"I wish it were possible to obtain a single amendment to our Constitution ... taking from the federal
government their power of borrowing." Thomas Jefferson (Letter of November 26th, 1798)
By Frank Lasee
Think of all the things you and your family could buy if gas prices were only half of what they are.
It's the time of year where many families that are able to are taking vacations. Unfortunately, many are skipping trips because of the cost or they're staying closer to home.
What if gas cost $2 a gallon instead of nearly $4 a gallon? If gas was just $2, most people would have more money in their pockets – every week, every month, all year long – and the cost of most things we buy would be going down, instead of up.
The mainstream leftist media is keeping a secret from you. They don't want you to know that the state with one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country is North Dakota. They have this low unemployment rate of 3.8 percent when the rest of the nation is at 9.2 percent because there is an oil boom in North Dakota.
We have more oil in our country right now than we've ever known before. We could be exploring for more, harvesting more and refining more. If lefties would let us change our energy policies we could lower the prices. That would help those at the bottom rungs of the economic ladder – the very people the left claims to be helping. The law of supply and demand, which is forever ignored by the left, would come into play and gas would be going down in cost. So would many things we buy.
When energy costs go down, the economy grows. That is why the Chinese are investing in all types of energy, most heavily in coal and nuclear power for electricity. When oil goes down in price, everything that is delivered by truck, ship or plane costs less. Food, hard goods, clothing, driving – the list could go on forever – all cost less. With that money staying in the pockets of regular people instead of going into gas tanks and even more expensive stuff, our economy would take off. And a growing economy always means more jobs. More jobs mean better lives for more people.
Think about this with electricity, too. If your electric bill cost half as much instead of twice as much – which is likely with the policies coming out of Washington – you could spend more on things of your choosing.
The EPA wants rules that will increase your electric bills. "Green" energy mandates in Minnesota are going to send their electric bills up by 50 to 100 percent in the next decade, and this is all directly related to policies coming from Washington and some state capitols.
Just like families, if a company or a store has to pay a lot more for gas or electric, the price of what they sell is passed on to you. Because things cost more, you'll have less money. With less money, you can't buy as many things as you want. This hurts our economy.
We need to create policies that push the prices of gas and electricity down, not up. That's why I authored the hydro electric bill that helps do that.
Leftists believe that making things more expensive somehow creates jobs. They're dead wrong. With lower gas and electric prices, more people would be able to take that vacation to Door County or the North Woods. That would mean more money to owners of small resorts, more money for restaurants (and their employees), more money to the thousands of small businesses throughout Wisconsin. That means jobs, more income and more consumer freedom to buy the things you want.
That's how economies grow.
Frank Lasee is the Senator from Wisconsin's First Senate District.
Capitol Update
Last week the Senate and the Assembly passed the redistricting bills we are Constitutionally required to do every 10 years and sent them to the Assembly. We do this after the census to adjust for changes in population. Our state has 33 Senate districts with about 172,000 people and 99 Assembly districts. There are three Assembly districts nestled in each Senate district. I voted for these bills and they've been to the Governor's desk to be signed into law.
Also, the Governor signed the bill ending early release of prisoners. This will make our state safer.
Any comments or thoughts regarding the subject of this Lasee's Notes, please feel free to contact me.
State Capitol Room 104S
PO Box 7882, Madison, WI 53708
(608) 266-3512
Email: Sen.Lasee@legis.wisconsin.gov
"There is a certain enthusiasm in liberty,
that makes human nature rise above
itself, in acts of bravery and heroism."
Alexander Hamilton