Political Quotes

“I yield myself such time as I may consume. In order to ensure that there is a circuit court that is familiar with the legal issues surrounding civil actions involving gulf energy production, it is important that venue be restricted to the Fifth Circuit so that those district and appeals court judges would have the essential experience and legal precedent to fairly rule on these technical cases. For that reason, I oppose this amendment. The Fifth Circuit, as was pointed out earlier, does include Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, all Gulf Coast States. If various district courts and courts of appeal throughout the country were able to hear these cases, there may be a result of having no uniformity in decisionmaking, and judges who do not have as much expertise or background could be making vital decisions in which the energy security of our Nation hangs in the balance. {time} 1930 It is essential that there be one Federal judicial circuit that understands the technical aspects of these cases with judges who have a background in understanding offshore energy policies and practices. That will ensure that all cases are handled fairly and expeditiously and uniformly without any confusion or delay. By requiring all cases to go through the Fifth Circuit, we accomplish this important goal. For that reason, I urge a ``no'' vote on this amendment, and I urge my colleagues to oppose it. I reserve the balance of my time.”