David Perdue: “I rise to continue setting the record straight for the ongoing issue of water rights between Alabama, Florida, Georgia…”

“I rise to continue setting the record straight for the ongoing issue of water rights between Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and the Army Corps of Engineers. As I said yesterday, language from the committee report that accompanies this CJS--Commerce-Justice-Science--bill has been inserted in an attempt to strong-arm the outcome of a matter that should clearly be left to the States. This is an interstate dispute, with negotiations and litigation still pending, and much like other parts of the country, the States have been in negotiations for many years. Clearly, this is not a matter for Congress. This is not a matter that Congress in any way needs to insert itself into. Furthermore, this is a debate we have already had. Last year, the leaders of both Chambers here in Washington determined that Congress has no business using the appropriations process to tip the scales one way or the other on this water rights issue. Why are we going through this again? This is not the work our constituents had in mind for us when they sent us here. They expect us to deliver results on the priority issues of our day, and they expect the national interests and the Constitution to come before the self-interests of a select few Members of the Senate, but, yet again, the senior Senator from Alabama is attempting to impose Washington as the solution for a matter that should be and is being handled by the States.…”