Massey Energy Company - Summer Outing 2004 - Remarks by Thomas J. Donohue

On: Massey Energy Company - Summer Outing 2004
To: Massey Energy Company
From: Thomas J. Donohue
Date: July 24, 2004

Logan, West Virginia
July 24, 2004

Introduction

Thank you, Don. I'm honored to be here. Nobody throws a better summer party than Massey Energy.

Events like this help us to appreciate the best things in life: family, friends, and good work opportunities. Massey provides lots of those.

Nothing can spoil a good party faster than a long speech – so I'm not going to make a long speech. Go ahead – you can applaud!

By I'm proud to be here to spend some time with the people that make Massey one of the great American companies.

Let me also assure you that I'm absolutely not going to be political today. You can vote for anyone you choose – as long as you get out and vote.

But I can't resist recalling a recent comment by one of our Presidential candidates after a whole bunch of Hollywood celebrities put on a big fundraiser for him in New York City.

He took the stage and proclaimed that they represented the "heart and soul" of America.

Well I think he got it a bit wrong. The place to find the "heart and soul" of America is right here in Logan and right here at Massey.

It's dedicated employees like you, working at a great company, in an absolutely critical industry, that make our economy run and make this the strongest and greatest nation in the world.

And you know, this nation faces a lot of challenges – but we can overcome them, every single one of them. The Chicken Littles who say our best days are behind us, who say we can't compete against the Chinese or the Indians or the Europeans, have got it all wrong.

And here's how I know. There were a bunch of terrorists who tried to put us out of business on September 11, 2001. And it was a terrible day filled with unimaginable grief.

But they couldn't kill the spirit that burns inside of the American people – and that includes the spirit of enterprise. Yes, for a time those attacks did throw our economy off its stride. But now we're coming back strong.

More Americans are working today than ever before. We're the world's fastest growing major industrialized economy.

We're selling more products overseas than any other country, which is creating a lot of good jobs here at home.

Over the last four years, productivity posted the fastest rate of growth in a half century. Homeownership and personal income are at all time highs. Interest rates, mortgage rates and inflation are all down near historic lows.

I travel all over the world meeting with foreign business and government leaders, and though they sometimes express reservations about our nation's policies, they marvel at the ability of U.S. companies and workers to compete, innovate, and succeed in the global economy.

Massey and its employees are a testament to that. You find cleaner, safer, and more efficient ways to produce and distribute coal, the nation's most reliable and abundant energy source.

Your industry accounts for one-third of the United States' primary energy production. It generates one half of the nation's electricity. Without companies like yours, the American way of life would go dark.

And so, I hope you all take great pride in what you contribute to your company and our nation.

And with so many kids here today, it's hard not to think about the future and ask the most important question of all – what will it take to keep America strong, free and prosperous into the future?

There are a number of answers to that question, but I'd like to share just three ideas with you today.

For one thing, we've got to stop all these crazy lawsuits that are sucking the vitality out of American enterprise. Do you realize that runaway asbestos litigation alone has cost nearly 70,000 American workers their jobs?

We've got to find a better way to give real victims their day in court and the compensation they deserve, while stopping a small handful of class action lawyers from running away with billions – yes, billions of dollars – in outrageous fees.

One way these lawyers get so rich is by picking the right places to file their lawsuits – places where they know judges and even juries are more likely to rule in their favor.

I'm sorry to tell you that one of those places is West Virginia. How do I know? Because for the past three years, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce asked an independent research firm to rank the liability environments of all 50 states, and West Virginia came in second to last, just above Mississippi.

We're working hard to change the legal system at the federal level. But what happens here is just as important. Your elected officials need to fix the legal system, and your judges – including the state Supreme Court – need to become part of the solution instead of the problem.

Environmental Regulations

To build a strong economic future for your children, we must also fight unfair regulations. I've got to tell you, there is a crowd of activists in this country – and some of them serve in the United States Congress – who dream of the day when they can put America's coal industry right out of business.

If you think I might be overstating the case, consider that there is a bill in Congress to cap greenhouse gas emissions, which if it ever became law, could force a 64% cut in coal production by the year 2020! 64%! Think of what that would mean for this community.

Supporters say these regulations are necessary to improve air quality, but here are the facts: Our nation's air and water are cleaner today than ever before. That's because business has invested $1.5 trillion cleaning the environment over the past 30 years. That's trillion with a "T."

So our message to Washington bureaucrats is plain and simple: government regulations serve an important purpose, but only if they have sound scientific backing and if the costs don't outweigh the benefits.

Energy

You know another thing that gets my goat? The fact that this great country of ours does not have a comprehensive, national energy strategy.

We're the world's biggest energy consumer, but we have absolutely no plan for developing the supplies necessary to meet our rapidly growing energy needs.

We need to open up lands to domestic energy exploration and development and upgrade our electricity grid if we hope to control our future and become less dependent on foreign energy.

And coal has got to be a very important part of any comprehensive energy plan because it is abundant, reliable, and increasingly clean.

Congress has stalled on energy legislation for three consecutive years now. Maybe they're waiting for another blackout in the Northeast or in California to jolt them into action.

But rest assured that the Chamber is working harder than ever to get a comprehensive energy plan passed – one that will make America stronger and more self-sufficient.

Ladies and gentlemen, the outcome of these issues will have a big impact on your jobs, your families and your community. Maybe public policy isn't your thing. Maybe you're not inclined to think about these issues. But I encourage you to start because they are key to a brighter future.

Conclusion

As I said at the start, we face a lot of challenges. But every time we start feeling sorry for ourselves, let's remember how blessed we are to live in this great country.

Let's thank God that we've got young men and women from this community, this state, and all across America who this very moment are putting their lives on the line for us in Afghanistan and Iraq. They are fighting to keep us free and secure – and without freedom and without security, there can be no prosperity.

So enjoy your evening and as you do, please take pause to recognize the wonderful blessings that have been bestowed on each of us and the families we love. And let's resolve to work together to make our economy and our country even stronger and more confident in the future.

Thank you very much.