Washington D.C. – Congressman Kevin McCarthy issued the following statement regarding the American Energy Initiative:

"We have an abundant supply of natural resources in our country that we must utilize to meet our energy needs. We need policies that allow us to take advantage of these resources and our innovative culture to develop new sources of energy and create jobs here at home. Yet, President Obama has pursued anti-energy policies that are job destroying in two significant ways. First, they are significant contributors to the alarming and continuing rise in gas prices which stifles economic growth and raises prices Americans pay for all kinds of products. Second, his visceral opposition to domestic energy exploration and production is causing America to miss out on the many great new jobs that the domestic energy industry could create and sustain.

"Of course, this has severe national security implications as well. We need to immediately begin to lower the cost of oil by expanding oil exploration domestically, so that we're no longer held hostage by foreign nations and oil cartels like OPEC. The current rise in gas price will further hamper our small business sector, making the transportation of goods and materials much more expensive. This leads to higher prices in consumer goods.

"By increasing oil, natural gas, solar, wind and other sources of energy here in the U.S., we will create jobs, meet our energy needs and make our nation more secure. We should start now by reducing the very real and exceedingly burdensome regulatory rules that stifle domestic energy development and production."