Political Quotes

“It's interesting listening to both sides of this debate. We actually, I think, see this amendment in two different ways, and yet we are going to end up being on the same side. This amendment, as it has been revised, is far superior to the form in which it existed less than 24 hours ago. The amendment now applies in an evenhanded way to both competitors in the tanker competition and, for that reason, I think we have made the amendment better. However, allow me to offer a word of caution to my colleagues that merits our consideration. As my colleagues know, this ongoing procurement process that, in fact, was mandated by Congress, is just weeks away, July 9, in fact, from where both companies are going to turn in their final bid. And unless we muddy this process up, we are only a few months away from selecting a winner and finally moving forward to building the replacement for the Air Force's 50-plus-year-old fleet of tankers. The word of caution to my friends is this: Congress needs to be very careful that we do not inadvertently build obstacles or additional delay into this program. After all, our warfighters have waited long enough. And we must be extremely careful that we maintain a level playing field that is essential for vigorous competition. We all know that competition will dramatically increase the odds of a better tanker at a better price, and there are only two companies in the world that are qualified to build these tankers.”