Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, Americans have a penchant for believing that more is always better. That unfettered and unabridged access will solve problems. H.R. 2578, the Conservation and Economic Growth Act, purports to create jobs by violating or eliminating over 35 laws that currently govern our land, air, water, and importantly, our Nation's borders. The idea follows that in giving the Department of Homeland Security free rein to traverse the roughshod lands around our borders, we'll be safer. But, the Department of Homeland Security didn't ask for this access, nor do they believe it's warranted. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told a Senate subcommittee in March that unrestricted authority over public lands was unnecessary for the Border Patrol to do its job and was ``bad policy.'' And, we're not just talking the lands on the collar of America's borders. No, this bill would disrupt your vacation in Cape Hatteras by lifting necessary current restrictions regarding the use of off-road vehicles. The bill would allow corporations to dip right into Alaska's Tongass National Forest, allowing for trees that started growing before the Revolutionary War to be felled. And, if someone decided that development of surveillance equipment in a national park was a good idea--say on Chief Mountain in Glacier National Park--it could be installed without any public comment or even internal review process.…”