“Remember when President Obama bragged that he had a pen and a phone? President Trump has proven that he has a whole drawer full of pens – and he intends to keep using them to help get the American economy growing again.”

Click here to watch Sen. Barrasso's remarks.

WASHINGTON, D.C.— Today, U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor regarding efforts to grow the economy during President Trump’s first 100 days in office.

Excerpts of Senator Barrasso’s remarks:

“Over the weekend, President Trump celebrated 100 days that he’s been in office as President of the United States.

“Newspapers, magazines, and pundits on television were all talking about what the president has accomplished in those first 100 days.

“From what I heard talking with people at home in Wyoming this past weekend, this first 100 days has been a huge success.

“People tell me that they think America is finally headed in the right direction again.

“I’ve had a lot of people tell me that they feel like they’ve actually gotten a new spring in their step as a result of the presidential election of last year and President Trump taking office.

“The other day I was home, I was in line at a gas station behind a guy and a friend of his came in and said ‘Hey how are you doing’ and the guy said ‘Great; we’re hiring again!’

“That’s the kind of confidence that’s happening all around Wyoming.

“The polling company Gallup says that it’s not just happening in Wyoming but all across the country.

“For 24 straight weeks, more Americans have been optimistic than pessimistic about the economy.

“As soon as Donald Trump was elected president, economic confidence soared.

“And it has stayed positive ever since.

“Gallup said that is the exact opposite of what they’d seen for the previous eight years.

“That’s during the whole Obama administration.

“That’s during the entire so-called economic recovery.

“In another poll released last week, Gallup said that people are also less worried that they’ll lose the job that they have.

“They found that American workers are less concerned about being laid off from their job than at any time since Gallup started asking questions way back in 1975.

“Well that’s more than 40 years ago.

“Why are people so optimistic now?

“Well I think it’s because they see that President Trump and Republicans in Congress are serious about improving the economy.

“They see that we’re serious about giving relief to Americans who have been getting buried under an avalanche of red tape.

“They see that the president is off to a very fast start in the White House.

“Just look at what we’ve already done to help relieve the burden on Americans.

“Congress has rolled back 13 different midnight regulations that President Obama tried to sneak through at the last minute.

“We struck down a stream buffer rule that was meant to block coal mining.

“We got rid of a rule that put Americans at a competitive disadvantage when they were trying to develop energy resources overseas.

“We got rid of a regulation that took control of local energy resources away from state officials –one that gave more control to Washington and less to states.

“These were regulations that harmed Americans, wiped out American jobs. Now those regulations are gone.

“I’ve introduced a resolution to block another damaging rule that’s come out by the Bureau of Land Management.

“This has to do with Obama administration rules on methane that’s produced at oil and gas wells.

“The new regulations created confusion by duplicating other rules that were already on the books.

“That’s the problem with these regulations that came out by the Obama administration as they left office –regulation on top of regulation causing cost and confusion.

“It added cost that discourages energy production, kills energy jobs.

“I hope that we can have a vote on this resolution very soon – and get rid of this unnecessary red tape.

“As active as Congress has been at getting rid of these unfair, last-minute rules, President Trump has been even more active.

“He’s already signed at least 30 executive orders to help clear a path for the American economy to take off again.

“He signed a major executive order promoting American energy independence.

“This has been an enormous shift away from the Obama-era approach of destructive regulations, restrictions, and Washington overreach.

“All of these regulations did more to harm hard-working Americans than they did to help our environment.

“From now on, Washington will be looking for ways to protect our environment, while helping our economy to grow.

“Just last week, President Trump took another important step to keep this promise.

“He eased restrictions on drilling for oil and gas in offshore areas like the Arctic and the Atlantic oceans.

“These places have great potential for producing the energy that America needs.

“President Trump is helping to create certainty that those resources will be available if we need them.

“President Obama couldn’t imagine that it was possible to have responsible energy development in America.

“President Trump knows differently, he knows that it is possible.

“He knows that American workers can do the job. He knows that America will be stronger because of it.

“I think that’s the kind of thing that people mean when they tell me that they feel they have a spring in their step.

“I can also tell you that this is just the beginning.

“Remember when President Obama bragged that he had a pen and a phone?

“Well, President Trump has proven that he has a whole drawer full of pens – and he intends to keep using them to help get the American economy growing again.

“He wants to hear more people saying: ‘things are great; we’re hiring again.’

“That’s what the president has been doing – and Congress has been doing.

“Now, these are the kinds of things that will get this country back on track when it comes to our energy policy.

“In Wyoming, and in much of the country, energy means jobs.

“Our goal should be to make American energy as clean as we can, as fast as we can, without raising costs on American families.

“All of us should be able to agree on that.

“It’s time to restore that balance to America’s energy policy.

“President Trump is dedicated to getting the balance right.

“Republicans in Congress are dedicated to getting the economy back in gear.

“I hope that more Democrats will join us – with their ideas and with their support.

“That’s what the American people want – and it’s what they voted for.

“It’s why people are confident, and why they see better days ahead for this great country.”

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