Political Quotes

“I come to the floor today to fight for a paper company in western Maryland called Luke Mill. I am fighting for the jobs it creates in western Maryland, and I am fighting to make sure its workers have a government on their side. I have worked with the leadership at Luke Mill for decades. It is one of the last large employers in western Maryland. These jobs provide good wages and good benefits for Maryland workers and their families. When it was owned by the Luke family, I was in frequent contact with John Luke about challenges the company was facing. We talked about ways the Federal Government could help his business and where it should just stay out of the way. When unfair trade practices of China were threatening the viability of Luke Mill and the jobs of its workers, I was on the side of Luke Mill. I contacted the Department of Commerce and represented Luke Mill before the International Trade Commission to make sure China and other countries had to play by the rules in trade. As a result, we saved the jobs of American workers who were threatened by an uneven trade playing field. When the management at Luke Mill called me about EPA's Boiler MACT rule, I took their concerns to the highest levels of EPA. Luke Mill told me that the regulations were too expensive to implement companies needed more time to comply and EPA needed to use accurate data to set emissions standards. I heard these concerns and took them directly to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson.…”