Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I am disappointed to be standing here today to debate a bill that has become quite familiar to the House Natural Resources Committee over the past three Congresses. I must point out the obvious fact, Mr. Chairman, that killing of sea lions is not a silver bullet for a salmon recovery. This bill is a five-cent solution to a $10 problem. The fact is the sea lion predation pales in comparison to the harm caused to endangered salmon runs by habitat loss, dam operation, pesticides, invasive species, and several other human activities. The bill does absolutely nothing to address any of these major causes of salmon decline. For example, NOAA Fisheries has found that the estimated salmon and steelhead production in the Columbia River basin is over 10 million fish below historic levels, with 8 million of that loss attributable to hydropower development and operation. I must also point out the hypocrisy here. The bill before us today is described as a salmon protection act, but it follows a series of House Republican priority bills that would push the West Coast salmon population to the brink of extinction. Just this April, my Republican colleagues pushed through the House H.R. 3144, known in the fishing community as the ``Salmon Extinction Act,'' intended to block protection measures that experts tell us are necessary for salmon survival.…”