Political Quotes

“the people of Maryland and around the Nation are angry and frustrated. Every time they fill the tank of their vehicle with gasoline or look at their utility bills, they get worried. I must tell you, they are frustrated and so am I as to why the Republicans are blocking an opportunity for us to even take up this legislation to deal with the rising energy costs and to deal with the energy policies of this country. Republicans have blocked consideration of S. 3044, the Consumer-First Energy Act, and H.R. 6049, the Energy and Tax Extenders Act containing renewable energy incentive programs. People in Maryland and around the Nation know that when George Bush took the office of President, the price of gasoline was $1.46 a gallon. It is now over $4 a gallon. They know the impact this is having on their lives. There are people in Maryland; in Pennsylvania, the State of the Presiding Officer; and around this Nation who literally cannot afford to fill their tanks with gasoline. They are having to make tough decisions today. There are small businesses that are going out of business because they can't afford the increased energy cost of running their small businesses, and they do not have options as to how to shift costs in order to deal with these rising costs without putting it onto the consumers. So this is having a dramatic impact on our economy. The people of our Nation are asking us to put aside our partisan differences.”