Morgan Griffith

A Year of Ideas and a Bold, Pro-Growth Agenda For several days each year, Republicans and House Democrats gather for separate annual policy retreats. At the Republican retreat, which was last week, Republican members of the House and Senate joined together in an effort to sort out our bold, pro-growth agenda for this year. Five areas in which we are planning to make a mark are national security, jobs and economic growth, restoring the Constitution, health care, and poverty and opportunity. Meanw... Read more

Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) today issued the following statement in response to the Obama Administration’s announcement that it is halting new coal mining leases on federal lands: “This announcement is nothing more than the latest front in President Obama’s ongoing war on coal and coal-dependent jobs, the impacts of which are not only felt in the coalfields but also in industries such as rail, manufacturing, and others that rely on coal mines for dependable energy.” “While this move will ... Read more

Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s State of the Union address: “Tonight, the President spoke about the economy as if it were strong, but the fact of the matter is he has crippled our region’s economy in more than one way with his policies.” “Additionally, the President’s remarks on foreign policy were simply sad. President Obama talked about how powerful America is – and it is powerful – but I and many Americans believe that other n... Read more

2015: A Record Year for Overregulation According to an analysis released last week by the Competitive Enterprise Institute, 2015 was a record-setting year for federal regulation. The Hill reported on this analysis, and observed that, “This year’s daily publication of the federal government’s rules, proposed rules and notices amounted to 81,611 pages as of Wednesday [December 30], higher than last year's 77,687 pages and higher than the all-time high of 81,405 pages in 2010 — with one day to go i... Read more

Must Do More to Rein In Spending and Overreach Last week, Congress passed comprehensive “omnibus” spending legislation that will fund the government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2016. Meaning “for everything,” omnibus legislation is a vehicle for combining appropriations funding bills with other items commonly known as “riders,” which make the underlying legislation more palatable. Because omnibus bills are large in size and scope, last week’s legislation included both good and bad. If we we... Read more

Keeping the American People Safe Last week, the House of Representatives passed the Visa Waiver Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act (H.R. 158) by a vote of 407-19. While I believe we should welcome legal immigrants, we must continually review our policies as threats to our national security emerge. Accordingly, this important bill, which seeks to prevent our enemies from entering the United States through our visa-waiver program, is another step forward in strengthening our national ... Read more

The Green Climate Fund and Us Recently, I spearheaded a letter to House Appropriations Committee leaders signed by 110 Members of the House in which we expressed our opposition to President Obama’s unilateral pledge of U.S. taxpayer funds for use in the United Nations’ Green Climate Fund. This fund, launched in 2009 with the goal of raising $100 billion a year in financing, is a fund intended to help developing nations catch up with the U.S. in addressing climate change. Despite serious domestic... Read more

In a letter led by Congressman Morgan Griffith (R-VA) to House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) and Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-NY), 110 Members of Congress express their opposition to President Obama’s unilateral pledge of U.S. taxpayer funds to the United Nations’ Green Climate Fund, especially if any international climate agreement emerging from the upcoming United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris is not brought before Congress for approval. The Gree... Read more

Defeating ISIS I continue to be horrified and heartbroken by the November 13 coordinated terrorist attacks in Paris. I mourn the innocent victims, pray for them and for their loved ones, and pray for the people of France. I strongly condemn these attacks. Mr. President, the world needs strong leadership from the US. Unfortunately, it is all the more clear that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) – which claimed responsibility for these attacks – must not be underestimated. Merely 12 hours... Read more

Energy, EPA, Jobs Last week, my colleagues and I on the Energy and Power Subcommittee passed two Resolutions of Disapproval (H.J.Res 71 and H.J.Res 72) under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to block two final rules for new and existing power plants issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). As described by the Congressional Research Service, the CRA “…is an oversight tool Congress can use to overturn certain agency actions. The CRA requires agencies to report the issuance of ‘rules’... Read more