Political Quotes

“I thank Ranking Member Pallone for his incredibly important leadership on this issue. Mr. Speaker, every American, every single child and every single family, has the right to breathe clean air. I rise in opposition to S.J. Res. 11, the latest effort from colleagues to put American lives in danger to boost the profits of their corporate, polluter donors. Heavy-duty vehicles make up just about 6 percent of trucks on the road but generate 59 percent of all nitrogen oxide pollution in our country. Mr. Speaker, I grew up in southwest Detroit thinking those heavy trucks rumbling through our neighborhood, near my school, near where I lived, near the park I played in, was normal. It isn't normal. In my district and surrounding areas, we see heavy trucks go through our neighborhoods up to 20 more times a day than any other community in Michigan. This is not the kind of life for any family or any resident of our country. It is no surprise that the rates of asthma, lung cancer, and COPD are dramatically higher in my region, in my district, than any other parts of the State. We see heavy-duty trucks drive outside of our elementary schools, local health centers, and nursing homes every single day. We see premature deaths, heart attacks, asthma, strokes, and maternal complications. These are just some of the effects from pollution that these vehicles spew into our neighborhoods. Mr. Speaker, we have a right to breathe clean air.…”