Political Quotes

“I rise to urge my colleagues to vote no on this motion to instruct from Senator Barrasso. If we want to talk solutions to the energy price crisis, if we want to talk solutions to the climate crisis, we have bills to do that. Our Federal oil and gas leasing programs include critical State and public involvement that this amendment is attempting to undercut and sabotage and to try to weaponize this bill in order to have the hope of prompting yet another giveaway for oil and gas companies, which is not going to do a thing to help the American people or the American economy. Oil and gas companies already have more than 1,500 offshore leases that they are not currently using, encompassing a swath of ocean larger than the entire State of Maryland. The top 25 oil and gas companies posted $237 billion in record profits last year, which they should be using, if they want, to drill there, but they are not doing it. So we need to focus on delivering clean energy, efficient solutions to communities, not undercutting Federal processes and giving more handouts to Big Oil. I urge my colleagues to reject this amendment. Vote on Motion The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the motion to instruct conferees.”