Jack Kingston: “I just want to say I'm confused here. This is opening up the floodgates for coastal development. Whom are we fooling…”

“I just want to say I'm confused here. This is opening up the floodgates for coastal development. Whom are we fooling here? As a matter of fact, I just understood that U.S. PIRG and a lot of pro-environmental groups are opposing this. It puts me on an odd side of things. But whom are we kidding? This is all about coastal development. And don't say, when you're knocking over the marshland, don't touch that sand dune. If you're serious about sand dunes, if you're serious about the wetlands, if you're serious about the environment, the fragile coastal environment, you will oppose this bill. This is the best thing in the world for developers. In fact, I'm a little bit surprised that developers aren't knocking down the doors and saying to fiscal conservatives who are opposing the bill for that, what are you doing? This is the best thing. The great State of Florida, where I have vacationed and so many other people do, we all love the State of Florida and its natural environment. But, goodness gracious, Carl Hiaasen wrote the book ``Strip Tease.'' I mean, there's book after book about overdevelopment in Florida. That is all this whole bill does is allow continued overdevelopment in the coastal area of Florida and other environmental areas. So to have a fig leaf here to say, well, don't worry, FEMA is going to worry about that sand dune and those sea oats in the coastal area, that's a very mixed signal.”