What is Congressman Ed Whitfield up to?

1st District Congressman Ed Withfield is a nice guy, or at least a guy, and he represents the voters of the 1st District well, or at least, in spirit or, maybe better stated, that’s what he’s paid to do.

But is he representing them?

A stupid question perhaps, but, hey, chances are you can’t vote for him anyway, so let’s not call this question stupid. That would be mean.

A recent report naming the Top 15 Congressional friends of polluters included Mr. Whitfield. Here’s what they said about Ed:

• Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), Chair of the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power. The fossil fuel industry has given Whitfield $426,447 since the 1998 election season. He has fought EPA safeguards while the three coal plants in Whitfield’s district have caused 186 deaths per year. None of these three plants in Whitfield’s district have installed mercury controls.

Are you shocked? Not really. After all, even our Democratic Congressman and our Democratic Governor are getting a King Coal piggy-back ride so, yeah, we’re a beaten down group of people all expecting the very least from our elected representatives. And sure, it’s easier to cast stones at Ed Whitfield than it is at the Governor because, of course, he’s on the other team.

But what’s weird is Ed — in the midst of all these all-encompassing debt talks — is making headlines for energy industry initiatives that may have very little to do with Kentucky or even our good friends King Coal.

Let’s take a look!

First of all, and this has less to do with energy and more to do with setting the scene, Whitfield like most Republicans mitches and boehnes about the oppressive reach of Big Government and seeks to slash it, yet when those cuts hit his home district he emits a whimper:

While I understand that the USPS must consider all options as they try to bring their budget into balance, many of these post offices are not just conveniences. They are necessities. Furthermore, the total savings is such an insignificant part of the budgetary problems confronting the Postal Service that it is hard to justify the hardships these closures would cause.”

But cutting Medicare and Social Security, that’s okay.

Alright. Scene, set. Let’s get energetic.

Whitfield is the Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power. For a state few people know anything about, we have a lot of power, from the Senate Minority Leader to the Chair of the House Appropriations Committee to the crown prince of the Tea Party… somehow those other 49 states have handed over the reigns.

Here’s Ed on re-enriching uranium:

The 1st District congressman has succeeded in advancing the Energy and Revenue Enrichment Act through the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power, which he chairs. The bill would initiate a two-year pilot program of enriching spent uranium tails at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant and another plant in Ohio. If the bill becomes law, it would have many benefits.

It would make constructive use of a portion of the waste accumulated over a half century of uranium enrichment, thus saving the cost, $135 million, and environmental impact of disposal. Some 40,000 cylinders of depleted uranium are stockpiled at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. Although this pilot program would re-enrich only a small part of the depleted uranium on site, it would at least demonstrate the viability of re-enrichment. Assuming it proves successful, follow-up legislation could authorize finishing the job.

Unfortunately, the whole idea is based on wildly fluctuating prices and a long history of broken promises to taxpayers about savings and worries that the real motivation is just to protect a corporation dedicated to “enriching” America — see the H-L from June.

Still, let’s say this is primarily a Kentucky issue because, like the “insignificant” savings from closing a Whitfield district post office, he argues that not re-enriching the uranium would eliminate 1,200 jobs which are also not “insignificant.”

Nevermind the debt “deal” Whitfield just voted for may well lead to the elimination of 1.8 Million Jobs.

What about oil sands in Canada? Are those protecting Kentucky jobs in the 1st District?