Senator Osmek Unloaded on House DFL Energy Proposals, and It Was Glorious

Senator David Osmek (R-Mound), who is the head of the Minnesota Senate energy committee, recently unloaded on the incredibly bad proposals brought forth by the DFL-led House of Representatives, and it was glorious.

Soon after the video starts, Senator Osmek calls the energy section an abomination and an absolute failure.

The video gives us a glimpse into the negotiations that occurred as the House and Senate attempted to reconcile the differences between their energy priorities. Throughout the negotiation process, both the House and Senate had the opportunity name legislation that would be a “non-starter” to be taken out, but it turns out the DFL House members were insistent on implementing their version of the Green New Deal, which our most recent report on energy found would have been economically devastating but would have resulted in no measurable reduction of global temperatures, even though it was part of the Senate’s non-starter list.

The Senate, according to Osmek, was more willing to accommodate the House, removing several provisions deemed to be non-starters by that body.

For example, Osmek said that the House DFL said lifting the state’s moratorium on new nuclear power plants was a non-starter, so it was removed. The Senate had also included provisions to allow large hydro power to satisfy the renewable energy standard, something that would benefit northeastern Minnesota, but the House DFL said this too, was a non-starter.

It is pretty astounding how the House DFL can sanctimoniously claim that climate change is an existential crisis, yet it was this body that refused to legalize new nuclear power and large hydro, the most reliable, efficient sources of non-emitting electricity available. This is why it is impossible to take them seriously.

I’d highly recommend that you watch the entire 14-minute video below, which also features comments from Senator Housley, Senator Simonson, and Senator Pratt: