Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Madam Speaker, I was here on the floor yesterday evening to debate the amendments under the Energy and Commerce Committee's jurisdiction that were airdropped into this Transportation and Infrastructure bill. This is another one. Although the intent is good, it is a terrible amendment because it didn't go through regular order. The committee of jurisdiction didn't get a chance to understand it and debate it, and I will explain why. My constituents get tired of process arguments, and also a lot of Members get tired of that. We used to have some very powerful committees in this institution, and Members would develop subject- matter expertise through the years of hearings and detail-focused markups. When we moved bills through regular order it would help avoid unintended consequences above bad public policy, and this amendment is another example of bad public policy. So while I appreciate the well-meaning sentiments behind the sponsors, including the emphasis the amendment places on prioritizing communities who cannot afford lead pipe replacements, the way this amendment is drafted leaves me with many questions about how it operates and that it won't actually result in the claims of its sponsors. First, the amendment authorizes a brand-new comprehensive lead program, which is not well-defined, on top of the existing lead reduction program which is defined.…”