GM posted a strong profit of more than $800 million in the second quarter. That’s great news from the RenCen. If we can halt Speaker Pelosi’s push to saddle the Big Three with $85 billion of regulatory mandates and do something about the weak yen that is providing Japanese automakers with a $4,000 to $15,000 per vehicle subsidy on vehicles they export to America, GM’s turnaround will have an opportunity to really take hold.

Click here for the Detroit News’ story on GM’s second quarter profit numbers.

Today, the House passed the Iran Sanctions Enabling Act by a vote of 408-6. This bill, which I cosponsored and supported, authorizes states to divest investments in companies that do business with Iran. This action was absolutely necessary in order to allow states the opportunity to do their part in stopping Iran’s nuclear ambitions. States like Michigan have already taken steps to divest in these companies but the federal legislation gives the official “go-ahead” to states to step up to the plate and take action against Iran. My oldest son, Marty, who is serving Troy and Clawson as a state Representative, recently passed a bill in the Michigan House of Representatives that deals with this critical issue.

As I’ve mentioned on this blog previously, successfully handling constituent casework is a responsibility that I and the staff who work for me take very seriously. Below is a thank you letter that Ruth Elrod who works in my Farmington Hills’ office received from a constituent we helped:

Dear Mr. Knollenberg,

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to you and your colleagues for having resolved my Social Security issue in a most exemplary and efficient manner. Mrs. Ruth Elrod, in coordination, with your Washington office immersed themselves into my case with surprising enthusiasm and without hesitation. The matter was brought to a swift and successful conclusion in no time. Hence, not only are my thanks to you, Mr. Knollenberg, in order but also my congratulations for having such dedicated and competent members on your team, who I am certain, will undoubtedly enhance your continued success in public office.

Sincerely,

Klaus Makosch 

Ford surprised Wall Street today by posting a $750 million profit in the second quarter. That’s great news from the Glass House. Click here for the story from today’s Detroit News.

From FY 2003 to FY 2005, I secured $700,000 for the Recognizing Achievement and Rewarding Excellence (R.A.R.E). RARE was founded in 1998 and has established a program for recognizing exceptional people who contribute to the community and further educating children in the community about such people. RARE produces educational videos profiling its award winners that are distributed to elementary schools for the purpose of encouraging students to view our traditional American work ethic favorably and to give teachers effective tools to motivate students in constructive career paths. The funding I secured helped RAR to scale its programs for both state-wide (Michigan) and national expansion.

From FY 03-07, I secured $10 million for NextEnergy. NextEnergy is a non-profit organization, founded in 2002 and capitalized with a $30 million seed grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. The center’s initial charge was to implement an economic development strategy for the State of Michigan to accelerate research, development and manufacturing of alternative energy technologies to advance the Alternative Energy Technology industry in Michigan. Funding has been secured for various projects, including a National Biofuel Energy Lab with expenses being used for large capital equipment, industry partnership development, research, and field testing to help define content, composition, specifications, and blends for biodiesel utilization in the United States.

For more information on NextEnergy and its efforts to create new economic opportunities in the fields of alternative energy, please visit www.nextenergy.org.

In FY 2005 and FY 2007, I secured $4.5 million for the Karmanos Cancer Institute. Based in Detroit, the Karmanos Cancer Institute is committed to a future free of cancer. It is Michigan’s only independent cancer hospital and conducts more than 500 scientific investigations and clinical trials. It is only one of 39 NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the United States. The Institute employs over 1,100 staff, including 300 medical and research faculty members from Wayne State University. The funding I secured has been used for several projects, including the National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancers.

For more information on the great work being done at the Karmanos Cancer Institute, please visit www.karmanos.org.

In FY 2003 and FY 2004, I obtained $400,000 of federal funding for Oakland Community College’s Combined Regional Emergency Services Training Center (CREST). CREST is a 22-acre simulated city equipped with traffic signals, pedestrian walkways, two-lane streets, a bank, motel, a convenience store/gas station, school, and three furnished homes. It is the only emergency response-training center in the Midwest that allows first responders from around the country to train in real-life emergency scenarios to enhance our homeland security and readiness in the event of another attack against our country.

In the mid 1990s, the Department of Energy was projecting that it would take until 2065 and cost American taxpayers more than $40 billion to clean up the nuclear waste at Rocky Flats in Colorado. Rocky Flats was a major part of the nuclear weapons complex where our nuclear arsenal was developed to confront the Soviet Union during the Cold War. With the end of the Cold War, nuclear weapons production ended, leaving the United States with a costly and difficult clean up challenge.

As a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water, I took an active interest in nuclear energy issues, especially Rocky Flats. Contractors, who were working on the clean up at Rocky Flats, and people inside DOE came to my office to let me know that they believed the clean up could occur much quicker at a huge savings to taxpayers. I have to admit that I was skeptical at first, but my staff and I dug into the issues and we became convinced that Rocky Flats could be cleaned up within 10 years.

Throughout the late 1990s, I pressed the Department of Energy to stick to the 10-year plan. There was a lot of resistance to this approach. The higher ups in the Department did not want to admit that their initial report, which estimated that the clean up wouldn’t be completed until 2065, was wrong. But the 10-year plan promoters prevailed. Rocky Flats has now been cleaned up. The former nuclear weapons complex is being turned over to the Department of Interior and will become a wildlife refuge.

This is one of my proudest accomplishments in Congress. Turning a dangerous nuclear weapons complex into a wildlife refuge at a savings of $30 billion to taxpayers is no small feat. I am not entirely responsible for this positive outcome. There were a lot of good people on the ground at Rocky Flats who were determined to clean up this site within 10 years. I had a committed staff to help me get to the bottom of the issues associated with this important issue, including my former Legislative Director David Cherrington who was one of the leading legislative experts on nuclear energy issues in Washington.

It was a team effort that got this done for the environment and taxpayers. People are often rightfully frustrated with the way government works or doesn’t work for them. I understand these frustrations. But the Rocky Flats story is a vivid example of how the legislative and appropriations processes can work and produce great results for the country.

As mentioned before, my office is committed to responding to the needs of my constituents in Oakland County. My staff takes pride in helping constituents with a wide variety of problems from securing passports to resolving issues with Social Security and veterans’ benefits to making recommendations for students to study at the service academies. If you have a question or need assistance with any matter involving the federal government, please do not hesitate to contact my office at (248) 851-1366.

Below is a letter my director of constituent casework, Ms. Kit Johnson, received from Susan Parker of Troy:

Thank you so much for your help with getting my passport in time for my study abroad trip. You were always so helpful and reassuring. Asking your office for help was the best thing about the entire process. Obtaining a passport is enough for most people to lose faith in the ability of their government, but your help was more than enough to counterbalance that opion. Thank you so much,

Susan Parker