Political Quotes

“I appreciate what the gentleman is attempting to do, again, on the offset. Right now, the BLM is involved in this issue of the sage-grouse in the West. We, in effect, gave both the BLM and the Fish and Wildlife Service additional resources in order for us not to be in a position to list the sage-grouse so as to make sure that we do what is necessary in the sage ecosystem. At the same time, we have plussed up conservation accounts within the Fish and Wildlife Service for those types of invasive species. We have a number of invasive species, not just in the plant world, but, obviously, we have this invasive clam, as you mentioned, that is stuffing up the quagga mussel, and that is causing disruptions throughout the West. I appreciate what the gentleman is trying to do. It is just that we are under the budget allocations we have. We have done what we can in both of these accounts, which is to do good work on conservation and to make sure we conserve species and get rid of bad species throughout the United States. I would hope the gentleman would withdraw his amendment, and I will work with him in the future on the other issue. I reserve the balance of my time.”