Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, my amendment would create a hiring preference for local residents who are affected by base closures in their communities. Under existing law, the Department of Defense is unable to provide preference to companies with a strong record of hiring local residents, or companies which seek to hire local residents most impacted by base closures. This is what people in my community are saying: Enough is enough. For years we have asked for jobs and contracts on projects that are funded with our tax dollars; we will no longer tolerate someone else, from outside our community, taking all the contracts and jobs; our demands are reasonable, peaceful and lawful; is anybody listening? The Congress has acted to emphasize the importance of revitalizing local communities in the area of a base closure by directing programs and resources to provide economic benefit to minimize the impact of base closures. Because of the way current contracts are structured, and because of the current bidding regulations governing Federal contract awards, there is no provision for bids to currently favor hiring locals most affected by a base closure.”