Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman. Just continuing on the ethanol theme, Robert Bryce of the Manhattan Institute said recently: ``Between 1999 and 2009, while U.S. ethanol production increased sevenfold to more than 700,000 barrels a day, U.S. oil imports actually increased by more than 800,000 barrels per day. Furthermore, and perhaps more surprising, during the same period, U.S. oil exports--yes, exports--more than doubled to more than 2 million barrels per day. ``Data from the Energy Information Administration show that oil imports closely track U.S. oil consumption. Over the past decade, as domestic oil demand grew, imports increased. When consumption fell, imports dropped. Ramped-up ethanol production levels simply had no apparent effect on oil imports or consumption.'' We have every level of the administration, anybody who analyzes this says that this is a boondoggle; and yet it reappears here, a $6 billion item, not insubstantial, not small. But it appears here in this tax package simply to get it over the line. That simply can't happen anymore if we're going to get control on this debt and deficit. Let me talk about one other provision of the tax bill. All of us talk about the burden that the payroll tax has, and it is big. And it's tough for taxpayers to pay the payroll tax. I would like to lower it. I think everybody would like to lower it. But the payroll tax is dedicated specifically for Social Security. It goes into the Social Security trust fund.…”