Nancy Pelosi: “That is why I am so pleased President Clinton has stood firm on this issue, in addition to education and some other…”

“That is why I am so pleased President Clinton has stood firm on this issue, in addition to education and some other issues, Medicare, Medicaid, VA, that the President has stood firm and said that we cannot proceed unless we have the basic health and well-being of the American people protected in how we go forward. I would like to elaborate on one point just for half a minute that I mentioned earlier, about a survey released last month in California by the California State Senate, refuting the claim that if you have environmental protection regulations you lose jobs. This report looked at every major study by Government, universities, and private think tanks since 1973. Not a single reputable study found a negative impact from environmental laws. In fact, environmental regulations have created jobs, particularly in manufacturing, transportation, and utility industries, and as I mentioned, there are other industries like the fishing industry which are totally dependent upon a protected environment. There have been a boom in jobs in environmental technologies and services. The report says California, speaking for my State, California alone will have 200,000 environmental workers by the end of the year. The environmental debate is really about protecting public health, as the gentleman has said. The jobs versus owls argument is dead. Again, I thank you for allowing me this time.”