Political Quotes

“I say to the Senator, he has made the point because he understands, as I do, how beholden we are to foreign interest sources. If there is a problem in Venezuela or a decision by gulf state oil producers that they are going to withhold supply from the United States, it has a direct impact on the price and certainly on consumers. That is one of the elements we raised and studied, the reliance on imported supplies. As we become less dependent and more energy secure, we are less susceptible to price fluctuations, which I would like to have studied as part of this Consumer Energy Commission. The Senator has made the point, and made it well, as to why we should look at this more closely. There are a dozen ways to go after this, as Senator Murkowski and Senator Bingaman know so well, having spent so much time on this bill. I hope we never lose sight of the ultimate consumer who ends up paying the bill. It is the mom and pop back home who end up with the natural gas bill to heat their home--or gasoline or heating oil. They are the ones who ought to be in on this discussion. That is what we tried to do with this Commission.”