Political Quotes

“I stand today to add my strong support for the introduction of this comprehensive package of reforms intended to bring this Nation's mining law into the 21st century. There are few issues before the Senate that are more complex and contentious than mining law reform. Make no mistake, it is an issue within which major ideologies compete. The outcome of these debates will define for years to come the role public lands play in the Nation's ability to maintain a viable strategic mining capability. Across the Nation--from the White House, and from within this very chamber we have been regaled with stirring speeches on the short comings of the 1872 mining law: the unfairness it imposes on the American people. Unfortunately this rhetoric has served only to inflame passions and polarize the American public on this complex issue. It will come as no surprise why, under these circumstances, mining law reform has been such a difficult undertaking within the Congress. There is one additional circumstance which serves to frustrate legitimate efforts to bring mining reform negotiations to a successful culmination.”