President Trump recently called for a deal to sell our excess energy to the EU.  That would be a brilliant plan that would bring money to our country and stop the Russians from having an energy monopoly in Europe.  Virginia lost a lot of coal jobs due to the last administration's needless regulations, and it hurt a lot of businesses, including mine.

For the past 10 years, I have operated a machine shop that I own outright.  When the coal mines were still operating, I had four guys helping me and business was good.  When the coal outfits went away, a lot of shops in the area went out of business.  Luckily, I am still able to keep mine since it is paid for.  The machine shop is essentially a lucrative hobby.  I have been blessed to have worked for Norfolk Southern for 30 years before I recently retired, so everything I made from the machine work was just a bonus.  Opening up pipelines and offshore drilling would bring a lot of money and jobs to our area.  I would be able to hire those four employees back, and more people would be able to work.  I recently got a drone so I could do land surveying, which could also prove to be a financial bonus for me.

Virginia has been my home for 62 years, and I hope it continues to be for many years to come.  The energy industry has historically been good for our state, and if we open up our shores for drilling, it will create a solid future as well.  President Trump has the right idea to look towards energy independence and ultimately be able to profit from it.  If we have the ability, we should go for it by drilling off our Atlantic Coast.

Don Nelson