Washington, D.C. - U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) issued the following statement in response to the Obama Administration’s decision to maintain a drilling ban in the eastern Gulf of Mexico and off the Pacific and Atlantic coasts.

"Apparently the President was for opening new access to American made energy before he was against it. It's time for the White House to stop determining energy policy by holding a finger up to gauge the political winds. We need more American made energy from all sources produced by American energy workers. Why doesn't the President get this?" asked Brady, a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee and the top House Republican on the Joint Economic Committee. "The continued de facto drilling moratorium, high energy taxes that drive American energy jobs overseas and now the flip-flop from the President's announcement earlier this year all contribute to greater American dependence on foreign oil and eventually higher energy prices. That's clear."

 "When this administration continues to flounder, how can businesses ever hope to be able to plan for their futures?" added Brady who has been fighting to get America’s energy workers back on the job ever since the Administration’s original hasty Gulf of Mexico drilling moratorium. "Instead of stifling the energy sector which generated over $4 billion in federal royalty revenue last fiscal year, the Administration should let our energy workers get back to work instead of trying to justify even more tax increases on American families and small businesses.”