good old days when the rivers were burning, we were clear-cutting forests, when it was all right to admit wrongdoing and not have any consequences?

Those are not the good old days that people want to go back to.

If we are going to deal with the climate challenge and the climate action that is needed in this crisis, H.R. 1 needs to be defeated. It is the right thing to do, it is the American thing to do, and it is the patriotic thing to do.

Mr. Chair, H.R. 1 is dangerous and needs to be defeated. I urge a ``no'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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