Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I follow my colleague from Oregon, the chairman of the Energy Committee, here in discussing the qualifications of the nominee for Secretary of the Interior, Sally Jewell. We recognize as westerners that this is an appointment, this is a position that has great significance, great meaning to our States, so we pay attention to these nominees, we pay attention to who is the Secretary of the Interior. I have taken the position that our constitutional responsibility for advice and consent should begin with very thoughtful questions on our part, and then, absent any seriously disqualifying factors, we should conclude with the confirmation of the President's nominees. Our obligation to get answers to our questions is always a serious one, and the duty weighs most heavily when the interests of our constituents are directly at stake. I mention the impact the Department of the Interior has particularly on our Western States--our States that have so much in public lands, our States where we have national forests, where we have BLM lands, rangelands, refuge lands. In Alaska and really in many parts across the West, the Federal Government's biggest and most prominent role is really that of a landlord. Sometimes you have a good relationship with your landlord, and other times it feels as if the landlord won't even let you put a nail in the wall to hang a picture. So, again, we look very critically and very carefully at this position.…”