Political Quotes

“in the few minutes remaining, I wish to add my voice to those in opposition to this amendment. We thank the Senator from Pennsylvania for his sensitivity to these issues. As he correctly said, this amendment could be devastating to the people and to the families who depend on their jobs in many counties across America. I think it is important that we understand this amendment in the context in which it is being proposed. Federal timber sales are in a steep and devastating decline. Since the early 1990s, the timber program has been reduced in America by over 70 percent. Already, more than 75 percent of the National Forest System is off limits to timber harvests. The Federal timber supply has dropped from 12 billion board feet to the 3 billion board feet being harvested today. Both the economic and the ecological context created by this reduction are not desirable. More than 80,000 jobs have been lost already, and of the 55,000 jobs that remain, they will be jeopardized by this amendment. That represents over $2 billion in employment income, mostly in rural parts of America. The families who depend on those jobs are counting on us to understand this issue and to vote correctly. It is confounding also that these additional cuts are being considered at a time when the industry and those working men and women who depend on it have already been deeply hurt by the critical cuts in the timber program.”