ALEXANDRIA, Virginia (February 16, 2018) – 60 Plus Association Founder and Chairman James Martin Friday issued the following statement in reference to the Trump administration’s success in revitalizing America’s energy industry:

“The Obama administration was a disaster for America’s energy industry.

Barack Obama promised that ‘electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket,’ because of his policies.

Obama’s Energy Secretary Steven Chu actively sought ways to ‘boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.’

Congressional investigators revealed that Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency issued more than 33,000 pages of new, costly, job-killing regulations during his time in office.

Naturally, it’s going to take a little time and effort to unwind eight years of disastrous energy policy, and President Trump is doing a terrific job in revitalizing America’s energy industry.

It’s also not surprising that the president’s actions to make America great again draw the ire of left-wing activists who cherry-pick data and drape it in the mantle of analysis. These hyperventilating screeds against coal and oil predictably neglect the fact that fossil fuels represent the core of affordable, abundant energy in the United States.

America’s research, development and deployment renewable energy sources like wind, solar, hydro and emerging energy technologies isn’t stopping. It is simply continuing without punitive policies targeting fossil fuels. Millions of Americans believe in the ‘All of the Above’ approach to energy, including President Trump. That is what America needs and that is what President Trump is delivering.

The Trump administration’s support for the coal industry is a welcome change for the families who value this critical energy supply. Be they families who rely on coal for their livelihood or those who benefit from lower electricity bills resulting from the affordable energy it provides, coal and other fossil fuels benefit all Americans.”