As the trillion dollar “stimulus” bill reaches its six-month mark, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Doc Hastings (WA-04) sent the attached letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack seeking answers on how spending decisions are being made, why the promise of immediately funding projects hasn’t been kept, and what jobs have actually been… Read more »

House Natural Resources Ranking Member Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement today in response to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack’s speech on the Obama Administration’s vision for the U.S. Forest Service: “In announcing a ‘new direction and vision,’ the Administration must not lose sight of the vital role our forests play in our nation’s economy and the thousands of… Read more »

On Sunday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will travel to Zanesville, Ohio as part of the Administration’s rural America listening tour. Co-Chairs of the Rural America Solutions Group Frank Lucas (R-OK), Sam Graves (R-MO), and Doc Hastings (R-WA), released the following statement regarding Sunday’s event: “Unemployment in Ohio is higher than the… Read more »

Click here to watch Valley that Hope Forgot Sean Hannity, FOX News August 11, 2009 Hannity: Update on a story we covered back in May. The Central Valley of California was once considered the bread basket of America. But now farms all over that region have been allowed to dry up. Now why? Because of a 2-inch minnow on the endangered species list. Now, environmentalists claim that the… Read more »

Tomorrow, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will travel to Bethel, AK as part of the White House’s rural America listening tour. Co-Chairs of the Rural America Solutions Group Frank Lucas (R-OK), Sam Graves (R-MO), and Doc Hastings (R-WA),… Read more »

Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Doc Hastings (WA-04) released the following statement regarding the Department of Labor’s report that the U.S. economy lost 247,000 jobs in July and the Congressional Budget Office’s report that the federal deficit topped $1.3 trillion in July for the first time in the history of our country. “14.5 million unemployed Americans need… Read more »

Will Russia Drill Off Florida's Coast? Investor's Business Daily August 05, 2009 4:20 PM PT Two Russian nuclear attack submarines have taken up positions along our East Coast in recent days, another sign of renewed assertiveness by the former communist giant. The move comes as Moscow inks a deal with the communist relic of Cuba to drill for oil we refuse to go after. The submarines… Read more »

On February 10, 2009, the Department of the Interior announced a six-month delay for the 2010-2015 offshore drilling plan on America’s Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) and extended the public comment period through September 21, 2009. Today, 98 House Republicans sent a letter (click here to view) to Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to officially encourage the Department to end the delay… Read more »

Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Doc Hastings (WA-04) issued the following statement regarding the House and Senate Western Caucuses’ joint hearing on the Democrats’ National Energy Tax plan: “While most of today’s news is focused on the status of the Democrats’ government-run healthcare plan, Americans should know that the threat of a National Energy Tax is as… Read more »

Click here to watch Critics Worry Measure to Save Wild Horses Is Taxpayer Drain William Lajeunesse FOX News 7/29/2009 Taxpayers could be on the hook for $700 million if a measure to put wild horses back home on the range passes Congress. A bill that would save wild horses and burros in the western United States from controlled killings and set aside millions of acres for them is… Read more »