Mr. President, I don't know what it is like in Alaska, Wyoming, or Tennessee these days, but a lot of times, when I am going home or back and forth, people are saying to me: I wouldn't want your job for all the tea in China. I say: Well, I actually feel lucky to do this job. They ask: What do you like about it? I say: I like helping people. They say: Really? And they ask for examples. Today is a good example. One of the best ways to help people is to make sure they have a job. There are a lot of different ways we provide that nurturing environment for job creation and preservation, and one of those ways is in the area of infrastructure. Sometimes an overlooked part of our infrastructure is the one we address directly in the Water Resources Development Act before us today. Our water infrastructure is actually the forgotten leg on the infrastructure stool. We rightly worry about the infrastructure we can see: our bridges, highways, airports, and railroads, but our Nation's water infrastructure: our pipes, shipping channels, flood control structures, and the infrastructure we don't see, as we have learned, is in desperate need of investment. Our Nation's drinking water systems, dams, reservoirs, levees, shipping lanes, and ports support and promote economic growth and job creation. These systems provide water for everything from families to agriculture to small businesses. This is infrastructure that Americans rely on every day, and it keeps our economy moving.…
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