On the recordMay 20, 2014
In conclusion, I would just say that there are balancing interests and that there are competing interests that should be, many times, debated and weighed. That is, actually, what the Army at Fort Carson does. They have entered into the permitting agreements with the Forest Service and with the Bureau of Land Management, agreeing with the concerns raised by those two bureaucracies, so they have worked together in a cooperative fashion. What I am addressing, though, is when the Forest Service comes out and says that Congress has never addressed this issue. I think that that is wrong. Now is the time to set the record straight, and this amendment does set the record straight. We are expressing that national security is a priority. That is what the Constitution says, and that is what we are stating right here. I ask for an ``aye'' vote. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time. The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Lamborn). The amendment was agreed to.
