James M. Jeffords: “I will be brief but concise. This is not a vote about reducing mercury by 90 percent by 2009 or even 70 percent by the…”

“I will be brief but concise. This is not a vote about reducing mercury by 90 percent by 2009 or even 70 percent by the year 2030. That is a red herring. This is not a vote about the opponents' wildly outdated claims on the potential cost or the availability of mercury controls. This is not even a vote about the well-documented and devastating effects of toxic mercury on future generations of children or the Nation's environmental health. Mr. President and Senators, this is a vote about whether the administration failed to comply with the law. We cannot afford to get it wrong now. There will be no going back. After careful review, I have concluded that there was such a failure that this was an intentional and illegal effort to circumvent the law, and that it was designed to benefit big energy companies at the expense of the public health. This failure has been documented in reports by GAO, the Inspector General, in the press, and in testimony before the Environment Committee and the Democratic Policy Committee. Our resolution sends the agency back to the drawing board to get it right and to comply with the law. Mr. President and Senators, it is this simple: Should the administration comply with the Clean Air Act? I think so and will vote yes. If you think so, vote yes on this resolution. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired. Who yields time? The Senator from Oklahoma.”