Political Quotes

“I rise today to urge the Senate to do more for Americans who have suffered from the aftereffects of the development of our nuclear arsenal. It is profoundly disappointing to see that the necessary updates to the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, spearheaded by Senators Lujan, Hawley, Schmitt, and myself, were not included in the conference report of the National Defense Authorization Act. When America developed the atom bomb through the Manhattan Project and tested those weapons through the Trinity tests, our country unknowingly poisoned those who mined, transported, and milled uranium, those who participated in nuclear testing, and those who lived downwind of the tests. Don Harrison was one of those who lived downwind. Born in Emmett, ID, Don was born in 1931 and graduated from Emmett High School in 1949. He served in the U.S. Army from 1950 to 1953, came back to Emmett to marry the love of his life Donna, and worked as a farmer, dairy deliveryman, mechanic, and truckdriver to provide for his nine children. His family describes him as a loving father who taught the values of hard work and integrity and to see the worth and light in others. But because Emmett received the third most radiation from being downwind of the Trinity tests, Don Harrison lived on poisoned ground. He ended up contracting basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, colon cancer, prostate cancer, and lung cancer and eventually passed away in 2018.…”