ALG - 1.7 percent 2nd quarter GDP revision shows inflation, not growth

Aug. 29, 2012, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson today issued the following statement on the 0.2 percent upward revision of second quarter GDP from 1.5 to 1.7 percent by the Bureau of Economic Analysis:

"The Gross Domestic Product was revised upward by $10.2 billion in the second quarter, reflecting a $10.3 billion increase in housing and utilities, particularly, higher-than-expected prices for electricity and natural gas. That is not growth, it's inflation.

"The happy talk is no longer going to work. The Obama economy is not producing jobs, it is only draining our wallets — with inflation-inducing easy money and a regulatory assault on electricity-producing coal and other fossil fuels that is driving up prices. The Obama Administration's stated goal is to triple the price of coal by 2017. That will not grow the economy, it will cripple it."

View online: http://getliberty.org/1-7-percent-2nd-quarter-gdp-revision-shows-inflation-not-growth/

ALG's Daily Grind - Are we fighting the future?

Aug. 28, 2012

Are we fighting the future?

Will it take another world war to end this depression?

Video: Former Union Leader Wants Communism In America, We Want More Support For 'Black Ribbon Day'

Communism leads to horror. If you don't believe us, ask the people of the old Soviet Union, Cambodia, North Korea or China...if they can talk about it. Yet, one former union leader turned Occupy member wants it back. Maybe he should study more on what "Black Ribbon Day" is all about.

Cartoon: So goes coal, so goes Ohio, so goes the nation…

Could Obama's war on coal cost him Ohio?

Green energy? Buyer beware!

"The winter storm to end all storms hit. With a tremendous crash, a giant tree limb brought down the power lines that fed the entire neighborhood. I waited for the Super Green Eco 10000 to spring into action, sparing my family days of cold and misery. And I waited. And waited. Nothing. No power. No lights. No heat. No stove."

ALG's Daily Grind - EPA's hazy outlook threatens to bankrupt coal-fired power plants

Aug. 15, 2012

EPA's hazy outlook threatens to bankrupt coal-fired power plants

Is the EPA is really that concerned about cleaning up haze or is this just another aggressive move to push out the coal industry?

Video: Hollywood Continues Its Support Of Democrats

2012 has been a big year for film. 2011... not so much. Now the industry is providing support to the left.

El-Erian's challenge to Ryan on the 'new normal'

The "new normal" — a Ship of State lost at sea in economically turbulent waters — will not be undone merely with a changing of the guard.

Gall and Smith: Red tape shackles small-business owners

Holland, Mich. shuts down 13 year old's hot dog stand 10 minutes upon opening after giving explicit permission to set it up. Mother and son now live in homeless shelter.

ALG - End $12 billion wind tax credit, save coal from being regulated to death

Aug. 16, 2012, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson today issued the following statement urging the House of Representatives not to renew the $12 billion wind tax credit this year:

"The idea that we're going to power the world's preeminent economic and industrial superpower on 12^th Century windmill technology is so ludicrous as to not even merit serious consideration. But the Ivory Tower elites in Washington, D.C., have insisted that we do so, and as a result now taxpayers are on the hook for $12 billion a year for this fool's errand. Congress needs to act now to repeal the tax credit.

"In the meantime, we need an honest evaluation by the Department of Energy of the true costs of producing energy. According to Department of Energy's estimates, in 2017 it will cost anywhere from $97 to $139 per megawatt hour to produce coal. This estimate is used to make it appear that wind at $96 per megawatt hour in 2017 will be viable.

"But the only way they get there is by regulating coal to death. The Department of Energy has engaged in blatant propaganda. This report reveals Obama's callous disdain and disrespect for the millions of families who earn their living through the production of coal or through the reasonably priced power that coal generates. 

"Coal only costs about $30 to $35 per megawatt hour to produce. The only way the Department of Energy's 2017 projection can show wind to be viable is to triple the cost of coal.  Their cooked numbers include all of the regulatory costs that the EPA is and will be imposing on miners and coal-burning plants for new technologies by then.

"This is what Obama meant when in 2008 he said, 'if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can; it's just that it will bankrupt them because they're going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that's being emitted.'

"Wind should be free to compete in the marketplace along with other forms of energy. But anyone who argues that it should be subsidized is just breaking wind. If it cannot compete on a cost basis without subsidies and without using the power of government to squash competitors, then it is not viable."

To view online: http://getliberty.org/end-12-billion-wind-tax-credit-save-coal-from-being-regulated-to-death/

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Americans for Limited Government is a non-partisan, nationwide network committed to advancing free market reforms, private property rights and core American liberties. For more information on ALG please call us at 703-383-0880 or visit our website at www.GetLiberty.org.

ALG - EPA should scrap unworkable coal regulations

EPA's top brass admits regulations now under review will cause "pain every step of the way."

July 23, 2012, Fairfax, VA—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Friday that it will "review" crushing new regulations on coal-fired power plants, which were originally set to be completed this year.  Under mounting pressure from communities that depend on coal production for good-paying jobs, the agency postponed completion of the new regulations until March 2013—after Election Day. 

"These regulations should be revoked not reviewed," said Ryan Houck, executive director of Free Market America.  "This rule will cost billions each year, drive away good-paying jobs and empty the pockets of consumers who will be stuck higher electric bills.  EPA's top brass has even admitted on camera that these regulations would be 'painful every step of the way'.  That's true for the communities that count on coal production for jobs and for the consumers who count on coal to provide more than 40 percent of our nation's electricity."

Even EPA's estimates indicate its rule will cost nearly $10 billion annually.  If the regulations take effect, new coal-fired plants will be required to deploy so-called carbon capture technology, which is not yet developed and has not been proven financially feasible.  Moreover, the standards set by EPA are impossible to achieve with existing technology.

Americans for Limited Government president Bill Wilson questioned the timing of the review, "Everyone knows that these regulations will bring about an economic disaster while yielding little environmental benefit.  With coal-producing states like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia likely to decide the presidential election, this delay smells like an attempt by the president to defer an economic and political disaster until after Election Day.

"While the agency's decision to review these catastrophic regulations is a step in the right direction, simply delaying the economic execution of an essential industry until after the election is not enough—these regulations should be rolled back in their entirety."  

Free Market America is a free market watchdog group that focuses on environmental issues.  In partnership with Americans for Limited Government, the group was launched earlier this year and is responsible for the viral video "If I wanted America to fail" a runaway hit that scored more than 2.4 million views on YouTube.

To view online: http://getliberty.org/epa-should-scrap-unworkable-coal-regulations/

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Americans for Limited Government is a non-partisan, nationwide network committed to advancing free market reforms, private property rights and core American liberties. For more information on ALG please call us at 703-383-0880 or visit our website at www.GetLiberty.org.