Opinion Pieces

Op-Ed Column: SOAR “Shaping Our Appalachian Region” By, Harold “Hal” Rogers, Member of Congress 520 Words The urgency for hope has never been greater for southern and eastern Kentucky. Over the last month, some 600 coal miners have been sent home – laid off or furloughed from high paying jobs in our mountains. It’s the most recent painstaking round of pink slips added to the region’s loss of over 6,000 coal mining jobs since 2011. Even more, economists estimate each coal mining job impacts three... Read more

Column By, Congressman Hal Rogers 322 Words One of the missions of PRIDE is improving environmental education in Southern and Eastern Kentucky. Each April, our region gets a hands-on lesson. I have talked to dozens of volunteers who admit they used to throw soda cans or snack wrappers out the window, until they started volunteering with PRIDE to pick up that same garbage. And with 16 years under our belts, the message is now spreading to each generation. In McCreary County, three generations of ... Read more

The FAA fiasco By:Rich Lowry April 24, 2013 10:20 PM EDT The air traffic controller furloughs are the White House tours of the sky. From time immemorial, a government that doesn’t want to tighten its fiscal belt finds high-profile ways to inconvenience the public in the hopes of turning it against spending cuts. In keeping with this tried-and-true so-called Washington Monument strategy, the White House canceled tours in the immediate aftermath of sequestration. In an escalation, the Federal Avi... Read more

by Congressman Hal Rogers 556 words This month marks the 10th Anniversary of Operation U.N.I.T.E., launched to tackle the pain pill epidemic that swept through our region. Born in church pews, high school football bleachers and community centers, U.nlawful N.arcotics I.nvestigations, T.reatment and E.ducation was ignited by parents, preachers, teachers and police officers who joined arms to fight this scourge from the bottom-up. In those early, dark days, we were deemed the nation’s “Painkiller ... Read more

The Hill's Congress Blog: Keep crushable pills off the streets By Rep. Harold Rogers (R-Ky.) While our nation faces an impending fiscal cliff with expiring tax cuts, spiraling entitlements, and a dreaded sequestration, another year-end deadline is approaching that has deadly consequences - the expiration of patents on the original formulations of highly addictive prescription pain pills like OxyContin. These so-called "long-acting opioids" were billed as the next wonder drugs; solutions to chron... Read more

On Monday, October 29, 2012, U.S. Congressman Hal Rogers will participate in the Bluegrass Policy Forum on Substance Abuse hosted by Operation UNITE at the Jenny Wiley State Resort Park. Panelists include Governor Steve Beshear, Kentucky Senator Majority Floor Leader Robert Stivers, Kentucky Senator Brandon Smith, Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo, and Kentucky House Majority Floor Leader Rocky Adkins. The discussion will be moderated by KET's Renee Shaw beginning at 6:00 p.m. in the Stumbo-Wil... Read more

COLUMN: The War on Coal: Fighting Back By Hal Rogers 461 words President Obama’s war on coal is working. The Arch Coal layoffs are just the latest blow in a series of thrown punches at coal and coal mining families. Last month, Kentucky Power decided to forego a $1 billion upgrade at the Big Sandy Plant putting this coal-burning facility’s future on life support. On June 8, Alpha Natural Resources announced 400 mining operation layoffs in Martin and Pike Counties. Now some 600 dedicated Arch Coa... Read more

By U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers 828 words Ceremonies honoring heroes of war are most often conducted without the presence of the brave service members who earn the rare distinction. Out of 3,458 Medal of Honor recipients in our nation’s history, only 85 are alive today. Of the seven recipients from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Sgt. Dakota Meyer is one of only three living members of the U.S. Armed Forces, and the first Marine, of whom we have the honor to personally thank for his valiant efforts. T... Read more

By, Keith Kappes Amid the fiscal craziness going on in and about Washington these days, we believe this nation should be eternally grateful for a man like U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers of Kentucky. In our opinion, these words of Rudyard Kipling, the British author, best describe the challenges he faces: "If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs…" That is exactly what has been happening in the House Appropriations Committee under his leadership – despite the rants of those inside and... Read more

By, Congressman Hal Rogers 426 Words Dear Editor, During my travels across Southern and Eastern Kentucky this month, I realized two things about the impact of the debt ceiling debate on our rural region. First, I am amazed at the optimism across the district in a time of economic uncertainty. Local business owners and organizations have told me they are willing to tighten their fiscal belts and sacrifice their share, if it will help get our nation’s checkbook in balance. Second, there is no ques... Read more