Political Quotes

“I thank the chairman of the committee, Dr. Hastings. I rise in support of H.R. 3408. This legislation does three vital things: it will open up land in the West to oil shale development; open up one of our most promising areas for energy development in the United States, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; and increase offshore production as well. These provisions will create hundreds of thousands of American jobs and ensure the continued production of new domestic increases in our energy security and decrease our reliance on foreign oil--a goal the administration has professed to support time and time again. Oil shale is one of the most promising new sources of American-made energy. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that the Western United States holds more than 1.5 trillion, with a ``t,'' barrels of oil--six times Saudi Arabia's proven resources and enough to provide the United States with energy for the next 200 years. Opponents to this legislation will argue that this legislation attempts to promote technology that isn't proven. However, while the American oil shale industry is forced overseas due to regulatory uncertainty and burdensome Federal regulations here, other nations are profiting right now from this technology, countries like Jordan, China, and Estonia. Just this morning we heard from Secretary Ken Salazar who expressed the administration's support of emerging technologies. You would think that that would include oil shale.…”