Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I will vote to oppose both the amendments offered today. I share many of the concerns of Senator Feinstein and others in this body about the impact of the volumetric ethanol excise tax credit. I am particularly concerned that this credit may increase the price that Americans pay for food, something few families can afford these days. But I cannot support Senator Feinstein's amendment, for three reasons. First, I fear that her amendment, while addressing tax credits for corn-based ethanol, would also remove support for other, non-corn sources. While I applaud Senator Feinstein for maintaining support for cellulosic ethanol production, we should not reduce support for other non-corn sources that have potential to help reduce our dependence on imported oil without affecting food prices. For example, companies in my state and elsewhere are working on production of biofuels from algae. I believe any attempt to address tax credits for corn-based ethanol should leave intact support for these non-corn sources. Second, I fear that ending this credit now, more than 6 months before it is set to expire, would unfairly burden business that have made plans with the assumption that the credit would remain in place at least until then. These businesses have a right to expect that Congress will not pull the rug out from under them. Third, I am concerned that by attaching this amendment to an important piece of legislation, we endanger passage of that legislation.…”