Economy

As many will remember, in 2010, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi said, “but we have to pass the bill [Obamacare] so that you can find out what is in it….”  Last week, when asked on The Daily Show why it’s so hard to get a company to execute the Obamacare website competently, Pelosi said, “I don’t know” and “Well, it’s not my responsibility.”  Let me see if I have this right. … Read more »

Russian Bear, On The Prowl I was startled by a January 29 New York Times piece which stated, “The United States informed its NATO allies this month that Russia had tested a new ground-launched cruise missile, raising concerns about Moscow’s compliance with a landmark arms control accord.”  These tests reportedly began as early as 2008, and “Such tests are prohibited by the treaty… Read more »

Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) today issued the following statement after voting in favor of the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management (FARRM) conference report: “Agriculture is an integral part of the economy and history of the Commonwealth of Virginia, particularly the Ninth District.  The negotiations that led to this conference report have been neither easy nor… Read more »

Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s State of the Union address earlier this evening: “President Obama could have used his time tonight laying out his plans to work with Congress to improve our health care system, increase our energy independence, encourage job growth, decrease our debt and deficits, and more.  Instead,… Read more »

Higher Energy Prices and You As reported by the New York Times’ Clifford Krauss, “Natural gas prices spiked by nearly 10 percent on Friday to levels not seen since 2010 as another wave of freezing weather brought surges of heating and electricity demand.”  Natural gas now tops $5, the highest it has been in three and a half years, which CNBC reports “… has led to concerns about… Read more »

Pushing for Answers and Transparency A recently-released report on Obamacare enrollment numbers shows that less than a quarter of those who have signed up for health care plans during the first few months are the young, relatively healthy adults the Administration is relying on to sign up and keep premiums in check.  This is far less than the Administration’s target of around 40… Read more »

Promises, Promises Jobs   On Friday, January 10, the U.S. Department of Labor released a disappointing jobs report – only 74,000 jobs were added in December.  This is far short of the 197,000 jobs that economists had predicted, and more importantly, is far less than the American people deserve. The nationwide unemployment number did drop to 6.7 percent, but this decrease is… Read more »

2013 In Review and 2014 Congressional Issues Survey It is my privilege to represent and serve you in the House of Representatives, particularly at this critical time.  I have traveled thousands of miles throughout Southwest Virginia, Southside Virginia, and the Alleghany Highlands in the last year, attending various meetings or events and speaking with many different people about… Read more »

The ADAPT Act, Fire Hydrants, and the NSA The ADAPT Act Regular readers of this column are aware of my ongoing efforts to improve the quality and safety of our health care system and increase patient choice and control.  We have numerous bills that have been introduced, and that the various committees are working on.  Among those committees that are working on improvements… Read more »

“There is much misinformation making its way around the Internet about the contents of the budget agreement that the House passed last night.  The budget agreement negotiated between the House and the Senate stops most of the military cuts that were soon to hit the Commonwealth as a result of the sequester.  A George Mason University study estimates that the full sequestration’s… Read more »