Political Quotes

“I rise today to speak on the Jones Act, an important law for our Nation's maritime industry and for our national security. Senator McCain has filed an amendment to repeal the Jones Act, and I urge its defeat. In Louisiana, we know how important the maritime industry and Jones Act-related jobs are to our State and our economy. According to the American Maritime Partnership, Louisiana leads the Nation in maritime jobs by a number of measurements of the domestic maritime economy. For domestic maritime employment, Louisiana has more jobs than any other State--55,000 jobs out of close to 500,000 nationwide. Louisiana also leads the Nation in per capita maritime jobs, with 1 in 83 jobs being tied to our domestic maritime industries, nearly twice that of any other State. For total economic output from domestic maritime activity, Louisiana again leads the nation with more than $11 billion per year. Louisiana's 2,800 miles of navigable waterways handle more waterborne commerce than any other State. Tugboats based in Louisiana facilitate entry of cargo into the Mississippi River and then up the river and throughout the Nation on our inland waterways. This vast infrastructure and the maritime operators using it directly benefit the entire Nation. For example, 60 percent of export grain travels to the Gulf of Mexico through Louisiana. Also, one-fifth of our domestic energy is produced off the coast of Louisiana with support from the domestic fleet of offshore workboats.…”