Political Quotes

“I compliment the floor manager, Senator McCain, and the Commerce Committee, for bringing this matter before this body, the pipeline safety bill. I have the honor of serving as chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee of the Senate. I think everyone is aware of the energy crisis occurring in the country today highlighted by the situation in California which can best be described as both a supply program and a credit program. In other words, they had become somewhat complacent in their ability to attract power from other States to the point where they were relying on 25 percent of their energy coming from outside of California. The prices went up on that outside energy. They have a cap on their retail sales. Their utility companies, which were among the largest in this country, had to pay a higher price for the energy than they could pass on to the consumer. As a consequence, they are facing bankruptcy. The significance of the California crisis has created concern all over America. Part of that involves our dependence on pipelines. Pipelines, of course, provide this country with a supply of oil, supply of gasoline, supply of natural gas. We have had some very unfortunate accidents occur in New Mexico and in the State of Washington. The reality is many of these pipelines are aging, and with the increased demand for energy, we are putting more pressure into these pipelines. Hence, the need for a responsible plan that ensures safety.”