Political Quotes

“I thank the gentlewoman from Colorado for yielding. I rise in strong support of amendment 659, the Protecting America's Wilderness Act. This amendment includes the Rim of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act legislation I have been working on for nearly 20 years. I first took up the study bill when George W. Bush was President. We got that passed in a Republican House and signed into law. During the course of the Obama administration, we got the study funded and conducted. Thousands and thousands of people commented during the public survey period overwhelmingly in favor of the most aggressive option of tripling the size of the park. Ultimately, the Park Service recommended doubling the acreage in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. This bill would make that law. Twenty years is a long enough time to be pursuing this to finally bring it to completion. This will help us preserve wildlife corridors, rare ecosystems, hiking trails, and recreational opportunities. As Los Angeles expands, this proximity to nature is what so many people love about it. We love how we have lions roaming our hills. We have beautiful bears coming into people's garages to eat Ikea meatballs, all possible because we preserve this open space. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage. Ms. DeGETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Judy Chu), another key sponsor of this amendment.”