06 Jun 2011 Obama Commerce Nominee John Bryson Won’t Deliver Jobs the Country Needs, says National Center for Public Policy Research

Washington, D.C. – In the wake of the extremely poor economic data reported this week, policy experts from the National Center for Public Policy Research are urging the Senate to take a hard look at President Obama’s Commerce Secretary nominee, John Bryson.

Bryson is a staunch advocate of expanding environmental regulations at the expense of jobs.

“Our economy needs an advocate for free markets and for the development of our fossil fuel natural resources in order to create jobs and generate economic growth. We don’t need another agent in our government to promote Obama’s war on fossil fuels. Bryson’s record as an environmental activist and as the head of a solar energy company that depends on taxpayer subsidies for survival should automatically disqualify him as the Secretary of Commerce,” said Tom Borelli, Ph.D., director of the National Center’s Free Enterprise Project.

“Obama should be looking for a business leader to run the Commerce Department who understands the free market, not an individual whose company is dependent on Obama’s command-and-control energy policy,” added Tom Borelli.

According to the Wall Street Journal, while Bryson was chairman of BrightSource – a solar energy company – it was a huge beneficiary of government subsidies including a $1.6 billion loan guarantee from the Department of Energy. Bryson was also a co-founder of the National Resources Defense Council, an environmental activist group that opposes development of fossil fuel resources.

“In addition to being a crony capitalist, Bryson supported cap-and-trade legislation, which would make electricity prices ‘skyrocket.’ High energy prices are already hurting the standard of living of hardworking American families. We can’t afford to have an environmental activist masquerading as Commerce Secretary,” said Deneen Borelli, full-time fellow of the National Center-sponsored Project 21 black leadership network.

“In recent Congressional testimony, I urged the Natural Resources Committee to unleash the free market to develop the wealth of natural resources – coal, oil, and natural gas – that our country has in order to create job growth and provide needed tax revenue. It’s extremely disappointing that President Obama nominated an individual to a cabinet position who opposes natural resource development,” said Deneen Borelli.

The National Center For Public Policy Research is a conservative, free-market, non-profit think-tank established in 1982. Its 2010 revenues were over $12 million. It is supported by the voluntary gifts of over 100,000 individual recent supporters, receiving less than one percent of its revenue from corporate sources. Contributions to it are tax-deductible.

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