On January 27, 2012, ProgressVA posted the following:
Paying no heed to his months of criticism of a “failed stimulus”, George Allen has spent the past two weeks touring and touting the economic successes of two Virginia firms that received millions of dollars in stimulus grants. January 21st, Allen visited Ennis Electric Company, an “admirably managed” business in Manassas. Left out of Allen’s praise for Ennis was the fact the firm has benefitted from nearly $14 million in stimulus funding.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Allen’s hypocrisy has caught up with him on the campaign trail. Earlier this month, Allen hosted a town hall meeting at Micron Technology, a firm that solicited and received $5 million in stimulus funds. Micron CEO Steve Appleton certainly didn’t seem to agree with Allen’s assessment of the stimulus program–he met with President Obama to show his support for the legislation in 2009.
Background:
Allen Continues His “Stimulus Hypocrisy” Tour
Allen Toured “Admirably Managed” Ennis Electric Company in Manassas, Virginia. According to an Allen press release, “Finished off an energizing week with a tour of Ennis Electric Company, an admirably managed family business in Manassas/Prince William County which is competing and succeeding with a talented workforce. In addition to positive Health Savings Accounts, we talked about the importance of fair competitive bidding without prejudicial Project Labor Agreements (PLAs). Besides unnecessarily costing taxpayers more money, PLAs denied the 150 employees of this outstanding non-unionized company $40 million in contracts.” [Allen Release, 1/21/12]
Ennis Electric Has Received Nearly $14 Million In Stimulus Funding.
April 2011: Ennis Electric Received $107,000 In Stimulus Funding From Noresco Sub-Contract. According to Recovery.gov, Noresco, LLC was awarded $11.5 million for an energy savings performance contract at the Department of Energy Forrestal Headquarters building. Ennis Electric received a $107,000 sub-contract on April, 19, 2011. [Recovery.gov, accessed 1/23/12]
January 2011: Ennis Electric Received Nearly $5 Million In Stimulus Funding From Balfour Beatty Construction Sub-Contract. According to Recovery.gov, Balfour Beatty Construction was awarded $55.5 million for a “Security Perimeter Fence and Gatehouses for the Department of Homeland Security Consolidation at the St. Elizabeth West Campus in Washington DC.” Ennis Electric received a $4,950,000 sub-contract on January 5, 2011. [Recovery.gov, accessed 1/23/12]
January 2011: Ennis Electric Received Almost $3.8 Million In Stimulus Funding From Balfour Beatty Construction Sub-Contract. According to Recovery.gov, Balfour Beatty Construction was awarded $27.2 million for “Construction of the tunnel and infrastructure work for the Department of Homeland Security Consolidation at the St. Elizabeth West Campus in Washington, DC.” Ennis Electric received a $3,777,941 sub-contract on January 5, 2011. [Recovery.gov, accessed 1/23/12]
September 2009: Ennis Electric Received Over $5 Million In Stimulus Funding From Grunley Construction Company Sub-Contract. According to Recovery.gov, the Grunley Construction Company received a $54.5 million stimulus grant to modernize wing 2 of the Department of the Interior Main Interior Building.” Ennis Electric received a $5,052,542 sub-contract on September 30, 2009. [Recovery.gov, accessed 1/23/12]
Previously On Allen’s Stimulus Hypocrisy Tour:
Allen Headlined Town Hall at Company that Received $5 Million in Stimulus Funding. According to the Washington Post, “George Allen, the likely Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, recently headlined a town hall at Micron Technology, a semiconductor company with a facility in Manassas. It’s the same company that received $5 million in stimulus money. And the same company whose CEO, Steve Appleton, met with President Obama to show his support for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.” [Washington Post, 1/16/12]
Allen Spokesman Would Not Say Whether The Campaign Knew Micron Had Received Stimulus Money. According to the Washington Post, “Allen spokesman Bill Riggs wouldn’t say whether the campaign knew Micron had received stimulus money, but did say Allen visited the company because he helped recruit Dominion Semiconducter — which was later acquired by Micron — to the state.” [Washington Post, 1/16/12]
BACKGROUND: Allen’s “Failed Stimulus” Rhetoric.
Allen: “The Only Thing This Jobless Stimulus Bill Has Created Is More Debt For Our Children To Bear.” In a press release, Allen said, “It is clear that only thing this jobless stimulus bill has created is more debt for our children to bear. President Obama and Washington liberals like Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi need to listen to the American people — spending sprees, tax hikes and government mandates are hurting our families and small businesses. Washington needs to stop standing in the way of job creators and work to reduce taxes, unleash our plentiful energy resources, and end excessive government regulations.” [George Allen for U.S. Senate, Press Release, 2/17/11]
Allen Called The Stimulus Bill “Stealth Stimulus” And Said “If Spending Money Were Going To Help Our Economy, We Would Not Have Lost Millions And Millions Of Jobs.” Allen was asked, “If the stimulus plan number one did not work, are you dead- set against any kind of new job creation program?” He responded, “Well, they may want to call it stealth stimulus. But the reality is, it will be real debt that has to be paid off. And I think we need to be strengthening America`s financial condition and our economy. And the worst thing we could be doing is putting ourselves into further debt. Even the communist Chinese leaders were lecturing President Obama on worrying about the inflation of the dollar, the weakening of the dollar. And that affects our energy prices and it affects our leadership in the world. So, if spending money were going to help our economy, we would not have lost millions and millions of jobs. And they`re projecting deficits that are doubling.” [Fox News, “Your World with Neil Cavuto,” 11/23/09]
Allen Accused Tim Kaine Of Supporting The “Failed” Stimulus Bill. In a press release, Allen claimed that “Chairman Kaine said that the $800 billion failed stimulus would “jumpstart the economy,” but instead Americans got 31 consecutive months of unemployment over 8 percent and lost more than 1.4 million jobs since the stimulus was passed.” [George Allen for Senate, “Press Release,” 9/30/11]
Allen Referred To The “Failed $825 Bill Stimulus” In A Washington Times Column. In a column in the Washington Times, Allen wrote, “America has had 32 consecutive months of unemployment above 8 percent, 1.5 million people have lost their jobs since the failed $825 billion stimulus and our confidence in the future is down.” [Washington Times, 10/19/11]
Allen: “It’s Painfully Clear To Families That The First Stimulus Was A Failure.” In a column, Allen wrote, “When the $800 billion stimulus plan passed Gov. Tim Kaine said it ‘would jump start the economy’ and it was ‘what’s needed to put Americans back to work.’ That was when unemployment was at 7.8 percent. Now two and half years later, unemployment is stuck above 9 percent, 1.7 million jobs have been lost, and the national debt has soared to well over $14 trillion. It’s painfully clear to families that the first stimulus was a failure.” [Loudon Times, 9/27/11]
Published: Jan 28, 2012