Political Quotes

“Mr. President, last week the leadership sought unanimous consent to discharge S. 1294, a bill to designate as wilderness certain public land in the Cherokee National Forest in the State of Tennessee, from the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and to rerefer the bill to the Agriculture Committee. I am consenting to this discharge and rereferral because the wilderness in this bill would be created out of public lands in the Cherokee National Forest, a national forest created from lands acquired under the Weeks Act. The Agriculture Committee has primary jurisdiction for acquired lands forests. However, I am not conceding the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee jurisdiction over national forests created from the public domain or its jurisdiction over our Nation's wilderness system. ____________________”