Political Quotes

“I believe before long, when they complete a markup, that the Senator from Alaska--probably both Senators will be here. They will have an opportunity to speak, and I am confident we will hear a very different side of that story. I do not presuppose to speak for the Senators from Alaska, but let me tell you my own personal observations on the situation. No. 1, it certainly would not have been my priority. Right now, there are about 50 people on the island to which Ketchikan would be connected. The island has an airport on it. They view this as a major economic development area for the community of Ketchikan. The town has been devastated because of the Federal cutoff of timber sales which used to be the major industry in Ketchikan, so they are looking to develop alternative sites. Ketchikan is right on the side of a very steep mountain. It is essentially one long narrow main street. Once you go off the main street, you are going up the hill. Not a great place for economic development. I was there, and I spoke with the leaders in the town. They view this as their salvation. They think this is extremely important to their continued economic development. Nevertheless, I see some real problems with it because that bridge would go across an inlet which is a major floatplane landing area for floatplanes coming in and out of Ketchikan. In addition, large cruise ships 250 feet tall come through there. They would have to build a bridge over that.…”